Tag Archives: julia erickson

A dancer’s source of happiness

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With both experience and careful observation, I believe that dancers tend to dance best when we are driven by some sort of emotion, particularly in today’s case, happiness!  It would be a gigantic stretch to say that happiness is the only emotional motive, but I can’t help but start dancehealthier on a happy note.  Behind the scenes, dancers find their own sources of happiness .  These sources are different for each one of us, which makes it that much more special.  Happiness compels us, intrigues us, motivates us, and lets be honest. . . Keeps us going!

With no subject or topic in mind, these dancers answered: What is something that makes you happy?

  • Jermaine Maurice Spivey – Dancer with Kidd Pivot in Frankfurt, Germany (previously with Cullberg Ballet, Ballet Gulbenkien and Juilliard):                                        Happiness: Driving with no destination, early afternoon naps, trains (real ones, not subway trains) playing guitar, shopping for other people, scotch, the smell of geranium
  • Tom Mattingly – Soloist with Ballet West (Previously with Cincinnati Ballet):                    Happiness: “Dancing makes me happy. . . lol.  It’s kind of a bunheaded answer but it’s true.  Dance has brought me more joy than anything else in my life. It enabled me to get out of a negative place in my life and move past it.  Without dance I wouldn’t have been able to move around the country and meet so many awesome people that made me realize that I’m someone worth being.”
  • Kara Zimmerman – Dancer with Joffrey Ballet (Previously with Pacific Northwest Ballet, and Cincinnati Ballet):                                                                                                Happiness: Coffee, time with friends, beautiful sunsets, dancing, water, amusement parks, trying new things.
  • Dwayne Holliday – Danced with Ballett Deutche Oper am Rhein, Milwaukee Ballet, and Cincinnati Ballet:                                                                                                Happiness: “My wife makes me happy, Yoga, life…tbh taking a bit of time to reflect on what I have been given, as opposed to what I was not blessed with.”
  • Danielle Bausinger: Dancer with Cincinnati Ballet (trained with San Francisco Ballet School)                                                                                                                        Happiness: Chocolate, Love, movies, beaches, naps particularly on a rainy day, Disney, and being an Aunt.
  • Julia Erickson – Principal dancer with Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre                                      Happiness: “I love all things indulgent and hedonistic but it also makes me happy to find the guilt-free pleasure: naps with my kitties, the ocean, checking things off the to-do list, the New York Times, the New Yorker (can you spot a theme?), perfume, fresh produce, creating – making stuff (sewing, jewelry, etc), baking, cooking, creating a wonderful dish out of only things in my pantry, a summer mani-pedi, helper dogs, love and loved ones, having friends from different walks of life, forgiveness, street food, traveling with Aaron to far off places, playing and giving and exploring while dancing, Seattle late summer nights, amazing quality sushi, a Cafe Intelligensia latte, creating a new delicious yet healthy recipe for a Barre flavor!”
  • Kelly Yankle – Dancer with Ballet Met (Previously with Cincinnati Ballet):                           Happiness:  ”Relaxing makes me happy, knowing that I have nothing at all to do or worry about (that is rare haha).  Speaking Spanish makes me happy.  Laughing makes me happy.  My boyfriend and friends make me happiest!
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Ambition at its very best. . . Barre – A Real Food Bar!

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“We are indeed much more than what we eat, but what we eat can nevertheless help us to be much more than what we are.” ~ Alice May Brock

Julia and Aaron in action!

Dancers tend to be ambitious people.  Luckily, our ambition (in most cases) tends to stick to us like glue, naturally creating new fascinating and desirable paths for us to experience and share. I recently had the privilege to talk with cofounders, Julia Erickson and Aaron Ingly, of Barre – A Real Food Bar. Julia, a Principal with Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre along with her husband Aaron, a retired dancer from PBT, serve as perfect examples of dancers whose ambition is far from being on the shy side. Today, Julia and Aaron are on the fast track with their new business endeavor – Barre – A Real Food Bar. It all began with a little heart, creativity, intelligence, but most importantly the glue that stuck. . .  Ambition to create healthier lives for dancers.

*By the way, a portion of the proceeds benefits arts education!

dancehealthier:  Tell us, what is Barre – A real food for dancers – and what inspired you guys to create this product?

