Jenifer Ringer, a ballerina with the renowned New York City Ballet at Lincoln Center, strives for perfection in every aspect of her life. “It takes 100 percent to be a ballerina, 100 percent to be a wife and 100 percent to be a mother,” she says.
Category Archives: Dance Studio
Jenifer Ringer on Oprah
I was so proud of Ms. Ringer for being more eloquent in this interview about her feelings on that fateful critique last December then earlier on the Today show. I think a bit of time and space brought her words and clarity of what that did to her. I thought that she was gracious but clear about the difference between Black Swan and the real world of dance “It’s entertainment” and “Well, we aren’t killing each other” and I agreed with her about the first scenes in the movie being more realistic to the ballet world. What I did pick up on which ironically was the theme of Black Swan was how often she used the word perfect. I felt that she might still be struggling to, in her mind remind herself that there is no such thing, but the quest for perfection still plagues her. One can see how as a young dancer she could fall victim to that sort of perfectionism.
I appreciated what she said about where her body issues came from and the contrast between the Waif ballerina and the Womanly ballerina. That is a hard one and there is a prejudice there and it is real. Many Ballet dancers who have breasts and hips end up feeling “fat” because they have shape. They could be just as bony as a no hipped girl but feel twice as big. It’s a great interview. in the clip Ringer starts at 3:06
Transgendered Model Lea T starts off the clip. Being Transgendered is like the ultimate Body Image crisis. To feel one way in your mind- no more accurately to be of one gender in your mind and yet to occupy the contrasting gender in one’s body must be emotionally, physically, and spiritually painful. I thought that Lea was wonderfully honest and informative to those who don’t understand what being Transgendered is. I thought is was the epitome of what we talk about on this site. And I was very moved, so if you have a few minutes watch her as well or if you need to Jenifer starts at 3:06
Emotions, Food And You
Janet Jackson
“I can be an emotional eater. It started when I was very little.”
Mental Health Specialist Courtnay Veazey takes on the topic of Emotional Eating
Let’s discuss one of the most important relationships that you will ever have – your relationship with food. That’s right. Whether you realize it or not, you relate to food on an emotional level in some capacity.
Food is essential to our physical health, yet we must remember that why we eat sometimes reflects our current emotional state. These emotions can be positive or negative. For example, my family always celebrated academic successes by going out to dinner. I still associate celebration with food and am mindful of that whenever I enjoy a celebratory dinner. Yes, I am celebrating, but that does not mean I can eat past feeling full. Negative emotions include anxiety, depression, loneliness, anger, etc. When I write ‘negative’, I do not mean that they are inappropriate to have. Those emotions contribute to the overall picture of being human. For example, feeling sad after breaking up with a significant other is a normal reaction for that situation. What we do with that sadness is the important part. We must learn to experience our emotions in a way that allows us to be physically and mentally healthy.
How do we healthily experience life’s positive and negative emotions? By recognizing and being aware of them. After becoming aware of them, honestly examine and be mindful of them – especially when you eat. What is the purpose behind your eating? Does food serve as your encourager, comforter, friend, enemy, tempter, or fill-in-the-blank? Or does food serve as the fuel for your amazing body – your spirit’s house?
Also, we healthily experience life’s emotions by noticing their source and questioning the truth of that source. Pay attention to what you tell yourself and to what others tell you. Are you sending yourself healthy messages? Messages that make you feel beautiful and confident? How do you respond to those messages?
Are others (friends, family, society) giving you healthy messages? Or are they unhealthy? If their messages make you feel crappy, do you recognize the absurdity in those messages or do you respond to those messages by eating (or not eating)?
I encourage you to honestly explore your emotions and how they connect with your eating habits. Do your eating habits give you a sense of control when you are stressed? How do your eating habits affect your body image? If you notice your emotional connection to food is becoming unhealthy, then please seek help to heal and repair that unhealthy connection and to discover why that unhealthy connection exists. We must proactively take care of our bodies because they enable us to enjoy the gift of life
Courtnay Veazey is a graduate student who finishes her coursework for a Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling in May 2011. She is a member of and regular blogger for the American Counseling Association. Other professional memberships include the Mississippi Counseling Association and the Association for Creativity in Counseling. Her counseling interests include body image, self-esteem, career transitions, and the mental health of ballet dancers. Courtnay is an arts advocate, ballerina, and amateur photographer. She and her husband live in Oxford, MS with their miniature dachshund, Daisy. You can follow Courtnay on Twitter at @balletcounselor
For more from Courtnay
Miz Swan & Miss Swan – This is high-larious
I don’t know when the parodies will end but this is some funny sh…stuff!
