Color Guard: What to do over the summer

Summer is an incredible time to try new things if you're in the world of color guard. Take a look at some of my suggestions below. Be sure to comment with what you like to do over the summer!!! And if you have spin clinics for me to add, just let me know. And be sure to check out some of my other popular posts (20 Signs You Were In Color Guard, Tips for Handling Parent Negativity, and I Couldn't Live Without...Color Guard)

My biggest advice: remember that you can learn and get ideas or inspiration from anywhere!!!

Take dance classes
Most areas have dance classes in the summer that are for teens or adults. Google search your area and see what you find. Oftentimes, studios offer the first class for free!!! Don't just stick with a style you are comfortable with, try new things too. I was trained in ballet and modern, but LOVED taking hip-hop in the summers because the music was fun and the class was always energetic. I've also ventured out to take Irish dance, flamenco, and ballroom styles. Anything goes!

One summer, I actually required my fall guard to take 2 dance classes (not 2 sessions, just two classes). They could be ANY style, and they just had to let me know what they took, when and where. One of my students took a hula class while on vacation in Hawaii!!

Go to performances
Find all the local venues that have performances of all types. Don't limit yourself to dance (though those are great!); seek out musical theater, plays, and acrobatic shows like Shen Yen. Also don't forget to check all the local dance studios for their performances, or local universities. They have much cheaper tickets and some really passionate actors/dancers/performers. Every performance you watch, good or bad, has something you can take away as a nugget of an idea or an inspiration. 

If a Drum Corps show is coming your way, be sure to check it out! There are two circuits of drum corps: Drum Corps International (DCI) and Drum Corps Associates (DCA). Most people think of DCI, but DCA has some great shows, too!

Watch videos
Check out WGIZone for videos of color guards. But you probably already watch tons of guard videos. Try branching out to other art forms! Perhaps head over to YouTube and check out these options:

• Kate Jablonski (contemporary style)
• Anaheim Ballet
• Petatonix (A Capella)
• Broadway
• Baton Twirling
• Traditional Florentine Flags

Go to a camp/clinic
Multiple companies and organizations now offer summer spin clinics or camps. Three organizations that run formal multi-day camps (some commuter, some overnight) are run by:

• Vivace Productions (my personal favorite since I taught at that camp a number of summers)
• Fred J Miller (many of my friends were instructors and this was the camp I went to in high school)
• Marching Auxiliaries

More recently, individual color guard programs have started offering 1- or 2-day clinics. My team, Stonewall Independent, does one every summer, usually on a Saturday or Sunday. Here is a listing of Facebook pages to follow so you can find out about various clinics, but also check any local teams that may not be included here! You can also check with your local circuit.

• Stonewall Independent (Northern, VA)
• Onyx (Dayton, OH)
• Emanon (New Jersey)
• Paramount (Georgia)
• James Madison University (Virginia)
• Allegoria (Ohio)
• University of Virginia (Charlottesville, VA)

Practice with your team!

At a minimum, ask your director if you can have regular practice time over the summer with your team! While I was in high school we practiced one afternoon a week, starting about 2 weeks after school ended, all the way up until band camp started. We worked on equipment technique and learned parts for the show. One of my friend's teams used to start rehearsal a week or two after winter guard ended (so in April!!) and would have a once a week dance class for a couple hours. It's also a great time for the director to bring in some guest instructors to learn new equipment styles or try some new dance moves. It's also the time of year to let everyone learn weapon, even if they may not make the weapon line for the fall.

4 Tips for Handling Parent Negativity

Every coach will have a time - probably at least once a season - where they have disagreements with parents. Whether it's your logistical planning, discussions over rehearsal times, teaching methods, artistic choices, or prop building, even adults do not deal well with criticism. If parents are unhappy, chances are they will talk to other parents before they tell you. These issues can be difficult to handle, so below are four tips to help manage, and get ahead of, parent negativity.

If this blog is interesting or helpful, please comment below! You may also want to check out other posts on the blog: food for long rehearsals, teaching performance qualities, and real-world application of Stonewall Independent guard rules.

What other ideas do you use with your team (and the question is for coaches, members or parents!)?

