Tom Weksler is a dancer, choreographer and director of the company Wonderground Movement Arts with his partner Roser Tutusaus. Tom is also the founder of ‘Movement Archery’, a workshop concept that presents a unique approach to Movement, philosophy and dance. Since 2014 he has been teaching this approach internationally in dance schools, circus schools, universities, professional companies, martial arts gyms and more. Tom’s teaching is globally acclaimed and he is considered one of the pioneers of the modern ‘Movement Culture’. Movement Archery: movementarchery.com Wonderground Company: wondergroundcompany.com GoFundMe for Matthew Stillman: https://gofund.me/69b59d67 Primal Derma: primalderma.com/btm

Abigail Rose Clarke is an author, somatic educator, writer, and artist. She has an inordinate amount of love for octopuses, the moon, and her extensive collection of anatomy books. She is the creator of The Somatic Tarot and The Body Oracle decks, and the author of Returning Home to Our Bodies: Reimagining the Relationship Between Our Bodies and the World (world release date: January 9, 2024, with North Atlantic Books and Penguin RandomHouse).  She has developed what she calls The Embodied Life Method, which centers on the relationship between body and culture, and how we can use the inherent wisdom of our bodies to be in direct conversation with our creativity and our aliveness. When we do that, we dismantle oppressive systems and build a future that is lush and generative and deeply relational.      Abigail does not teach that embodiment always feels good, because it doesn’t. Her work prioritizes exploration over assumed results, because the body is always adaptable and always adapting. Our creative efforts should do the same, and they can, when we are in relationship with our own bodies.   In a world of such rapid change, Abigail teaches embodiment as a practice and a responsibility. As the world changes so dramatically we are tasked with the enormous responsibility of remaining present to the world as it is, which requires we remain present to ourselves as we are. From here, the way forward becomes possible.     You can learn more about Abigail’s work and approach here:   www.abigailroseclarke.com IG: www.instagram.com/abigail.rose.clarke Returning Home to Our Bodies is available for pre-order and is out on January 9, 2024 https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/730766/returning-home-to-ourbodies-by-abigail-rose-clarke/ GoFundMe for Matthew Stillman: https://gofund.me/69b59d67 Primal Derma: primalderma.com/btm

Born in 1995 in Milan (Italy) , Davide Bonetti is a professional acrodancer. At the age of 18, Davide attended FLIC Contemporary Circus School in Turin as an acrobat, where he specialised in handstands. At 22, he got directly into the second year of CNAC (Centre National des Arts du Cirque) in France, specialising in acrodance. He then toured between France and Belgium as a performer and since 6 years, he has been giving acrodance workshops in italian dance academies and european festivals such as B12 research or die (Berlin), HJS Summer intensive (Amsterdam), Frei Art Festival (Freiburg).

Matt Mulligan loves to move, loves to laugh, and loves helping people feel better.He has spent 20 years weaving threads between a professional practice of circus, dance and physical theatre, while coaching people to find for themselves more joyful, authentic physical practices. Matt is also an advocate and consultant for arts access & inclusivity. Follow Matt on Instagram @mattmulligan Coaching: www.bodyroots.org Arts: www.rootandbrancharts.com

Katharina Dodel – Movement Play & Yoga "Joy and ease“ has become something like a slogan of wampediboo over the years. She started this playful orbit to spread the creative spirit she's felt since childhood. She grew up on the countryside in south Germany, explored many things from playing the violin to climbing trees, from table tennis and athletics to volleyball. Later on as a journalist she kept asking questions. So why not continue asking them to myself? In 2017 she moved to Berlin to deepen her yoga studies and to explore life a bit more. It’s a deep interest that drives her and a playful spirit she's sharing with other people in my Movement Play classes – solving riddles and dissolving blind spots on the physical map to encounter the world with a little more joy and ease.

Sekou Heru, aka Tony Williams, has been involved in the performing arts since he was very young. His first love was B- boying. In high school, he attended Mercer County School of the Arts and studied modern dance. In 1993, Sekou started studying Capoeira Angola with Mestre Joa Grande at the Capoeira Academy in NYC. He went on to fuse his breaking and modern dance styles with hip hop and house dance. Sekou has worked with Gwen Guthrey, toured with Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince, and can be seen in videos with Aretha Franklin, MC Lyte, Clubland, Pet Shop Boys, Foxy Brown, and Jay Z. Sekou was a featured dancer in the movie Marcy X with Damon Wayans, can be seen in the dance scenes on Spike Lee’s The 25th Hour, and seen in Brown Sugar starring Taye Diggs and Sanna Lathan. He has toured in Germany with German rapper Tony Cottura, and has traveled several times to Japan for the annual premier Dance Delight event as a guest judge and featured dancer with the group Dance Fusion, of which he is a founding member. He was a part of the opening act for Cece Peniston’s Japan tour, and also opened for Cool C's Let me clear my throat in his Japan performance. He was featured in Japan’s "woofin" magazine as one of NYC’s top dancers. Sekou toured the USA with Fred Ho and The Afro Asian Ensemble in the Martial Art stage show Voice of the Dragon. In 2005 Sekou choreographed the Dance Dance video for Fall Out Boy that went #1 in the country and won a Best Video Award at the MTV VMAs.

