GRATITUDE AND APPRECIATION…

When it comes to being more mindful and connected to our movement, two of my favorite practices are gratitude and appreciation. No matter how shitty my day has been or how off my dance practice felt, I can always find things to be grateful for and appreciate.    When we think about being thankful, appreciation and gratitude are often used interchangeably.

However, there is a subtle  difference between the two concepts: Appreciation is about recognizing and finding pleasure in the finer details. Sensual movement is pleasure in action. When we dance, we can focus on appreciating all the details of our movement- how our muscles contract and release, how much space we can take up with nice full extensions, the way our skin feels as it slides against itself, that feeling when we have the perfect grip for our pole tricks, that awesome whoosh sound as your heels glide along the floor-and yes, the sound of a well-placed heel clack too.   

All of these sensations help us to connect with our bodies and learn what truly feels amazing for us. No one else’s input or approval is needed. By focusing on connecting through our senses we can also see the beauty in the everyday details that we might otherwise overlook.  

Gratitude is a larger sense of thankfulness and another way to connect with the present moment.  Gratitude helps us from always chasing after the next shiny new pole move instead of slowing down to take note of where we are right now-and how far we’ve come already. By taking the time to be grateful for all the incredible things our bodies can do, we can create a more loving and compassionate relationship with ourselves. And that is cooler than nailing the newest TikTok/IG pole trick.  

Here’s one of my favorite Gratitude and Appreciation practices I want to share with you: I know one of the go-to tools for our gratitude practice is keeping a gratitude journal. Over the last month, I’ve tweaked that practice a bit to let appreciation have some attention too. I’ve been writing “What I’m grateful for” and “What I appreciate” side by side. “What I’m grateful for” gets one statement then I use the “What I appreciate” column to expand on my gratitude statement. Try it! You’ll be surprised at how many things you’ll come up with.  

This month we’ll be exploring both in classes, and as always, I invite you to try these practices outside of the studio too. We have so many amazing events and workshops coming up as well as some surprises for members throughout September  to remind you all how much we appreciate you.