Set expectations
The first and best way to promote a positive environment for both the students and parents is to set very clear expectations at the outset. Some expectations that I like to set include the following:

• Rehearsal start times indicate when we start dancing/spinning/teaching, that isn't the time you arrive - remember you have to get the floor set up, equipment out, props assembled
• The end time for rehearsal is when we stop spinning. After that time we still need to have our final talk, and then clean everything up. If a handful of students have to leave early because of parent pressure, that means everyone else in the guard needs to pick up their slack, and that cannot be a regular occurrence or it will cause friction
• Our goal is to do well at competitions, but the scores and the placement do not define us. We can do the best we absolutely can but the score/placement is up to 5 individuals and their perspective of our show. We ask that parents encourage their students to strive for excellence, not a score
• Competition days are 100% reserved for color guard. The days schedules are not available until 2 weeks beforehand, so those days need to be free from any other commitments. Then when our rehearsal/competition schedule for the day is communicated to the team and parents, always include the disclaimer that the schedule is subject to change because show schedules are always in flux on site
• Whenever at a competition, only positive comments about other guards are allowed (or don't say anything at all - but really every guard has something positive you can talk about). Parents need to understand this just as much as the members. You never know who's in the bathroom with you getting dressed, or who's sitting behind you in the stands. Assume someone around you is with the guard you're talking about.

Promote dialogue
One of the best things you can do to flesh out any discontent or complaints about competitions is to promote dialogue between parents and staff. If you notice that parents are only expressing their concerns to each other, it might be a good idea to host a town-hall style meeting or one-on-one conferences to get these thoughts out in the open. However, keep in mind that if you want parents to feel comfortable voicing their concerns and complaints to you, it’s essential to remain empathetic, understanding and professional. Chances are that parent grievances are not an attack on you as a coach, even though they may initially come off that way. If you say you'll change something, be sure to follow through. If you disagree, share with the parent that you understand where they are coming from but you respectfully disagree.

Establish a social media policy

While you can’t control what parents and students post on their own social media accounts, you can ask them to remain respectful and positive while posting on or about your guard's page. Stonewall Independent has an unwritten (but very clearly understood) social media policy that outlines what content they encourage and what type of comments are not tolerated. Additionally, many color guards tell their members not to share any clips of their show, share photos of rehearsals, or comments about the show content without the okay from the director. We demand (politely) that our members also only post encouraging and complimentary posts to or about other guards. Then again, our members are selected based on their character as much as their spinning ability so this isn't something we tend to worry about, thank goodness!

Solicit volunteers
Color guards rely heavily on help from parents and volunteers. I find that soliciting volunteers and giving parents various roles/jobs, keeps them engaged. The benefit is that by volunteering, they start to see all the moving parts and therefore understand when schedules are flexible, or extra rehearsals are needed. If you don't see your calls for volunteers working, ask a parent or two to organize volunteers. Perhaps one parent is in charge of props and floor/prop/trailer logistics and they solicit volunteers for building, maintenance, transporting, etc. Then one volunteer can be in charge of chaperone coordination for every trip (one guard actually assigned a different parent to coordinate each show so no one had a huge burden and more parents were involved!). You can also have a parent in charge of any forms, or medical needs of students. Once guard I worked with had a policy of having 1 parent at every single rehearsal (usually split in two shifts) and they were there for emergencies, to help open locked doors on weekends, and just be there as an extra set of hands (usually they brought a book to read or yarn to knit).

I Couldn't Live Without...Color Guard (weekly line-up)

Those who know me, know that I don't just dance, or teach dance, I actually coach a nationally competitive winter guard called Stonewall Independent. I'm not sure what I would do if I didn't get to coach guard!!! I'm hooking up with a friend at Pursuit of Pink for this post.

Stonewall Independent, or SI as we like to abbreviate it, is based out of Manassas, VA. I started working with Stonewall Jackson HS winter guard in 2011 (flower show) and 2012 (eclipse) where we competed locally in a Scholastic A class. Then in 2013 we went into the Independent A class with our show "Saying Goodbye," and went to Winter Guard International (WGI) world championships for the first time with this team. They won the silver medal out of all units competing in their class!!! In 2014 they were promoted into Independent Open class and we made finals with our show about a journey. This year we're heading to Dayton for WGI championships in a few weeks and were positioned to do well again with our show "Harmony in Disarray."

About a week ago I prompted SI to start an #ispinbecause challenge on social media to share why they each spin, and then nominate others to take the challenge. I've been so excited by the trend we've started!! It's great to hear why everyone chooses to perform in this crazy guard activity, and we've heard some inspiring stories as well.

Personally, #ispinbecause it gives me life and breath. I LIVE for the moments when I get to perform even if that is just when I'm demonstrating some choreography.

While I have loved hearing all of the reasons people spin, here's the one that's my absolute favorite so far!

Color Guard: Tips for Turning - Learning the Turn

After building strength, here are my top seven tips for learning a pirouette itself.

