Do the Hindu

I'm all about the Hindu Pushup--we do them all the time in NinjaFit. But instead of how this guy does it, start in an actual Downward Dog, go slowly and get your nose as close to the floor as you can, then come up into an Upward Dog. And love the sweat! ~Jenn

Thanks to Lifehacker for mentioning this today, and for the link.

NinjaFit in the News (again)

Check it: http://www.du.edu/today/stories/2009/07/2009-07-22ninja.html

Now let's get the students rolling in, folks!

~Jenn

Random Movement Pic

Here goes the unofficial shuffle and click into the Bonzuko Movement Arts picture archive...

It's Jenn's only foray into the world of the slackline. Very very difficult. The class was called Yoga Rocks! at the Auraria Rec Center, and was a mix of yoga and rock climbing. That day, they added the slack line to the mix. A very cool combination.

Workout of the Week

Hey you lurkers, where have you been every Friday evening? If it wasn't at Ninja Fit class, read this article from the Daily Camera and feel ashamed! Team Bonzuko is proud of the praise Jenn received from Aimee Heckel of the Daily Camera, who reviewed her Ninja Fit class as the Workout of the Week. Many favorite quotes. Here's one:

"This is the only class I can honestly say I would ever do on a Friday after work, because it felt like an extension of happy hour -- literally, not with alcohol -- yet it's a great way to get in a workout before the night's debauchery."

Image is Jenn and Mary at the BQC: publicity shot for Ninja Fit.

Ninja Fit takes place Fridays* 5:45-6:45 at the Boulder Quest Center.

*Except the last Friday of the month, which is testing night.

Earth Day

When was the last time we at Bonzuko wrote about not driving? Ah yes, it was Bike-to-Work day last summer. Well, today is Earth Day, when folks across America spend a moment to think about what they can do to improve the environment.

The Bonzuko hombu has done a couple things lately to be "greener"--using our wonderful computers and phones to explore non-paper ways of doing school and business. We brew our own beer, which way cuts down on our recycling-of-cans/bottles output.

But the main green thing we do here is something we've done since we met (and Jenn has done all her life): we don't drive, nor do we own a car.

Consider these questions for a moment today on Earth Day: what would your commute be like without your car? Where would you work if you had no car? What time would you have to have left your house today if you weren't driving to your destination? How much gasoline do you think you'll burn today? When was the last time you walked two blocks (a machine inside a gym doesn't really count)? Four blocks? A mile? What would you need to carry with you if you had no car today? How far can you carry five bags of groceries before you drop them? What kinds of errands would you be able to run today if you had no car, and how much time would it take you? How much will you pay in car insurance and parking this month, and what would you do with that money if you had it back?

Thanks to jaeger.earthsci.unimelb.edu.au/msandifo.html for the image

Random Movement Pic

Time for a random drawing from the Bonzuko Movement Arts archives. Drumroll please:


Ah, it's from not too long ago--2007, I believe. Me teaching PiYo at the BQC. This pose is called the reverse, or dancing, warrior. As you can see, I have a small medicine ball in my hand, which is conditioning my arm even more than the pose alone. Mary is in the background.

This is an opportunity for me to invite all my local lurkers to take a class called NinjaFit at the BQC. Every Friday but test nights, NinjaFit meets to get as fit as a ninja. Class curriculum includes yoga, Pilates, meditation, strength training, Linklater and Lessac systems, dance, martial arts and shiatsu to improve strength, flexibility, posture, and breath. It's way cool.

NinjaFit: Fridays 5:45-6:45
Boulder Quest Center


~Jenn

More Awesome Falling

Jas and I were watching genius Weird Al Yankovic last night--a compilation of videos we own. We were reminded of an amazing feat of break-dance-slash-prat-falling skill of a dancer in the video for "Dare to be Stupid." The video and song is obviously a parody of '80s techno-weird group Devo, as well as social commentary. The amazing faller I'm talking about is the masked, yellow-panted guy in the carpeted room. He shows up a couple times throughout the video. Once, it looks as though he lands right on his collarbone, though--see what I mean?
~Jenn

More About the MSCD Stage Combat Club

I have decided I will be doing a monthly post here about the MSCD Stage Combat Club. If I did one every single week for a semester, it might get to be a bit much. :) So look here around the end of each month for a rundown, summary, and updated news re: our soon-to-be-illustrious little group. See you around Halloween. ~Jenn

The above picture is from Halloween 2006. Tom G. here was left without a partner, so his hand turned evil and he had to fight his own hand for his Sword performance. MSCD Stage Combat 2006.

Stage Combat Club News

Enough people at MSCD continue to be interested in the fine arts of fake fighting. Many of them composed my little informal bands of performers that helped me immensely with my two booksigning events in Boulder last year. The Advanced Class you can read about on this blog was also a product of said interest.

