Tag Archives: service

Are You Fit to Serve?: Enlisting into Parenthood

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Traditionally the question, “Are you fit to serve?” scrutinized young men’s grit to execute their country’s military agenda. During the birth of my second niece I considered fitness and service very different context: parenthood. Instead of battling into an idealized body or fighting an opponent, what about training the body and mind to nurture? As Clif Bar’s perinatal yoga teacher I’ve witness the unique path women take into motherhood. Although I’m not yet a mom, watching my friends and clients has revealed Continue reading →

My Ode to the (Self) Serving Artist

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The last few weeks I sculpted the shoulders of potters, carved back mobility in boatbuilders, and loosened weavers’ knotted necks. As a resident instructor at Penland School of Crafts in North Carolina I taught yoga, did bodywork, and delivered doses of movement medicine to the various studios. I lived among sweaty, grimy, & sleep-deprived folks gleefully exposed to torrents of creativity. They endure elaborate pieces crumbling after hours of work. Or worse yet, someone calling their work “cute.”  Yeah,the brooding, Continue reading →

The Only Fitness Goal: Take Care of My Crap

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The fitness industry always promotes goals. The bikini body. The final score. Achieving “results” constantly invokes finite competition. As if one day we cross a finish line, arrive at perfection, and no longer need to exercise. No such luck. I want to win this game: Make it to 95 years old. Wake up energized. Walk to the bathroom. Squat on the toilet. Take a triumphant poop. Wipe myself. Stand up. Wash my hands. Head out into a productive day. Actually, that is pretty much Continue reading →