  Learning the Turn  

1. Practice by going onto releve and posse, without turning first. Prep count 8, up on count 1 in posse, hold for count 2, down on count 3. If you achieve that with a solid balance, hold counts 2 and 3, and come down on count 4. If you can balance in posse on releve, you'll be able to turn better.

2. Balance by engaging your entire standing leg all the way up into your hip/butt muscles and engage your core. If there is a weak or non-engaged muscle in the chain or alignment, it will be the weak link that makes your balance not as rock solid.

3. Do not twist your back. Shoulders and hips should stay in line. And make sure your shoulders and hips are both parallel to the ground both when you start, and during the turn. If not, it will cause you to go off center.

4. Launch your turn from a balanced, centered pile. Feel grounded before the turn and feel the energy that you need to push off the ground into the turn.

5. Withdrawl your working leg quickly and get it into posse right away. It will make the turn look cleaner.

6. Make sure your working leg is turned out and the toe is at the knee. Depending on the technique or school of thinking (or in guard, the choreography!), you could have your toe on the side, the front or the back. NEVER put your arch on your leg. Ick!

7. Practice the turns slowly! If you can turn a pirouette slowly, you can do them controlled quickly. You'll also be able to know which way you're leaning if you fall off balance and should be able to analyze your standing and working legs better.

Do you have any other tips for pirouettes?

Color Guard: 7 Dance Terms Explained (and demonstrated)

UPDATE 10/1/2014: Clarified what I mean by using tendu when you walk, and also clarified the difference between the classical ballet tour en l'air and the way we use the term in color guard (which is technically a chasse en tournant).

In color guard, we don't usually learn what the terms that we use mean, or even how to spell them! Here are a few basic terms we use all the time but may not know the meaning or explanation.

  Chassé (shah-say)  

Definition: to chase

Description: The concept is that one leg is chasing the other. The thighs should pull tight together, in fact the entirety of both legs should pull together. But guess what, you don't have to leave the ground for it to be called a chassé. See the "how to" video below to see what I mean.

How To: Here is a link to a ballerina demonstrating the chassé in the air, and here is another link with more of a "how to" video for chassé on the floor, and lastly a "how to" video for chassé in the air.

http://northlandschoolofdance.com/2012/11/c-is-for-chasse-dance-terminology-a-z/

  Passé (pah-say)  

Definition: to pass

Description: Passé is a movement in ballet in which the working leg passes the supporting leg, sliding close to the knee. Passé is sometimes confused with the ballet position retiré in which the toe of the working leg touches the knee of the supporting leg. However, in color guard, we use passé to mean retiré, so don't stress about which to call it.

How To: Check out this video to see how you can do a passé correctly

http://www.showcasedanceproductions.com/aboutus.htm

  Pilé (plee-ay)  

Definition: to fold or to bend

Description: This is an exercise to render the joints and muscles soft and pliable and the tendons flexible and elastic, and to develop a sense of balance.

How To: This is a link for a grand plié in first position (notice how her heels go to the ground as soon as they can as she rises), and a basic first position demi plié.

http://dicasdeballet.tumblr.com/post/32241865384/o-que-e-plie-en-dehor-e-passe

  Relevé (rehl-leh-vay)  

Definition: to rise or raised

Description: In a relevé, you rise to the demi-pointe or to the ball of your foot

How To: Here is a great, detailed explanation of relevé

http://www.evolutiondanceleander.com/not-about-dance-workshop/2014/3/15/elevate-ballet-intensive

  Sauté (soh-tay)  

Definition: to jump

Description: Typically, we think of a sauté as jumping with off one foot, landing on the same foot, with our free leg straight behind us. And yes, that is a sauté. However, any jump you do is really a sauté! Try varying the types of jumps by putting the free leg into coupe or pase

Factoid: Did you know it's the same word for when you sauté something in a frying pan? The food "jumps!" 

How To: Here is a sauté in first position (two feet), and here the last jump she does is a sauté as well

http://entertainmentguide.local.com/types-dance-leaps-10940.html

  Tendu (tahn-deu)  

Definition: tense, strained or tight (this is the literal french translation)

Description: This is something we do day-in-day-out in color guard. You can do an exercise with tendu's. When I teach jazz walks, I explain that you go through first position, and straightening/lengthening to a tendu before stepping. Another option for jazz walks goes through coupe which would not include a tendu.

