Dancing Through Life - I Want A Barre

As you may know, I've been having some problems with my right knee moving in directions it shouldn't go into (and yes, it hurts when it does that). Last time I saw my Physical Therapist, I asked about what exercises I should do to help strengthen my leg/knee muscles and keep that movement from happening. He, in turn, contacted my doctor for a medical referral so that he would be able to add treatment to my regime. Approval came so yesterday, after establishing that my shoulder continues to improve, we shifted gears. 

 It's often easier to see leg placement when standing at a barre
than just at a railing. Unfortunately, there is no mirrored barre in
the YMCA gym. 

When I was young, like Elementary School, Middle School and High School young, I attended dance classes taught by my Godmother/Aunt every week. She was a renowned teacher of modern dance and I would put on my leotard and tights and join other students at the designated location. We would line up in lines or cross the floor diagonally in directed exercises. I did this for many long years and never thought much about how Tante Vera was teaching us to move.  

Why bring these classes up? Yesterday, Joseph (my PT) tested my resistance and movement range for my hips and knees and pronounced that my front and back movements were good - strong muscles - but my side resistance strength was minimal. Exercises were then assigned and here I am, back to some rather familiar legwork that brings my thoughts back to those dance classes of years ago. 

A barre class doesn't have to have the barre in front of a
mirror (although I find that helpful), it just needs the
barre itself as an anchor - a reminder. You're not putting
weight onto it, it just stabilizes you. 

What I want is a barre - that railing positioned in front of a mirrored wall in most dance studios. I want to hold on to a rail while I move my leg in a controlled motion to the side and back. When I'm doing this movement, it reminds me of standing in front of the mirrors of my youth, holding onto the barre and watching my form in the mirror. Unfortunately, I don't think the stair railings at the YMCA intersect in any way with the mirrored exercise wall. I might want a barre, but I won't get one. 

But, I have exercises to do and I know that if I do them properly and with attention, they will work. My muscles will strengthen, and my knee problems will begin to be resolved. It won't be fast, but it will happen. Physical Therapy works like setting up a new habit - several weeks to establish the pattern before it becomes second nature and settles into the muscles themselves. So I'm sending out mental "Thanks" to my Godmother/Aunt today, and reminding myself that if I had just stayed dancing over the years, I might not have the physical issues I'm dealing with now. Maybe that idea of dancing through life was correct, after all! 

Maybe we all need to dance through our lives. 

Happy Friday to all, I'm looking forward to getting to the gym and trying the two new movements my PT has assigned to me. Have a wonderful day and I'll be back tomorrow.