Teaching Yourself

Hello! Welcome to my blog. My name is Kirstien Billings, and this is my first ever blog that I am making. A bit of background about me and my topic is, I have been a dancer for nine years. In those nine years, I have been involved in multiple genres of dance, including Tap, Jazz, Point, Hip Hop, and Lyrical, as well as choreographing five separate solos. On top of being a dancer, I was an assistant teacher for two years. With being involved in all of this, I needed to be in shape physically, mentally, and emotionally. Many of you have maybe not gone through this, or have and gone through multiple other things, or maybe you have done the exact same thing as me! Trying to balance all of this can be extremely difficult, but thankfully I have been able to manage all of it. Maintaining a constant schedule of stretching, and healthy habits can be stressful, and trust me, I have had my fair share of skipping a stretch, or not keeping up on myself when I should have. We all know how we felt that one time that we didn't stretch or we didn't stick to our schedule, and we regretted it when we ended up having to do rigorous choreography/dance. I have done this on so many occasions, I was sure that I wouldn't be able to actually stick with it.

Some more of a background on me is, I do not have the best time management, so while yes, I made a schedule, I would often stray from it. Getting back on track after you've strayed can also be a tricky thing to accomplish. I would set my schedule up for the week and, then too often would have to push back what I had scheduled due to school/other important matters. One thing you need to remember is, to be patient with yourself. You might not learn all of these things as quick as you think you might. It  takes time to learn, and follow what you have set up for yourself. 

Included in this blog are tips and tricks to help you maintain a healthy schedule for stretching, learning choreography, and good habits to put yourself into. Many of these tips, I have either learned from my teachers, or I have seen in videos or on websites. Maybe some of these will work with you, maybe not. I guess I'll never know, but you will. My tips and websites may not help out with everyone, but I am hoping to at least give something to someone. I start with one, and hopefully, I'll influence more. Included in this website, I will also provide more in-depth explanations about specific stretching for certain areas, as well as some tips for healthy mental/physical/emotional habits, and lastly, explanations on learning choreography. 

If any of these help you, then amazing! I am happy that I am able to help you further your journey of healthy dance habits. I hope you have enjoyed my introduction, and I hope you enjoy my blog!