How To: Here is Jennifer Carlynn Kronenberg demonstrating a tendu

http://www.nanou.org/sports/ballet/leia/Standard%20positions%20gallery/pages/tendu-front.htm

  Tour en l'air (toor ahn lehr)  

Definition: A turn in the air

Description: In traditional classical ballet, the tor en l'air is a jump turn that men (typically) do where they start in fifth position, jump straight up in the air and turn 1 or more times, landing back in fifth position. In color guard, however, we sometimes use this term to mean a chassé turn, in which you essentially do a chassé while doing one full rotation, straight up in the air. Just like with a non-turning chassé, the thighs should pull tight together. Our use of this term in color guard is not technically correct, and yet, we still call it a tour en l'air or an "air tour." Just know we are using the term the way color guard means it, and not classical ballet. Technically, in ballet this would be called a chassé en tournant (sha-SAY ahn toor-NAHN) (thanks to the commenter who posted!)

How To: Seems I can't find a good video of a chassé en tournant! Maybe I'll just have to make one. Below is a graphical explanation of the classical ballet use of tour en l'air.

http://theclassicballet.blogspot.com/2010/12/tour-en-lair.html
Note: this is the true classical ballet version that goes straight up and down, and often has 2 or more rotations before landing. It is often a jump for the male dancers.

What other steps would you like to learn more about? I am thinking of a post all about fun unique jumps (e.g., the firebird, a calypso). What else would you like to see?





References:
1. http://www.abt.org/education/dictionary/index.html
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glossary_of_ballet
3. http://www.step-by-step-dance.com/ballettermspronunciationdefinitions.html
4. http://dance.about.com/od/ballet
5. http://ballethub.com/ballet-term/chasse-en-tournant/

Color Guard: How Can I Learn Faster?

Now that you've aced your auditions for winter guard, or soon will, your season starts with a lot of technique and new choreography. That means, after getting to that comfortable auto-pilot phase of performing at the end of last season, you now have to start learning to learn again.

Some people learn quicker than others and I wanted to give a few tips to those who may find themselves wanting to be more efficient learners.

  1. Think Big Picture First  

Everyone knows that one person on your team that always asks super detailed questions after the choreography teaches the first 8 counts. Don't be that girl or guy! You need to look at the big picture first before you start getting into the details.

First - Watch the general movements of the flag or weapon. For example, is it going up and over to the right or to the left, or is it making a cone up or a cone forward.

Second - Look at the hand positioning of each movement (don't worry about counts yet!)

Third - Look at the body underneath. This is a pet peeve of mine, considering I'm the movement instructor for any guard I work with! What do the feet do? Do they go into passé? Are you up on relevé? Does your leg rond de jambe around? What about your free hands?

Keep in mind, you don't need to get all the big picture components perfectly, but you do need to know what they are!

  2. Count or Talk as You Spin  

Most color guards I teach either count through most of their sections or talk through them (up, down, around, over the mountain, wiggle wiggle, whatever works!). It's usually something we make them do when they're not getting the choreography or spinning together, but I recommend that you use the technique when you're first learning the work. If you feel weird talking out loud, try doing it silently. If you start talking yourself through the choreography, you'll actually be using a larger portion of your brain and connecting more neurons so that you can start to put it into your long term memory rather than remember it for 2 seconds and then struggle to get through it once the instructor isn't in front of you anymore.

  3. Divide into Chunks  

Sometimes the instructors do this for you as they teach, but if not, make sure you do it for yourself. Divide the work into manageable, logical sections or "chunks." It may be every 16 counts makes sense, but maybe 8 counts is more manageable for you. Then practice each chunk separately. I like to do one chunk a few times, and then move on to the next chunk. Then I connect the two chunks together. Every time I do a chunk, I first think about what comes before it, and then as I finish the chunk, I think about what comes next. That will help your brain start to put the pieces together because your brain needs to understand the work before your muscles will start getting it right (for most people anyway.

  4. Don't Stop, But Go Slow  

After you've learned each of the chunks, try this one! One technique I found particularly useful when I was at Carolina Crown was to force myself not to stop as I went through the work. I had a habit of getting to a part and making a mistake, pausing, and then resuming the work. Or I would do a chunk, my brain would freeze, and then I'd do the next chunk. I realized I was trying to take the work up to the right tempo. I tried slowing myself down and forcing myself to do every count in time, to that slower tempo. I found that I could get my brain to go through the work and not let me stop spinning. Eventually then I could pick up the tempo little by little and was back up to speed, but without pausing!


Do you have a technique for learning faster that works for you?

Color Guard: The Audition Mindset

It's the time of year when winter guard auditions start occurring, and it's a great time to really grow as a performer. I've attended auditions for the specific purpose of getting better, because it's a time when instructors can really push you and try out new ideas without worrying about a specific show yet.