Natalia Mehlman Petrzela is a historian of contemporary American politics and culture. She is the author of CLASSROOM WARS: Language, Sex, and the Making of Modern Political Culture (Oxford University Press, 2015), and FIT NATION: The Gains and Pains of America’s Exercise Obsession (University of Chicago Press, 2023). She is co-producer and host of the acclaimed podcast WELCOME TO YOUR FANTASY, from Pineapple Street Studios/Gimlet and the co-host of PAST PRESENT podcast. She is a frequent media guest expert, public speaker, and contributor to outlets including the New York Times, the Washington Post, CNN, and the Atlantic. Natalia is Associate Professor of History at The New School, co-founder of the wellness education program Healthclass 2.0, and a Premiere Leader of the mind-body practice intenSati. Her work has been supported by the Spencer, Whiting, Rockefeller, and Mellon Foundations. She holds a B.A. from Columbia and a Ph.D. from Stanford and lives with her husband and two children in New York City.

Adriena is a physiotherapist, a movement teacher, and a passionate student of life born and raised in the Czech Republic. As a former professional athlete representing her country in Ice Hockey for five years, her life always spans around some form of physical practice and discipline that continues to be the guiding force on her path of self-discovery.  After going through burnout as an athlete, Ido Portal deeply influenced her path, following his teachings from 2013 to 2021. Until very recently, Adriena was a teacher at Pohyb je život, a movement community based mainly on Ido's philosophy, for the last six years. Since receiving her bachelor's degree at the University of West Bohemia, her work and interest continue to guide her deeper into understanding and connecting the dots between multiple fields and areas such as manual therapy, trauma release, psychotherapy, and general movement practice.  Currently living on the move she spends most of the year traveling the world, expanding her experience as a student, teacher, and therapist implementing her knowledge into clinical treatments as well as into her teachings. Meanwhile, she continues to lead her community by combining distance learning through online platforms with in-person gatherings according to her travels. Recently Adriena joined Marcello Palozzo's team in shared pursuit of supporting people to improve the quality of their lives through deep transformative work while continuously nurturing her process of individuation.

Lewie is a doer of many things. He is most known for doing spinny, shiny, flippy things on the floor where he has pioneered a new form of hard-floor circus tumbling. In 2013 He won a gold medal at what his mum calls "the circus Olympics" or the Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain in Paris for an aerial straps piece. Lewie is recognised as one of the foremost contemporary circus artists in the world and has been working professionally in multiple aspects of the circus and performing industry for over 15 years. He has worked as an acrobat, choreographer, director, trainer and tour manager both nationally and internationally with the Australian companies Circa and Gravity and Other Myths before co-founding a new circus company in Tasmania called Rooke.  He is now (unsuccessfully) trying to retire from performing and concentrate on passing on his physical knowledge both online and in-person while being the best Dad he can be to his new daughter. The things he most enjoys doing now all involve other people; forming human towers and throwing bodies around a stage, manipulating and diving through hoops, parenting and trying to choke out fools using Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Unfortunately, as he is a blue belt, he is usually the fool being choked.

Tamara “Cuchira” Levinson was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina and moved to the United States of America at age five. She represented the USA Rhythmic Gymnastics team at the 1992 Olympic Games just ten years later. Growing up an athlete gave her great discipline though her nature has always been raw, wild and free! Once her athletic career came to an end at 18 years of age, she made her way to New York City to explore who she was beyond the athlete. She found her-SELF through dance, freeing all parts of her that had been put on hold up thill then. First by way of underground clubs that attracted the most eccentric of beings, later through professional dance theatre, Broadway and the NYC underground scene. Her love of free movement, individualism and eMOTIONal exploration eventually led her to a successful and ongoing 20+ year professional dance, aerial arts and choreography career that spanned from New York City, to Hollywood and throughout the world. She eventually finds herself touring with Madonna on three world tours, along with handfuls of other huge pop icons. This gave Tamara unique experiences few ever get a chance to have, seeing the world and performing in front of hundreds and thousands of screaming fans worldwide! Her next big artistic venture came by way of her roots through a well-known avant-garde aerial group called ‘De La Guarda’. She co-choreographed and performed in the shows “Villa Villa” and Fuerzabruta. Think rave meets aerial theatre, but Tamara is curious about all forms of physical expression so she made her way across the movement world and got to work with many iconic people such as the legendary Twyla Tharp on Broadway's “The Times Are A CHANGIN’” and choreographed some scenes in the movie “The Greatest Showman” with Hugh Jackman. Gaining such production and creation knowledge throughout her time being in the thick of Broadway and Hollywood, Tamara naturally transitioned into directing many of her own pieces of work on stage and film. With a bag full of movement expertise, Tamara’s underlying success always came from the fact that she moves through RAW E-MOTION that everyone can CONNECT to, so it only be natural that her work organically led into guiding others to their own freedom through the body's wisdom. She began teaching workshops and masterclasses about tapping into the language of the body. Once we understand BodyTalk we can begin having real conversations with ourselves and there is where true healing can begin. MovMEANT took off and a whole new inspired world opened up for Tamara. She has now been teaching MovMEANT for almost three decades all over the world and this has changed her life and of those who have incorporated the practice into their lifestyle. What does MovMEANT practically look like? Think ecstatic dance à la the most breakthrough therapy session you’ve ever had! Or an Ayahuasca ceremony where dance is the “drug” that transcends the here and now. The mover returns anew, cleansed, with vast knowledge of their inner world. This kind of clarity heals and transforms. That is the power of MovMEANT! Tamara continues to grow in the infinite space of somatic healing and the work continues to evolve to find more and more of an audience everyday. From Olympian, to professional dancer, choreographer, artist, director, healer… Tamara is fascinated by the infinite world of E-motions and how they speak to us. She does retreats and workshops all over the world. If you’re interested to learn more go to MovMEANT.com. You can also find her on Instagram @cuchira

