The hardest exercise for me...
Of all the exercises I’ve had to put myself through, in the name of becoming a better aerialist and coach, I am currently working on the one that may just get the best of me:
Increasing my level of patience.
As you well know, ABAF has left our old home inside of the rock climbing gym, to facilitate our growth in our own space. Let me say...
Do you have aerial a.d.d.?
Even though you attend classes regularly, do you have a growing list of goals you want to achieve? A slew of skills you want to learn? Tons of tricks you have yet to nail down? Do you find yourself unable to decide which of your favorite moves you want to put in your next performance? You may be suffering from Aerial Attention Deficit Disorder. If you are lucky enough to have access to multiple types...
An important message brought to you by...
Within the past year, accidents involving circus performers and aerialists have been highlighted in the news. With the most recent one being right here in North Carolina, we at Air Born Aerials thought we should let our voice be heard about a topic in which we are so passionate: Safety!!!
We do not wish to point fingers or place blame with anyone for any of these...
Fuel the machine
Regardless of how dedicated you are to aerial fitness: a once in a while-fun as a hobby- participant or a die hard-can’t go less than twice a week without feigning-addict...you have to properly fuel your body.
An analogy I like to reference is your vehicle. Would you attempt to take off on a long journey without putting gas in your car? Or would you try to put just...
Fighting with the aerialist in your head
We all have one: An aerialist in our head that looks amazing, is super strong and can perform amazing feats at exactly the right time. This inner aerialist can often cause us to feel frustrated. Below is a blog written by one of our own, the ridiculously bendy April VanSleet. In class she is everyones biggest supporter and cheerleader. But, like everyone else, she was hardest on herself. She learned...
Great pre-show advice
(Blog entry generously shared by Laura Witwer)
As my beautiful and extremely talented Air Born students prepare for our annual Spring Student Show, I know there are nerves already a bit frazzled. I thought this blog, recently posted by the fabulous Laura Witwer (check her out at www.laurawitwer.com) was right on the mark with pre-show advice. Enjoy!
Dare to be different!!
Over the last year, in group classes and workshops, I have been pushing students to be more creative and to find different poses or moves created from an already known skill. For instance; how many different poses can you get out of ‘man in the moon’ just by playing with the fabric and moving yourself in a different way? What about hip keys? Its so endless its mind boggling, I tell you!!
Never let ‘em see you hurt!!!
With social media apparently not going anywhere, it’s become addictive for aerialists to get pics of themselves during class and then post them on all of those insta-twit-book sites. Photos are a great way to track your progress, especially if you are working on skills that require flexibility. But what about the end result? When you want to highlight those mad skills in a show?
Unfortunately...
student spotlight!!
Time again, for our Student Spotlight!! We’re getting a double dose of ‘A-mazing’ this time, as we have both Patricia and Arielle to answer questions.
These two ladies came to Air Born for classes together, and are inevitably as linked as Lucy and Ethel, Bert and Ernie or M&M’s!!!
Make no mistake though, they are individually strong and uniquely talented.
I thought...
The nasty “c” words
OK, get your mind out of the gutter. I am not speaking of anything with only four letters.
The nasty C words I am referring to are Complacency and Criticism. These can be bad words in any topic, yes? But here, we talk about the aerial world. So, how do these words negatively affect us as performers, students and teachers?
COMPLACENCY:
Is there an apparatus that you...
I’m Callin’ bull crap!!!
I came across an old article from the New York Times titled “Why Women Can’t Do Pull Ups” So naturally, it caught my attention!!
Wait...What?!!? Women can’t do pull ups?!? I decided to read further.
I learned that the societal perception that this task was something women will never accomplish, or accomplish well, starts in grade...
Do you have goals?
Just because it’s July doesn’t mean we cant have some resolutions, some goals to achieve! So, what are your aerial goals? Do you even have any?
Often times I hear my students say they want to be able to do something; achieve a certain feat of strength, perform a certain move, etc. The initial work to obtain that goal is intense, exciting (“I cant wait to be able to do this! Yaaay!!” ),...