Last year, Byron Valentine (of Zydeco and Fred J. Miller fame) posted his thoughts about what you should think about going into auditions, and this year I wanted to put my thoughts on paper (virtually...so to speak!).

With Stonewall Independent auditions only a week away (September 21!), here are my top five tips to get yourself in the right mindset for any audition.

These are on top of the basics like (a) bring your own equipment in case it's needed, (b) wear form-fitting dark clothes (unless told otherwise, (c) have your hair neatly pulled back so you don't mess with it at all, (d) stay hydrated....etc.

  1. Fake it Till You Make it  

As I posted before, Stonewall's number one rule is "Fake it Till You Make it." Oftentimes, the instructor is looking for you to perform well, and just make things work. They know that you'll have a very short amount of time to figure out the choreography and they're not looking for perfection. They're looking for someone to perform it no matter how well (or how little) they know the choreography. To help yourself LEARN how to perform, check out my blog here.

  2. Crave Corrections  

My favorite auditioners are those who come to us and ask "what else can I fix?" or "how can I do xyz move?" Better yet, we love it when auditioners use each other to figure out what they are doing wrong! It warms my heart when someone goes up to a vet and asks them to watch them do the work and then ASK for the feedback. If you go into the conversation requesting the feedback, your more willing to hear what someone has to say. However, if you get a correction without asking for it, just say "okay" or "thank you" (love the Broad Run HS girls that say thank you!). Then, try your darndest to figure out how to fix it! Just like on the judges sheets, recovery is important. If you can take that correction and do something with it, the staff will notice you. More importantly, they will be excited to work with you throughout the season.

  3. Embrace a Beginners Mindset  

"In a beginners mind, there are many possibilities. In an expert's mind, there are few." ~Shunryu Suzuki

When you enter the audition space, remind yourself of this quote. Anything is possible if you recognize that within this audition, you are a beginner. That's not a bad thing. You just don't know exactly what it is the instructors will give you in terms of choreography. You may not know the instructors or veterans yet. Even the veterans are entering a space where they are learning. They won't be given choreography they've seen before, just like the rookies! If you embrace that fact, it will both allow you to have confidence and the openness to absorb everything you can.

  4. Don't be Married to "Your" Technique  

Students who audition for a new guard sometimes don't realize that every instructor or team has their own version of technique on everything. If you take the opportunity to be in a beginner's mindset, you will also open yourself to new technique as well. This new guard may toss differently. They may hold their arms in second differently (like we do...we use Horton modern technique for this arm position, which isn't typical in color guard). They may do a lot of body wraps (again...we do this!) and you may not be used to that. Even as a vet, you can use the opportunity to FIX your technique. Assume there may be a bad habit that you have. Use the auditions to fix those technique habits because it's a time to learn, not to be perfect.

  5. Try Something New  

As I've mentioned, auditions are a time for instructors to try out some new things. At Stonewall Independent, we often try some crazy tosses, just to see what happens. It's important for those auditioning to try something new even if it's scary or different. That doesn't just apply to a single piece of choreography, but maybe there's a weapons audition and you've never spun weapon. If you're interested, tell the instructor on the side that you haven't spun before but you'd really like to give it a shot. That way they know you're knew at this AND you get a chance to try something fun and different! Maybe you don't make the weapon line, but the instructors will see that you're willing to try new things. Plus, there's value in spinning a different piece of equipment and learning bits and pieces that you can take and apply elsewhere. For example, in high school I learned how to catch solid on rifle, and that improved my solid catching on flag!


What other recommendations or thoughts do you have for those who are auditioning this month?

Color Guard: How a Being a Mom is like Being in Drum Corps

In the summer's of 1999 and 2000 (my age out), I was a proud member of the Carolina Crown Drum & Bugle Corps Color Guard. There were many details that were less than fun, and yet I never wanted to go home, and I marched two seasons (so clearly I liked it!).

Flash forward 14 years (eeeek!)....and now I am married and have a 7 month old daughter.

I was thinking about my time in drum corps, and realized "man, there are a lot of similarities to my life right now." As I went through a few band camp rehearsals, while simultaneously watching my daughter learn to crawl, I started taking note of specific similarities.

