It's about more than just exercise.
Last week I filled you all in on what Fit + Flaunt Burlesque Fitness Class is all about. This week I want to share more about my why-- why I started the program and why it means so much to me.
I know it may be hard for many of my students now to believe, but I was painfully shy growing up. Like so many young people, I lacked self- confidence and was extremely insecure about my looks and how others perceived me. I always loved to sing and dance around my home, but once outside of the house, a shaky voice, sweaty palms, and pink cheeks of embarrassment were common occurrences.
While some of my shy persona faded with age and experiences like moving abroad, I can pinpoint burlesque as being one defining catalyst for change in my life. Almost ten years ago I attended a burlesque performance in Taipei. I was totally blown away by how fearlessly the dancers on stage performed, and I was moved by their message of confidence and self-love.
Soon thereafter, a group of friends and I started our own burlesque dance troupe. We worked tirelessly and passionately to choreograph dance numbers, create comedic skits, build props, sew costumes, and organize the millions of details that go into putting on a show. The weeks leading up to our first performance were a whirlwind of rehearsals, excitement, nerves and obsessing over how I would look in my costume on stage. How would I be able to embody confidence, poise, and grace when I felt so scared and unsure of myself?
On the night of our first show from the moment the first beat of music played, the anxiety vanished , and I was left with the most exhilarating feeling of my life. It was the feeling that the same girl who paraded around her house as a kid, dancing with free and passionate joy was now finally seeing the light of day. It was the feeling of conquering what my idea of “the impossible” was. Sure, there were dance steps we missed, wardrobe malfunctions, and jokes that landed flat, but none of it mattered. What mattered was that in that moment, I stopped being the kind of person who says “I can’t” do something. I became the kind of person who realized that being brave and confident doesn’t mean not being scared, it means doing things even when you are scared.
When I created Fit + Flaunt Burlesque Fitness it was in the hope of giving more people a safe, non-judgmental space to find their own confidence and inner beauty. It’s a class that celebrates the soft, graceful, beautiful sides of ourselves along with the brave and powerful nature each one of us contains. Each class we sweat and shake our way to healthier, stronger bodies. We smile, we laugh, and we wink as we express those sides of ourselves we rarely let others see. We leave class believing “we can.” We are enough. We’ve had it inside of us all along.
Keep moving!
xx,
Katie
它不只是一個運動而已
上週我分享了舞麗自信（Fit + Flaunt Burlesque Fitness）是一個什麼樣的課程，這周，我想聊聊我為什麼想要創造這樣的課程以及它為何對我如此重要。
小時候我是一個超級害羞的女孩（我知道我很多的學生可能很難相信 ;)），就和很多的青少年一樣，我缺乏自信、對於自己外表非常沒有安全感，還有「超級」在意別人的想法。我總是喜歡家裡唱唱跳跳，但是只要一出了家門，我的聲音就會開始顫抖、手心冒汗、害羞臉紅都是非常常見的情況。
在這些害羞的表面形象隨著年紀的增加與搬到國外慢慢減緩的同時，我很確定 Burlesque （詼諧歌舞劇）是我人生中一個指標性的催化劑。約10年前，我加入了台北的 burlesque 表演團，讓我十分驚訝的是看到舞者的演出是這樣大膽、不帶任何恐懼，看到他們透過表演傳達對於自信與自愛的鑲法深深地感動我。
很快的，我和一群朋友開始我們自己的 burlesque 舞團，我們認真又充滿熱情地練習自己編的舞步、創造搞笑的橋段、自製道具和服裝，統整一堆表演所需的細節，在幾周過去後，就是一連串混亂的旋風：排演、興奮、緊張，加上不停地擔心我穿著舞台裝看起來的O不OK？如此害怕和沒信心的我，要如何在表演中詮釋自信、沉穩與優雅呢？
在我們第一次表演的那個晚上，從音樂開撥的那一刻，我的焦慮消失了！我感受到我人生中最振奮的一刻，我找回那個在家大膽自信又充滿熱忱地跳舞的那個小女孩。這個經驗讓我初嚐到「征服不可能的任務」感覺，當然我也有跳錯、服裝也在表演時出錯、搞笑的橋段不好笑，但是這些都不重要，重要的是在那一刻，我不再一直告訴自己「這個我不行啦！」，我深刻的體悟到勇敢與自信不是來自於對任何事情都不害怕，而是來自於即是害怕也勇敢行動。
當我創造舞麗自信（Fit + Flaunt Burlesque Fitness）的時候，我希望可以帶給更多人一個安全與無批判的環境，讓他們可以找到自己的信心與內在的美麗。這堂課裡，在展現軟性的優雅與美麗的同時，妳也能觸及自己勇敢與強勁有力的一面。每一堂課我們爆汗、一起搖出健康又結實的體態，透過微笑、大笑、眨眼來展現那些我們少為人知的一面。希望每一堂課都能讓大家相信：我們可以的、我們是足夠的，這些勇敢與美麗是我們與生俱來的。
繼續前進！
愛你的 Katie
( Anna Liang 譯 )