Wednesday 11 May 2011

Legs, bums and Buddha bellies

Ok I have been thinking about the fact that I have billed this here blog as being somewhere to talk about homeschooling, doula/birthy stuff and alternative health. So far no mention of the latter.

Well all that is about to change.

Inspired by pixiemama's Counch to 5k endeavours, I too am flexing and getting myself in better shape. I abso-feckin-lootely HATE gyms though. The whole concept brings me out in hives.

But dance....ah, dance I can do. I can do it whilst I am washing up. I can do it with a toddler on my hip. I can have an absolute blast with the kids as we jive, shake our booties, get our freak on, and work up a sweat! And I can do these in a gypsy skirt - hurray! - no trainers or equipment needed - just space to let it all hang out.

Boogie-woogie, afro-funk, flamenco, rock-a-billy, hill-billy fever. It doesn't matter. We do a musical, global, time-travelling journey around the world, getting a PE and geography/culture lesson all thrown into one wild life-affirming frenzy!

Here are the rules:


  • Seriously shake your booty, mama! You can dance like a flapper girl, jive, belly dance, waltz, swing, be a whirling dervish, have a hoe down.... whatever floats your boat. It's all good.
  • Wear leggings or a skirt that was just MADE for dancing. 
  • Have a large glass of water nearby and have sips/glugs at regular intervals. After breakfast and before lunch is the optimum time as it sets you up for the day.
  • Do movements that involve lifting your arms above your head for at least some of the time. Same goes for lifting your knees up, and get your legs as high up off the ground as you can manage without hurting yourself.
  • It has to be foot stomping, heart-racing music that gives you and the kids a thrill and makes you all glad to be alive. Whatever you do, don't listen to shite excercise musak.
  • Start gently, then work your way up, so you don't hurt yourself. 

Here are some kickin' tunes that will hopefully bring you as much joy and pleasure as they bring me and mine.

To start, some Nina Simone. This is obviously slower than the recent remix. But I LOVE it. Check out her earrings!


Next, ramping it up a bit with this amazing tune, that sounds like Nina Simone but isn't!


Warmed up a bit now? Check out Hail to the Chief on this ZULUROSE podcast list. Winter cool down mix was my soundtrack to being preggie with Alf, but Hail to the Chief is the biz for a good booty shake. But they are all darn good.


Ok, here is just one more for you, which looks pretty good although I haven't listened to it as a set, but rather zoomed through to check out the tracks. Looks purty good, except for the rather boring intro.


Would love to hear what you are getting your freak on to. Anyone got any good podcasts they'd like to share? 





4 comments:

  1. i love love love dancing. hardly do it these days. my girl isn't so bothered. but i do boogy if the music comes on.

    i also do lots of walks in nature, and yoga.

    gyms - eeeeeeeeeek!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    can't do water before a meal, bad for digestion, but i drink lots throughout the day. definitely helps in many many ways.

    boogy on!

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  2. the hole in the wall - i think i know which you mean. kids in India given computers and they eventually learnt to work them all on their own?
    then they popped computers into walls in the suburbs. very cool.

    i'm an organic learning mama, so it all jives with me. :)

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  3. Yes! That is the one.

    Looked at your profile and it says you live in Montenegro, up a mountain. Wow! Sounds verrrrry pretty where you are, I'd love to take a nature hike and do some yoga up there....and boogie- woogie! I'm not complaining about where I live though, it's pretty in a different way, and about as flat as is geographically possible - talk about polar opposites!!!
    :-)

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  4. hey paula, good thing you commented, it reminded me that you had started a blog. i forgot to sign up right away, and then forgot altogether. i'm working back through your posts. love this one. LOVE to dance.
    here's one i bet you haven't heard, we love dancing to this one.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QujpC_oSwE&playnext=1&list=PL789D4C63965B7DCA
    hope that link works. otherwise search it,
    it's called Dancing on the Ruins (of Multinational Corporations) by Casey O'Neill

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