  Sleep:  

• You start to sleep in random places (like the couch, the nursery floor)
• You sleep whenever you can, like today, when I napped during her morning nap

  Eat:  

• You eat whatever's available, sometimes it's whatever's leftover or fast
• You have to stay hydrated (specifically if you're a mom who's nursing your little one)

  Schedule:  

• Your schedule is not your own, even though you planned to go to the grocery store at 10 AM, she may need a nap then unexpectedly
• You have sectionals (you and your little one), and ensemble (you, your little one, and your significant other), and each has their own purpose

  Injuries:  

• You're likely to have aches and pains

  Other Areas:  

• Repetition is the norm - what infant or toddler doesn't like doing the same thing over and over and over and over
• You have to think on your feet to answer questions or find a new way to solve an issue (dirty diaper during a road trip... too hard to stop and find a bathroom with a changing table...so you improvise!)
• You sing random songs (at least when I was in drum corps, we did..."we're here, because we're here, because we're here, because we're here....")
• You never want to mess up, but it's bound to happen

The most interesting similarity for me....I sing "You are My Sunshine" all the time!!!!!! Crown folks will understand!

What other similarities can you think of?

Color Guard: Food for Auditions or Long Rehearsals

Have you ever wondered what you should eat and drink before, during and after long rehearsals or auditions? Well here's the post for you!

  The week before (or the weeks between rehearsals)  

• Do not drastically change what you eat; it won't make much of a difference
• Do not drastically reduce portion size, or skip meals
• Stick to the same amount of food you normally eat

  The night before  

• Steer clear of anything that causes water retention, especially if you're required to wear all black form fitting clothing for an audition!! Minimize sodium intake, particularly by avoiding highly processed foods
• Stick to whole, natural foods like fresh fruits and veggies, legumes, salmon, brown rice
• Drink LOTS of water (see my water post here)
• Eat a hearty dinner since during rehearsals/auditions you'll have less of a chance to eat a larger meal

  The morning of  

• Don't skip breakfast!
• Some options include: Greek yogurt, banana, berries, granola, oatmeal egg and wheat toast
• Make sure you include a protein
• Bananas will help increase the potassium level and decrease cramping
• Drink at LEAST one glass of water before you leave the house
• Avoid refined sugar, since it will give you very short term energy

  Just before  

• Put something in your stomach about 1-2 hours before moving so you can keep up your strength
• Some options include: trail mix (no chocolate in it!), granola, banana with peanut butter
• If you eat a bar of some sort, get one with few ingredients and make sure there are no additives or preservatives; one I love is the Lara Bar
• Avoid anything with sugar alcohols because they tend to cause gas, cramping, and bloating. Ingredients to look for are sorbitol, xylitol, malitol and any other ingredient ending in "-ol" which are all sugar alcohols
• If you like cow's milk or soy milk, both give you protein and the energy you need but aren't hard to digest so they won't sit heavily in your stomach

  During  

• I like to pack a myriad of snacks so I always have something I can quickly grab
• Some of my standby options: fruit, granola bar, Lara Bar, applesauce pouches (no added sugar), fruit leather (no added sugar), raw natural almonds, dried cranberries, and raisins
• Stay hydrated throughout! Aim for about 8 ounces an hour, at a minimum

  Afterwards  

• If you ever talk to someone who works out a lot, the same rule applies: eat protein!
• Some options: edamame, hummus, nuts
• A friend mentioned her trainer told her to drink a glass of 2% chocolate milk! Make sure to get the good stuff though, so look for antibiotic free, hormone free milk
• Keep hydrating after your rehearsal or audition

  Avoid or Reduce  

• The sugar alcohols we already mentioned
• Caffeine: A small amount is okay, but only one cup of coffee will do the day of
• Alcohol (for those guard folks in independent groups and are older): it dehydrates you and will make you feel icky if you drink anything the night before
• Energy Drinks: most of them are full of non-natural ingredients, caffeine, and SUGAR

And to reiterate the point about water, you should drink half your weight in ounces every day, and more when it's hot outside or when you're highly active. For example, your baseline should be if you weigh 150 lbs, you would drink approximately 75 oz of water per day.

Reference:

• http://pointemagazine.com/issues/februarymarch-2012/your-best-body-audition-day-diet?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=justdance&utm_term=auditions&date=080614

Color Guard: Teaching Jazz Runs to Marching Band

This past week I had to teach the band members (winds and percussion) how to jazz run because one of their drill moves requires them to move quickly and cover a large distance. It got me thinking about how I was able, in only 30 minutes, to get them all looking infinitely better than when we started...and I wasn't the first one to try to teach them this season!