After having waited to hear from the official officers of the MSCD Stage Combat Club, I decided to go ahead and make a meeting time that worked for me and see who showed. Unfortunately, our President, Wee Katie, has an opposite schedule to mine. Maybe she can be in charge of meetings on a day I'm not there. We'll have to see about that. ANYway,

The four gentlemen that came by are psyched and ready to start playing Tuesdays, 11:45-12:30 this semester, and are already looking forward to this summer's Advanced class as well. Now let's gather our folks, have an election, and get some fund-raising started. I want to start looking at plans for RMTA.

So for those interested: You have to be a MSCD student, and have to be free to play with us Tuesdays (for now--there may be more meetings later). You don't have to have any Stage Combat experience or you can be a professional, or anything in between. Once we get our official stuff going, there'll be a due of $5 per semester. Cheap!

MSCD Stage Combat Club news and posts will appear here on the Bonzuko blog, so anyone in it or interested in it should visit here often.

~Jenn

Wii Would Like to Play

We in the Bonzuko household love our elegant, geek-themed, brain-expanding-yet-addictive toys. In an earlier post, we expounded on the virtues of...oh that's right, we haven't told you what that toy is that you want. Oh yes, you want it.

But now, listen up kids, our latest healthy addiction is the Wii Fit game. Once you log in your BMI and play some very odd balance games, you can't wait to sully that pristine white plastic surface of the board with your feet again.

I'd encourage everyone to have this very awesome addition to and motivator for your exercise regime, but it looks as though Wii systems are insanely hard to get (let alone expensive) and the game itself is even harder. Oh well, we'll have to have a Bonzuko Fitness (and then homebrew?) party sometime soon I suppose.

Jenn's Favorite Wii Fit games: most yoga is fun; that one where you're in a penguin suit and catching fish; the put-the-ball-in-the-hole game; Rhythmic Boxing, and...well most of them are fun. What's yours?

~Jenn

Isolation

When I asked the 12th-Night kids if anyone knew what the word "isolation" meant, several raised their hand. One boy said, "It's when one thing is separated from other things, by itself."

I thought this was such a cool definition, especially when it comes to the term when used in reference to movement. I then said, "Yes, so when you move one body part separate from the rest of your body parts, you're isolating that body part."

In stage combat, I'm realizing more and more that isolation is really the key to clear physical storytelling. An audience can't tell what is going on unless good isolation happens, pinpointing a body part, thereby pinpointing an audience's focus. We worked mainly with isolation in partners last week in the MSCD stage combat class, and I noticed when watching the students try it that this concept of isolation is pretty difficult in practice. So we'll try our jedi pushes this week, I think, and start to get isolation a little more in our bodies.

Isolation Game of the Week: fake pushes. Partner A places hand on Partner B, Partner B moves just that body part away from the hand, then isolates the spot by curling around it with her whole body. Then move to the jedi version (doing this without touch).

Back to School

It was our first day back at school (well, Jenn's first day; Jason started Monday), and the future's so bright, we've gotta wear shades.

Stage Combat looks like a lark--Jenn will put updates here every so often (students should look at metroconnect for in-class info), and heck maybe a picture or two. So much looking forward to it, and we'll see what Jason says about the Ensemble Performance class after Friday.

Yes, the Stage Combat book is the required textbook for MSCD's Stage Combat Class. Yes, Jenn wrote it. Does she have a problem with that? Nope.

Remembering Twelfth Night Shenanigans

Natalie posted some photos of the Unarmed half of the Stage Combat workshop for her 12th Night kid group. Look here: http://www.freewebs.com/summershakespeare/apps/photos/photo.jsp?photoID=10215306

I'll let you all know when and where their performance is once I know. ~Jenn

Oh Advanced Class, We Hardly Knew Ye...

We had our last meeting of Advanced Unarmed and Taihenjutsu today--what a long strange trip it's been. Highlights of our last day:

• Stretching
• Acrobatic Showing Off
• Rehearsal
• Performing Fights For Film

What do I mean? Well,

There's some fake throws:

And a nasty fake punch-out:

And a side roll variation:

And here's a preview of the choreography they made the past few classes:

You guys rocked! Thanks so much for a great class. You are SO GOOD! :D ~Jenn

Week 5

This is me and BQC owner Mary, playing around with "Combat Yoga." No, we're not serious; it's just for fun.

There's a thing that happens when a long month comes around at the Boulder Quest Center (one of the places where I get paid to beat up young people): it's called "Week 5."

Everyone who habitually takes classes is allowed to bring a friend to any level class, wear "civilian" clothing, and do off-topic stuff besides the normal To-Shin Do curriculum.