Barre:  As I’ve gained experience as a dancer, I’ve become increasingly more attuned to how I fuel my body. I created Barre because I was looking for a better pre and post rehearsal snack. I started futzing around in the kitchen, getting creative, and realized I could make something more nutritious and tastier than the bars out there on the market. You know how we, as dancers, are always trying to find that perfect pre-show snack…something that’ll support you yet not weigh you down? I’d found it! I designed Barre to serve dancers perfectly as a balanced source of slow and fast burning carbs, protein, fiber, and naturally occurring electrolytes – to provide great energy, muscle support and recovery. My creation was a hit at PBT among my colleagues; Aaron and I then got to thinking that we should share it with the rest of the dance world and beyond.

dancehealthier:  What is Barre’s mission?

Barre:  This is our mission statement:  In order to fuel their bodies for top athletic performance in rehearsal and on stage while remaining lean, dancers have very specific nutritional needs. The mission of Barre is to provide exceptional nutritional fortification—inspired by these needs—for dancers and everyone else who demands clean, wholesome, nutritious and great tasting sustained energy. To accomplish this goal, Barre produces and distributes health-minded snacks and performance products specially formulated to live up to the rigors of such a demanding artist-athlete lifestyle. Barre supplies all levels of the performing arts and related exercise industries from studio to stage. But this isn’t the limit of Barre’s scope: the attention to detail given to nutrition by dancers can benefit people in all walks of life, whether it be picking up your kids from school, running a 5k, or combating the dreaded midday office slump. Barre uses simple ingredients that everyone can pronounce, in their purest and most unadulterated form. And while good nutrition is the foundation of wellness, as artists we believe great taste is paramount! When all natural, healthy ingredients are artfully combined, nutrition and taste need not be mutually exclusive. We believe in aiding performance in the fine art of life through our superior quality gourmet nutrition products.

dancehealthier:  What flavors do you currently have on the market?

Barres!

Barre:  We currently have two main flavors, Pirouette Cinnamon Pecan and Black Swan Chocolate Berry, on the market. We also have a limited edition flavor, Pirouette Crunch, which has an extra added crunch.

dancehealthier:  The barre is good, tasty and pure – using only real ingredients? How important is it for barre to promote healthy nutrition for dancers?

Barre:  We saw a void in the dance world of healthy, readily accessible snacks, and we have set out to change that. We’d love for Barre to be sold at every dance studio in America – so kids and adults alike are never presented with that situation we’ve all been in: when there is no healthy snack around so you’re forced to eat something not great or witness your energy level suffer and risk injury. It is so important that good nutrition is advocated for in the dance world, because it is an environment with a naturally high risk for disordered eating. This being said, it seems that more than ever dancers are embracing healthfulness as the new paradigm for success, and we are thrilled to partake in this positive change! Our charge is really to help educate dancers and their families about why it is so important to take great care, through great nutrition, of the very tool with which we perform our art. And to make great nutrition readily accessible!

dancehealther:  If barre could give dancers any piece of advice, with integration of dance and health in mind – what would it be?

Barre:  Work hard, stay balanced, and eat well!

To order barre, be sure to visit http://realfoodbarre.com/products-page/.  If you think could/should/would be interested in carrying Barre – pilates/yoga/dance studios/stores, of course including your workplace (if you think there’s a place for it there) feel free to contact Julia and Aaron for further inquiry at info@realfoodbarre.com.

**Thanks to all dancehealthier readers and subscribers for all of your support so far. If interested, you may subscribe to dancehealthier at the right hand side of the homepage.  You will only be e-mailed when new posts are published. Dancehealthier also has a facebook page.  To check it out, click HERE!  Feel free to make a comment or contact me via e-mail at dancehealthier@gmail.com.**

November’s Theme: Stress Management with This Week’s Focus on Progressive Muscle Relaxation

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Thanks to Kathleen Rae Theilhelm (Bejart Ballet Lausanne) for last week’s Conversation Sunday – Behind the Scenes Interview.  Click HERE to take a look!  I’m also stoked to publish this coming Conversation Sunday Post – An interview with founders, Julia Erickson and Aaron Ingley, of Barre – A real food.  I’m taken aback by their talent, dedication, and mission to make a dancer’s world healthier.  It’s a must read!

Continuing along with November’s Movement Wednesday Stress Management Theme, I will discuss yet another technique that I find enticing and above all, quite helpful for dancers. With Nutcracker approaching, it’s a good time to utilize our limited downtime to rest and relieve any unneeded stress and/or anxiety.  It is important to mention that the stress management techniques discussed in detail this month may not appeal to all individual’s needs and personalities.  Instead, the intention is to serve as an educational tool/reference, reminder and/or motivator.