Here are the elements of what I taught:

• Start with the left foot back, so that you step with that foot first
• Take one step all together first, and explain that you have to take a very large step and push off the back leg
• Then explain that you have to stay in plie (which we explained meant "fold" because you're folding your legs...and oddly enough they already knew what a plie was!)
• Then we sprinkled the guard members throughout the band so they could watch around them
• I had them add in their arms at their attention position (similar to below, but our band actually touches finger tips together instead of the traditional fist, because it requires even more stability)

• We gave them the rule that when they get across the stage, they must turn around and watch the people behind them (i.e., the rule isn't that they don't talk, but no talking is a result of them watching)
• Then we repeated multiple times with each line leading off every 8 counts, so they get the hang of it; each time I gave them ONE thing to think about and told them to make ONE thing better (See my post about Rule #7: Make One Thing Better)
• Then, because there were just THAT many corrections I needed to give, I had one line go at a time, all the way across; I gave them corrections and then had the next line go
• We then showed the band director a few times and he was impressed by their improvement!

Have you taught jazz runs to your marching band before? How'd you go about doing it?

My Week Ahead - Aug 3, 2014

In my second installment of my week ahead, Monday won't have the blahs because my week is exciting!

1. Dance: This week I get to take our little daughter to her first dance performance! We're seeing Taylor 2 and I'm hoping that even though she's only 6 months old, she'll love dance as much as I did from an early age.

2. Teaching: Saturday I get to teach Broad Run HS's Color Guard for the first time in quite a while! I have a three hour dance block in which we'll warm up, stretch, do some technique block, cover some basic and fun across the floors, and then learn a combo! Now I just need to figure out which song to use for the combo. Any suggestions? The front runner at the moment is Peace by OAR.

3. 4-H Fair: The annual Frying Pan Farm Park 4-H Fair ends Aug 3 and we're hoping to bring our little one to see the animals!

4. Coffee: Two days a week I'm a stay-at-home-mom (SAHM) and one of those days this week I'm meeting up with a friend so she can take a quick coffee break at work! I can't wait to catch up, and for her to see how much our little girl has changed since she last saw her about a month ago.

5. Leadership Coaching: This week at work I'm listening in to a webinar focusing on mindfulness within leadership and coaching. I'm loving coaching, and I'm someone who constantly wants to learn so webinar's like this excite me! Maybe I'll report back after the session to share what I learned.

Color Guard: Rules at Stonewall (#6-10)

A few days back, I posted the first five rules of Stonewall color guards, and how they apply to the real world. Here is the next installment: Rules #6-10.

  #6 Do What You Can Do, to the Best of Your Ability  

At Stonewall, we push the team members to consciously understanding what they're good at and encourage them to do whatever it is to the best of their ability every single time. There will always be things you're not great at (maybe it's a specific toss, or a turn, or a drill move), but there will always be things you're great at. Exploit that! Then start to work on the things you're not so good at, one at a time (see Rule #7).

Real World Application: Often times people focus on improving what they're not good at. Think about at school, it's the classes that you don't do well in that you often focus on, and if you pay attention closely, you'll notice it's likely at the detriment of what you're really good at! Gallup - a consulting firm best known for it's polling capability - talks about exploiting your natural talents, and then do your best to make your weakest areas acceptable.  For some more insight, check out Gallup's website, and how they distinguish between a talent and a strength here. At work, if you are known for something, people will know to call upon you for that subject matter expertise, and it becomes part of your personal brand. For example, at work I'm known for my expertise in Federal Recruiting, even though I also know how to do Competency Modeling, Workforce Planning, Leadership Development, and leadership Coaching. People know that if they need expertise in Federal Recruiting, they call me first, but they also know I'm capable of doing other things as well.

  #7 Make One Thing Better Each Time  

Particularly during auditions, at spin clinics, or when learning new work, we tell the members to make one thing better each time. Sometimes if they think about the work as a whole, they get overwhelmed and they try to get everything right every time...and as a result, don't get anything right and worse yet, get anxious and frustrated. Instead, if you don't worry about everything, and focus in on one thing to improve, you're more likely to actually improve that one item. Think of it as a small win! If you add up all the small improvements you make, by the end of running through the choreography ten times, you'll have fixed ten things!

This advice is also something choreographers, coaches and instructors should remember. Don't expect one of the members to fix everything you're asking them to fix in one try. Give them corrections at the same rate that they can actually apply those corrections. For example, if you're teaching a movement section, first fix the steps or their feet. Let them get that right, and then work to correct their arms. Once that's corrected, then give them more information about where their head should be facing. You get the idea.

