Cross-training

Tuesday I went back to ballet after a week off. My foot was feeling better, though still somewhat stiff, so I figured it was safe to go back if I took it easy.

It's always great to get back to ballet, but if you've been away for any length of time--even for a week--it's great AND frustrating. I felt clumsy and a bit stiff, though it was great fun to do the combinations--a graceful adagio, a sprightly petite allegro, and a swooping grand allegro.

Still. It didn't seem fair that after only a week, I'd be having a bit of trouble with arabesque balances and turning assembles.

"It's not like I didn't do anything," I said to Suki. "I swam twice and did Pilates at home."

But Suki seemed to think that cross-training has its limits.

"When I was getting ready to do The Nutcracker, I used to take class every day and do barre at home," she told me. "I asked the director if I should also start walking to work out instead, and she said that it would be better just to do more ballet."

(Suki was always the Sugar Plum Fairy in our city's Nutcracker productions a number of years ago.)

I still like my varied activities. I find that the weeks I get in a swim at the Y, I feel like I'm better for cardio--like for those "across the floor" activities in both ballet and TKD, in sparring, and for leaps and jumps in ballet. When I'm regularly doing ballet, it pays off in my flexibility in TKD.

Plus, the variety is fun!