Dance/ Martial Arts backgrounds

Did Tai Chi this morning, and enjoyed myself despite the lack of sleep and early start. I don't think I'll be able to incorporate it into a routine yet though, I'll need a couple more lessons before then.

Can't dance to save my life... But Martial Arts has definitely helped my Staff, poi and various other toys i pick up =P

I'm a bellydancer and I started spinning poi so that I could combine the two arts. I am finally getting to the point with the spinning that I can comfortably move around while spinning. Spinning is sooo much fun, I'm so glad I started!

this is me with my sword...no poi in the pic...still trying to figure out how to get good pics while spinning...



I think this is my first post so HI 2 everyone

Nice belt, echogrrrl. I want one like that.

Actually, if you turn your shoulders in that picture more to face the camera, I could picture a butterfly (or threading the needle) with you tossing the left one behind your head. Then you could swing into an Indiginous Wave. (Mexican Wave, really, but....racistas!! Viva Colombia!!)

I draw my inspiration from both martial arts and dance, it's kind of like capoiera but with weapons and elements added.

Hi echogrrrl!

Belly dancing with poi... What a wonderful idea. I bet that would look sweet!

I've seen belly dancing and contact staff, they work really well together,

I've done some martial arts, but mostly at school.. and not very well. They help w fire sword!!
My nunchucks are more an artistic thing than weapon thing but I can learn more moves from martial arts...

And I've done belly dancing for the last year... I think it helps me a tad with fire fingers, but not with poi at all.

Any movement training is influential, whether or not we realize it.

I took Tae Kwon Do years ago, and a touch of Capoeira. I've also done Tai Chi, gymnastics, yoga and life rhythms, which definately have found their way into my movement sphere, though my experience with them is *very* limited.

However, I have also formally, and extensively, studied many forms of Bellydance (for 15 years now), Hula, Bhangra/Bollywood, African dance (with emphasis on W. African), Flamenco, and Salsa.

I have found it does a couple things.

When I am choreographing for a performance, it adds alot of depth depending on the song choice. I have a wider range of movement to pull from and that rocks.

However, when I am freestyling (not often) it muddles things up sometimes I think. At least for me. I feel overwhelmed by the choices and end up kind of being low key in my spinning, which isn't bad but it is definately not what people think they will see when I spin.

This might also be a difference in the whole choreograph vs. freestyle thing. I dunno.

I've seen a difference between freeform twirlers and technical twirlers, with the former more focused on movement and teh latter on advanced techniques.

2 more cents from me!

if it were 3 cents it would be rounded up to 5

I've trained in different martial arts and dance classes and the biggest influences in my current direction are chinese/brazillian martial arts and asian fan dance.

it has blessed me with a strong base for stability, agility for relaxed technicality / movement, and a strong emphasis on flow.

Alot of Australian twirling pushes the dance, movement angle. I spend more time on movement than i do in technicality, as i believe from feedback professionally and informally that it is my strength.

choice in toys help. i focus on short doubles and fire fans, so flowing movement, graceful throws and acrobatics lend well to these toys

b

hi all.
I've always had a bit of a bellydance style since i went to classes for a few years.
i started aikido about 1 year ago and i love that we use staffs and swords.
using a staff in aikido is a totally different technique to how i would usually spin a fire staff. the martial art style spinning does work well for the whole battle thing and its lotsa fun playing at being a fire ninja
i would love a big curved arabic style fire sword, although in aikido you use a samuri sword.
learning aikido has made me more centred and balanced and i now seem to do quite few spins when twirling. aikido is full of them and is called the art of the dynamic sphere.
i would love to try out capoeira and tai chi one day.

Capoiera rocks anyone considering it should go go go!

I have done a dance degree which was heavily influenced by the martial arts I learned as a teenager - kickboxing mainly with some karate.
Capoiera I learned while working with a dance company, who specialised in break dancing (developed from Cap), and merging it with classical ballet, Indian dance, and other traditional dance methods shared by its members.

I agree whole heartedly that balance and sure-footedness are key things carried over into poi.
One thing I find which carries over all three I do better when I'm not trying to concentrate on the moves. If I think about it, it goes wrong!!

I'm seriously considering taking up Tai Chi or Arnis, or both. any suggestions?

Tai Chi is much fun. Only done some because my karate sensei has cross-trained so much it is silly, but it is fun to do.

Odd feeling as well compared to Goju-Ryu.

I do not use anything conciously. Probably more from rock-climbing (balancy stuff :P)

Tai Chi is very nice. Every bit worth it. I've only learnt the 8 posture Yang style form so far, but it's been sweet

i've studied aikido for several years and other martialarts type things after i quit that. we had staff training twice a week when i trained aikido,i learned a bit of the basic spins then,so that helped me when i started spinning the staff. actually ,besides helping me,for a short while it was also an obstacle ,in a way. i had to readjust my mind a little bit,to understand that these moves can never be used in a "martial arts" way ,as they are inpractical for purposes of fighting.(by that time i had developed a sort of way of thinking which said "if it's impractical and you can't use it in a self defense situation-throw it out and don't do it") ,and i had to deal with that,make peace with that and understand,that i don't even wanna do "practical" or "useful for fighting" things anymore:] maybe i'll write a separate post about that later.

anw,we also had a lot of turns in aikido,but i kinda failed to connect them with spinning and only now,after several months of staff training am beginning to turn and move while i spin,i used to just sorta shuffle in one place:] actually,that's also always been a problem-i can't dance,but when i'm warming up,for example, i can move in a much more fluid and unrestricted way than i do when i spin,dunno why. working on it:]

Hmmm.... Valid point. I probably take a lot of my movement (as opposed to spinny stuff) from my training.

Which has elements of aikido in it due to friends.