Shelby shares the importance of correct form.
If you have ever taken my class, you’ll know I looooove to talk about form. So, I thought it might be fun to talk about why that is:
Why do I strive for great form, and in turn, why do I want you to as well?
I used to be a professional ballerina. I spent a good deal of my life in front of a mirror, perfecting and critiquing every little bit of my technique. I became addicted to the delicate way in which the body can move and how every muscle can isolate. It is one of the oldest art forms, and I believe that has a lot to do with ballet dancers’ natural inclination to want to understand their bodies on the highest and most intense level. Generation after generation have found that to achieve this kind of body awareness and control feels like a special kind of power.
Knowing and understanding exactly which muscle you are working and how to do it correctly is quite an amazing thing.
Not only will you get more out of your workout if you have correct form, (ever had a trainer correct you to find that the exercise became 10 times harder?!) but you are also protecting your body from injury. When you focus on form, you’re actually present in your workout, and not just going through the motions.
Lastly, in monitoring your body as it moves through an exercise, you are creating and growing your own mind body connection. It is so much more than squaring your shoulders or bending your knees just because the trainer asked you to. When you take a correction, or correct yourself, you are bettering your own connection with your body, and that practice will continue to benefit you through your life, even after class ends. Nobody can understand your body as well as you... so why not really get to know it? And while you’re at it, don’t forget to show it some love and care, because you only get one.
Love,
Shelby