Movement   

Play between mammals can incorporate movement, facial expressions, sound—and with humans—music. Play is based on shared mutually delightful agreements and if set to rhythm, you get dance. In this course we’ll play a wide variety of movement games. Some will look like dance, and others more like martial arts. Might your life be more fun with a little more play and laughter in it? This class will challenge your balance and coordination, your perceptions of and sensitivity to others, and tendencies you may have to be dour or handicapped by self-consciousness. It will also teach you how to dance to any music with anyone, even if you’re clueless about the steps! Sounds a little edgy...and intriguing, doesn’t it? Join us if you’re ready to not take yourself too seriously, make some discoveries, and have fun with other human primates! Partner exercises will be presented as a metaphor of relationship issues. Great for life-long dancers as well as those with two left feet!

NOTE: Students will be asked to sign a waiver before the first class. You will be moving the whole time in this class, and some of it will be energetic, some to music, some not. You will be asked to partner with a variety of people. 

In this course, we will explore the structure and primary movements of the shoulders, arms and hands, and how they are connected to the entire skeleton and to you as a complete human being. Each class features an exercise, or “lesson,” involving gentle movements done slowly with minimal effort, while paying attention to your own personal experience. You determine how big, how fast, or how “good” you do the exercises. You will be guided through enjoyable sequences, exploring and discovering ways of moving with spontaneity and awareness. You can think of these exercises as safe, fun puzzles for your nervous system and brain. Each lesson is designed to help you remember, learn, and create new patterns of behavior. You will be involved in your own process of learning. This course is ideal for all ages and abilities. You will increase your balance and reach, turn more easily, and reduce tension as you adjust and move with more comfort and ease. Repeating this course yields even more benefit!

 

NOTE: A waiver must be signed prior to the first class.

Learn a complete Tai Chi form for health and longevity that you can do anywhere, anytime, and that is adaptable for all ages, body types, and abilities. No previous experience is necessary. Reduce stress, improve balance, gain focus/concentration, relieve pain, and gain benefits galore from a 3,000-year-old Chinese movement form: Tai Chi. When you finish the six-week course, you will have three tools in your toolbox for dealing with change, transition, and life in general. You will have the Tai Chi 17 form, which includes movements from Yang Short Form, so you will be prepared to study further if you wish. You will have learned a sequence called Finished the Form, which you can use alone as a practice or as a warm up or cool down for other practices. You will gain a basic knowledge of Tai Chi/martial arts and how to promote health and mind/body awareness. People who have taken this course will reap even more benefit from repeating it!

NOTE: A waiver must be signed prior to the first class. 

This course is an introduction to Qigong and simple stretching patterns. Movements will be taught both as physical and energetic exercises and as methods for improving present moment awareness and mindfulness of subtle perceptions. No special clothing or experience is required: come as you are, ready to have fun with others! Although Qigong can be studied for a lifetime, this brief series will give you a taste of the practices. Over the course of the classes you will learn a set of simple movements you can integrate into your daily routine. We will be meeting over Zoom, and the class will include social time with other students. Students will also have access to videos on YouTube and an optional DVD. This is an active class, and students need to be able to move about comfortably in a home space. Some movements will involve getting up and down from the floor. The exercises will challenge and enhance your flexibility, balance, and coordination. Classes consist mostly of active movement.

NOTE: Students will sign a liability waiver prior to the first class.

Experience the movements of a full-body fitness program (PizzazzEE-25) that engages every muscle and every joint within every completed session. The course will review each of the sequential 25 steps that encourage everyday mobility and strength and that aid in injury prevention. We will examine the correct actions for each step, while considering any personal modifications you might choose for the movements later in your own home. Videos of the fitness app will be used alongside instruction. The program is designed especially for those in their second 50 years, beginning with gentle movements that are built upon to improve and support balance, stamina, and flexibility. No experience is a plus! A waiver must be signed before the first class. NOTE: This course is not recommended for those who have had hip or knee surgery/replacement in the last six months. No exercise equipment is required. It’s important to attend the first class; more details will be sent before that class.

Walking in springtime is a delight. While the weather may be unpredictable, warmer temperatures are returning and signs of new growth are everywhere we look. Each walk will be about two hours, covering three to four miles. The trails will be mostly dirt paths with some elevation gain. While the walks are not intended to be of an aerobic nature, it is important that participants be reasonably fit and have good balance. Directions on where to meet will be emailed each week. Trails that may be included: North Mountain Park/Riverwalk Loop, Road 2060 above Lithia Park, Emigrant Lake, Bear Creek Greenway, TID ditch trail, Lithia Park hillside trails, Hald-Strawberry Park trails, and Oredson Todd Woods. We will walk rain or shine. A liability waiver must be signed prior to participation in the first class. NOTE: Humans only on these walks. Dogs will need to stay at home.