If any of my Stage Combat buddies would like to trek up to Boulder and join me in some ninja shenanigans this coming week (July 28 - Aug.2), let me know.

~Jenn

Boulder Quest Center: http://www.boulderquest.com/

Injuries

I thought I'd put in my two cents' worth on Advanced Taihenjutsu, theatrical combat, and martial arts.

I hope everyone in the Advanced Summer Class noticed the different language I used when we went through the Stage Combat basic skills (falling, rolling, unarmed basics) and the Stunt Work skills (break falls, fake throws, air break falls). I used this specific different language for a good reason--and also brought out the squishy mat, I'm sure you noticed, for reasons as well.

I had this conversation with one of the head instructors at the Boulder Quest Center yesterday, and I thought it needed reinforcing: when you fall for reals, even if you fall correctly, you will feel it.

There are countless anecdotes, from Jason's dislocated shoulder about five years ago to my bruised heel from Monday. The fact is: if you know how to do good taihenjutsu, you can save yourself from paralysis or death. BUT! If you find yourself falling and you actually fall, you will get hurt. That's what falling down does--it hurts. If you're good at it, the hurt won't be mortal. If you hear of anyone ever telling you they fell off their motorcycle at 60 mph and they were totally fine because they know "ninjitsu," be oh so very skeptical. At the same time, think about those folks like me and Jason that can actually fall very well, and hear about the pain it still causes.

The Advanced Class learned some really fun stuff this summer. Most of it they will never ever do on a stage. If they ever have an opportunity to do these elaborate moves, it will NOT be on a regular stage, but on a crash pad off-camera. Or a stunt-stage, that has springs or pads or built-in squishy mats. Remember I have 11 years martial arts experience and I am still limping from Monday, and that was on dojo mats. And it was a good fall!

I guess I felt the need for a Safety Note, like the ones in my book. I know a lot of those in the Advanced Class liked to take the basics they learned from the MSCD course and throw them around in the school hallways, quads, and (sigh) other classes. Those skills they're learning now are way too dangerous to mess with like this.

~Jenn

P.S. This is a great article re: the dichotomy between theatrical and "real" combat. It's called "Ne'er the Twain," about stage combat and martial arts. Check it out: http://www.thearma.org/essays/twain.htm

Another clip

Trying to make up for the fact that we didn't post at all from July 3rd (happy birthday, Mom!) till the 9th. And cuz video clips are cool.



Here's a clip from our jumping and rolling practice from Advanced Stage Combat class last week: we were reviewing all our rolls as well as our jumps and spatial awareness, so we started jumping over each others' log rolls:

...then Chris tried this before instruction, and we practiced actually rolling over our log rolls. Just so you know, this is on the "Advanced" tape of ninjutsu techniques I used in my earlier education. Just so you know. I like to tell my movement students when they do something really difficult, but only after they've done so. :)

See you tomorrow!

~Jenn

Every Day is Bike-to-Work Day

Bike to Work Day is today here in the Boulder-Denver area. Folks get free breakfast and swag for taking anything but a car to do their jobs and other tasks today. One day out of the year. Could you do it?

Bike-to-Work-Day is a kind of joke around the Bonzuko household. We live in Boulder, work and school in Denver, and do not even own a car. Jenn doesn't even have a license. People think we're insane every other day of the year, except today. We are green commuters, though--maybe it's our way of making up for our computers being on all day...

It's a big lifestyle change to not drive ever. All your travel takes more time. Way more time. You have to make sure you carry everything on you for your entire day. You have to be ready for anything the elements give you. And if you're Stage Combat and/or Martial Arts teachers like we are, you have big cumbersome burdens to carry. And you do end up walking every day.

That's why we're so fit, actually. Let's tally the health benefits, shall we? A walk of approximately 10-20 minutes a day. Fresh air and moving blood. Two fewer people in cars eevryday helps the planet. Cheaper health insurance for living in a healthy city. Calm serenity in letting the bus driver do the traffic negotiation. Meditation every day. Have I forgotten any?

Anyway, happy Bike-to-Work-Day.

Lightsaber Duo

Now, I consider myself to be a pretty gosh-darn good theatrical swordsperson. Rapier was my specialty back in my SAFD days, and I'm an okay hand at the stage katana. I am also a Star Wars Geek of the first water.

However, Ryan and Dorkman make me look like a kid playing by Boulder Creek with a stick. And I'm not ashamed to admit that. Attack of the Show (on G4) mentioned them in passing once, I went and found them on YouTube--there are two epic lightsaber fights, and mean teasing whispers of a third.

If you haven't seen these guys yet, check 'em out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-is63goeBgc

~Jenn