Real World Application: No one is perfect, and yes, you should knock it out of the park in the talent area you have (See Rule #6), but that doesn't mean you should ignore your weaknesses - or as we like to say at my company "opportunities for improvement." But sometimes when you try to improve in multiple areas at once it's overwhelming and you're less likely to make noticeable improvement. Take, for example, my job. I need to know multiple functional areas of human capital (like I mentioned above), I need to know the contracting process, I need to know financials (finance I know, our method of finance tracking I do not know). I have to be good at people management, and I could go on. Each of those categories has multiple areas that I need to learn, too! If I try to become good at all of that, I won't be able to improve a noticeable amount in any area. However, if I choose a couple areas to focus on at a time, I'll get noticed for my improvements. For example, this year I'm working less on learning new functional areas within human capital, but rather am continuing to develop my project and people management skills. I love both areas, but am finally getting the opportunity to build on what I know and manage a team and a project. By the end of this project, my boss will know I can manage people and projects, and I can start expanding my financial knowledge next!

  #8 Finish Strong  

Color guard is a judged activity. Human nature is to remember your first impression and your last impression. Every performance will have mistakes - be them minor or major - but the judge and the audience will remember how you end. Choreographers and show designers keep this in mind when they create the show. We want to have an opening that sets the stage for what the judges and audience should expect. And most importantly, we need an ending that leaves an impression with them so they remember your team. Here's an amazing moment from SI in 2013, captured by Jolesch during their finals run at WGI World Championships, where they went on to win the silver medal in Independent A (IA) class.

2013 Stonewall Independent WGI IA Silver Medalists
The Ending
(c) Jolesch Photography

Real World Application: Let's say you're on a project for 6 months, and a couple moths in, the client or your boss is less than thrilled with your progress, your team is showing up late or missing meetings, and you have a new requirement you somehow need to adjust for! Life happens. It's what you do next that matters. Your job is to produce a high quality end product. If you can do that , your client/boss will remember the end result, and may even recognize how you overcame difficult obstacles. No matter how a task or project appears to be going in the present, there's almost always time to finish strong!

  #9 Just Breathe  

Often times in color guard or other performing activities, coaches remind the performers to "just breathe." We often use this at Stonewall when we're warming up before a show and someone is trying too hard to get a toss and is messing it up over and over. I remind them to take a deep breath and it helps them recenter, and remember that there's no need to stress. I would say 9 times out of 10, just a few deep breaths are enough to recenter the students I work with, and remind them that they're supposed to LOVE performing, not stress about it. The other 1 time out of 10, I just have to try something else.

Real World Application: Breathing is the body's natural way to de-stress regularly. There's even research that shows that how you breathe can cause your brain to get out of the stress mode, it can lower your blood pressure and heart rate, spark brain growth, and can even change gene expression (check out this article on NPR or this one on Forbes)! Imagine you're at work, you just found out your client/boss hates what you're working on and you have to redo it tonight because it's due tomorrow. So you stop, and take a few really deep breaths. You automatically can refocus and stop panicking, so that you can stop wasting time worrying and move into action to get the job done.

  #10 Don't be Married to Anything (aka expect change)  

At Stonewall, we constantly tweak every single count of the show. We have about 7-8 months to work on a four minute show, rehearsing about 15-20 hours a week....on four minutes of a show! That's a lot of repetition. Many color guards have portions of their show that don't change and they practice by repetition over and over. At Stonewall, we run rehearsals a bit differently. We do far fewer repetitions, and instead spend time in rehearsals tweaking parts until they make the most sense. We expect the members to pick up the changes quickly, and just get them right, even if we only get to practice it a few times. As a result, our show changes every single week, and not in the sense that we add to the show. No, we fundamentally change a couple sections, and then minority change nearly every single section of work (adding lower body, adding free hands, turning some people around to face backwards, adjusting choreography, switching entire drill spots).

We don't EVER set anything in stone, until the last week (and even then, we make changes!). The students we teach understand that change will happen, and they know we always have the best interest of the show and group in mind. It's never personal when we make changes (okay, ALMOST never personal). As a result, they've all learned to adapt to change incredibly well! It is not innate in everyone to be adaptable like that; you have to practice it so that you can change quickly, when needed.

Real World Application: When I hear about employees or staff who are unhappy at work, it's often because there is a major change occurring (or they perceive the change to be major). However, my assumption is always that change will occur. I can decide to go with the change or find another job, but there's no use in stressing over the change. If you start to embrace change as a necessary occurrence for business to align to the market, then you won't see change as a bad thing, or a personal attack on you. Imagine if you just go with the flow, and start to find ways to make the change work, you'll be seen as someone who is a problem solver, instead of a problem identifier. And your stress level will go down 10000%!!


There are probably 20 more rules at Stonewall that apply in the real world, so there may be yet another post. We shall see! What rules do you have in your performing group that may translate to the real world?