More With Elizabeth Roxas!
MIZZZZ Roxas gives us the skinny on her post dancer body, being 52 and loving the good life which includes a great glass of wine and some fried chicken!! What happened when she for the first time expanded to what may be a normal size for others but was far beyond anything she had experienced in her body? This is some good honest (funny) stuff check it out
Like Us?
Elisabeth Roxas Part 2
Here we learn that the work of dancing did the work for reshaping her body. Roxas also talks about how she dancing whipping her “HAIR BACK AND Forth”
What is the difference between Disordered eating and an Eating Disorder
Now you don’t think I would just leave you hanging out there did you? This is the good part, how do you find a balance, and when can you know if your relationship to food or your thoughts about it are becoming obsessive and you might need to talk to someone.
Check out the Bethenny Frankel clip she talks about the same things, Love her!!!
Muscles: Our Best Frenemies
Jenny Stahl senior editor for Pointe and new contributing writer for My Body My Image shares an ironically truthful story about a woman and her love/hate relationship with her muscles!
Of all the conflicting messages women get about their bodies, none may be more complicated than how we’re are supposed to feel about our muscles. The party line seems to be that toned is beautiful—unless it’s bulky.
Just before Christmas, my roommate Amy, who’s a freelance dancer and personal trainer, dislocated her left ankle and was stuck in a cast for about a month. She recently graduated to a removable brace, and the other night we were checking out the difference between her two legs—it was crazy how drastically her muscles had atrophied in just a few weeks! Her right leg was still the powerful limb of a dancer with a bulging calf and athletic thigh muscles. The other had shrunk remarkably (except for the swelling around her ankle). In the nature vs. nurture debate of how much our actions can override our genes, nurture was kicking nature’s ass, showing us just how much exercise (or a lack thereof) could transform her body.
What was disturbing, though, was our reaction. First, we both laughed about how sad and wimpy her left leg looked. But then I complimented how thin her calf was and she admitted that she kinda preferred it, too. For a moment, we were both inspired to lie completely still for the next month or so to de-bulk our bodies.
Obviously, that’s a sick and twisted thought. But it got me thinking about the love/hate relationship we ladies have with our muscles. We go to the gym, take yoga classes and do our crunches trying to get a toned physique. Working out burns calories and helps melt off our love handles. But, like most women I know, I’d be terrified of sporting rippling Madonna arms—or worse, getting “bulky.” In all honesty, I really only love the look arms—or worse, getting “bulky.” In all honesty, I really only love the look of my muscles for how it can highlight a lack of fat. Fit is great, but thin is better.
Too many of us associate muscular with masculine. Yet male or female, muscles are what give us our strength. I have to remind myself to embrace my muscles for how they make me feel and the power they give me. Without my quads, I wouldn’t be able to run. And although I’ll always wish my arms were sleeker, I love being able to knock out 10 push ups. If I were to stop moving, sure, my body might get smaller and lighter. But would I really want to be a flimsy weakling? Not so much.
As for Amy, she’s been the most inspiring gimp I’ve ever seen. She’s determined to stay in shape and to keep her body as strong as possible. In addition to taking hip hop classes from a chair(!), she’s been performing one-legged workouts at the gym.
Check out Amy’s blog here
Amy in Action!
Photo by-Alice Olivia Photography
Interview With Former Alvin Ailey Dancer Elizabeth Roxas!! (pt1)
Elizabeth Roxas was a member of the World renown Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater for 13 years. During that time she performed numerous principal roles and was a stand out not only for her powerful dancing but for lush mane of hair (she wiped her hair back and forth!). Now at the age of 52 she is teaches around the world, works closely with Anna Deveare Smith as movement coach, and just this past January she returned to the stage to celebrate the illustrious career of Judith Jamison as she stepped down from the role of Artistic Director of the Ailey Company.
In this 4 part series “Liz” speaks with me about how she began dancing, her body issues, how she continued dancing after a horrible career threatening injury and life (and her body) after the curtain went down.
She is delightful, honest and engaging. She speaks with such candor and wisdom about her experiences and the work that was and is required to obtain and maintain her career– this is truly a master class!!!