The time to relax is when you don't have time for it. ~ Jim Goodwin and Sydney J. Harris.

Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR) was first designed by a Chicago Physician Edmund Jacobson, with the intention to ease tension of patients heading into surgery. Therefore, Jacobson taught his patients to first consciously contract a small muscle group (hand) and then gradually release the contraction to achieve a relaxed state. This process was repeated for all the muscle groups of the entire body. Over time, this method has been proven to be an applicable way to achieve desired relaxation of skeletal muscles, the mind and internal organs.  Over seven decades of collecting data in order to evaluate the effectiveness of PMR, this method has proven efficacy in reducing tension and stress.

Compared to last week’s exercise on Yogic or Pranayama breathing, PMR takes a bit more time, commitment and energy.  However for dancers, the amount of strenuous demands we place on our entire musculoskeletal system is enormous, making this technique fully worth the effort.

PMR Exercise: 

Preparation: Find a quiet place with no interruptions for 30 minutes.  Lying-down in supine position with arms placed along the body and eyes closed is proven most effective.

Step 1: Relaxation of the Arms (6 minutes)

  • Clench the left fist
  • Feel the tightness in the muscles of the left hand
  • Now, let go
  • Feel the relaxation in the muscles of the left hand
  • Repeat for right fist
  • Bend the left arm at the elbow
  • Feel the tightness in the muscles of the left arm
  • Now, let go
  • Feel the relaxation in the muscles of the left arm
  • Repeat for the right elbow
  • Repeat sequence for both arms together
Step 2: Relaxation of the legs (7 minutes)
  • Bend the left foot upward
  • Feel the tightness in the muscles of the left foot
  • Now, let go
  • Feel the relaxation in the muscles of the left foot
  • Bend the left foot downward
  • Feel the tightness in the muscles of the left foot
  • Now, let go
  • Feel the relaxation in the muscles of the left foot
  • Now repeat sequence for bending the right foot upward, followed by repeating the downward sequence
  • Bend the left leg at the knee and tighten
  • Feel the tightness in the muscles of left leg and thigh
  • Now, let go
  • Feel the relaxation in the muscles of the left leg and thigh
  • Repeat sequence for right leg at knee
  • Bend both knees together, and repeat the same sequence using both legs together
Step 3: Relaxation of the face (5 minutes)
  • Place wrinkles on the forehead by lifting the eyebrows
  • Feel the tightness in the muscles of the forehead
  • Now, let go
  • Feel the relaxation in the muscles of the forehead
  • Frown by drooping the eyebrows and repeat the sequence
  • Close both eyes tightly shut and repeat the same sequence
  • Clench the jaw and repeat the same sequence
  • Purse the lips tightly and repeat the same sequence
Step 4: Relaxation of the Neck and Shoulders (6 minutes)
  • Bend the neck gently forward
  • Feel the tightness in the muscles of the neck
  • Now, let go
  • Feel the relaxation in the muscles of the neck
  • Bend the neck gently backwards and repeat the sequence
  • Bend the neck gently to the right and repeat the sequence
  • Bend the neck gently to the left and repeat the sequence
  • Shrug the left shoulder to touch the earlobe and repeat the sequence
  • Shrug the right shoulder to touch the earlobe and repeat the sequence
Step 5:  Relaxation of the trunk (2 minutes)
  • Inhale deeply to tighten the chest muscles
  • Feel the tightness in the muscles of the chest
  • Now, let go
  • Feel the relaxation in the muscles of the chest
  • Exhale with force to tighten the abdominal muscles
  • Feel the tightness in the muscles of the abdomen
  • Now, let go
  • Feel the relaxation in the muscles of the abdomen
Step 6:  Relaxation of the Whole Body (4 minutes) 
  • Give yourself autosuggestions for each muscle group that you have worked on.  For example it may be helpful to say,”My feet are relaxed, my ankles are relaxed, my legs are relaxed, etc.”  Basically you want to tie all of your work together to conclude the exercise.
Thanks to all my readers and subscribers for all of your support so far.  If interested, you may subscribe to dancehealthier at the right hand side of the homepage.  You will only be e-mailed when new posts are published.  Dancehealthier also has a facebook page.  To check it out, click HERE!  Feel free to make a comment or contact me via e-mail at dancehealthier@gmail.com.
Reference:

Sharma, M., & Romas, J. A. (2007). Practical Stress Management, A Comprehensive        Workbook for Managign Change and Promoting Health – 4th Ed. Pearson Education, Inc.