CreativeMessHave you ever been to a production of Cirque Du Soleil? Been to the now defunct Barnum and Bailey’s Circus? If so you’ve more likely than not seen someone wrapping themselves up in fabrics or suspended on a trapeze bar. Ever imagined yourself as a circus performer? Okay, neither did I until this year. This is my journey of 3 months of aerial circus classes.
Let me just say, a friend suggested that I try circus arts. I never thought it’d be something I’d actually try but alas here I am.
January was the first month of aerial. Let me tell you that I had no idea if I’d continue treating myself with such DISRESPECT. I’m kidding but in all honesty, I was only going once a week but it let me know some things about myself. I was more out of shape than I thought. Not a touch of flexibility aside from being able to touch my toes (I’ve got long arms). And when I think of endurance, it makes me chuckle because I realized I didn’t have nearly as much as I thought.
So here’s the truth. I don’t like pain that lingers, I hate the way my hands felt and the fact that I was getting calluses. Circus classes have given me all of that and I was stuck between a rock and a hard place. Waste the money and never return. That would trigger some depressive thoughts. I hate the idea of needlessly wasting money and I’d be quitting on top of that.
The other option was to keep going to finish the aerial classes I paid for and never return. I was hesitant but I hadn’t started working yet and I needed something to help me out of my head. I also was at a very stressful point with my body and I knew I was probably not going to become the gym rat I used to be. So I persisted.
Month 2, February. Things became increasingly more difficult because just as I started getting into circus classes, I also started working for the first time since the relocation. I didn’t think I had the stamina to get home from class, prepare for work then get enough sleep to sustain myself at work. I was wrong.
Month 3 is when I decided to start going more than once a week. Let me tell you, this was a game changer. For the obvious reasons, my body and my skill level. The things I didn’t realize is that I was forcing muscle memory even though I didn’t intend to. So during classes where we did less, I felt the difference. By the end of the third month I was going no less than twice weekly and occasionally 3 times a week.
Skip forward to June. 6 Months into circus classes and I’m stuck in it. I’ve already done the student showcase, I’ve escalated things to committing to 3 classes a week. So here’s what’s physically different.
-I’m more flexible than I ever imagined.
-I’m less clumsy, which is ASTOUNDING to me.
-My posture is great and it’s so natural that I don’t notice the auto correcting my body does.
-I’m forced to eat more.
I don’t want to dive too deep into the last point, at least not in this post but eating is a big deal for me. I’m the type of person who doesn’t eat well, let alone enough, during the best of times. It’s apart of something deeply ingrained in my mind that I’m actively working on. As a result, I have to always be cognizant of what I’m pushing through my mouth hole cause sometimes it’s just not enough to survive.
I’m pushing myself physically with circus arts because it’s helping in combatting the dark days I have. If you don’t have a physically taxing activity you enjoy, I suggest you get one. It may just save your life.
If you’d like to keep up with me IRL or want to chat about circus arts, find me on Beyonce’s internet via Instagram on one of my many accounts or TikTok.