David Kam is a London-based movement specialist, yoga teacher and speaker exploring mindful mo(ve)ments in playful situations. His degrees in architecture and dance have shaped his interest in discovering what it means to feel at home in our bodies, and at peace with our actions. For David, it’s never from achieving the best technique, but the reclaiming of function and freedom of expression. Perhaps making some new friends along the way. It’s about self dare and collective care. David activates communities around the world, holding brave spaces for others to embody the wonder in wellbeing by queering the practices of movement. He works regularly with charities like besea.n and WECREATESPACE to advocate for joyful activism and culturally sensitive wellbeing amongst underprivileged communities. David is also founder of  kindredpacket, a grassroots organisation raising joy, care and connection amongst East and South East Asian communities in London and beyond.

On this special episode, Kyle shares an in person conversation while in Berlin with Joseph Bartz to discuss the economics of movement.   

From a young age, I was very interested in all kinds of sports. From soccer to, over different kind of martial arts I found my way to skateboarding and through my teenager's wish of becoming strong and buff, into the world of strength training. One thing I really never did, was to commit to anything for very long through, I jumped from practice to practice until I found physical development by way of strength work. So some years went by and along the way I decided to become a trainer, as this was the thing I was very passionate about. With this realization, I started to look at things differently. Even more than before, I was interested in understanding in the why behind what I was learning and doing. Eventually 18. Birthday came around, and I actually became a licensed pt and started to work in a gym, while I finished school. Pretty soon after, I got a little bored with what I was doing in the gym and decided that I want to do more with my body. For a couple of years my focus was solely on getting stronger back then. So I opened my eyes and stumbled upon a fellow coach in the gym who was teaching a parkour class. I joined. A couple of weeks later, a friend of mine showed me a video of this weirdo from Berlin... his name was Ido Portal and very soon I found myself at an international workshop in Zurich. This was 2014 or 15, and I dove in deeply and met all those beautiful souls, teachers, friends along the way, who really shaped the person I am today. Some years into the future, I opened my own movement school in Hamburg.

Marcello is known for his studies of movement in a relationship with the environment. His interest and investigations of different artistic and scientific dimensions brought him far and wide. Notably, he helped shape the face of Parkour in Europe, got his Master of Science degree in strength and conditioning at St. Mary university in London, and was part of Ido Portal’s team for three years. Currently his body of work continues to develop integrating in a coherent philosophy movement dexterity, dance, urban practices, the science of strength & conditioning and athletic principles. Through his teachings Marcello wishes to improve other people’s quality of life, allowing them to find their individuation and identity through deep transformative work. Recently he started releasing a lot of free practical materials to help everyone fuel their movement journey under his vision and school of practice. So here follow ten protocols that can get you busy for months: 1. Climbing – wall riddles 2. Climbing – advanced hanging & brachiation 3. Lightness skills 4-5-6. Physical Preparedness – elastics, strength, ranges. 7. Elasticity – kips 8. Acrobatics - ground 9. Balancing – single pole 10. Movement in Water

Bruno Caverna is a pioneer in creating authentic multidisciplinary practices sustained by an embodied movement philosophy drawn from over 35 years of studying movement devottedly. Bruno’s background amalgamates various disciplines from Capoeira through Acrobatics, Contemporary Dance, Contact-improvisation, Qi-Gong, Russian Systema, Watsu, Buteyko Method, Oxygen Advantage all the way to Freediving. Bruno began teaching in 1995 as a capoeira project leader at a psychiatric hospital. The highly demanding context ignited his auto-didactic nature to flourish whilst the teaching processes were becoming over the years more and more consolidated as self-exploratory in its essence. This first highly transformative teaching experience became his pedagogical ground for all his others artistic, pedagogical and psychosocial projects, regardless the context. Being constantly confronted with adversities was vital to related to people in most humane manners. This ever-evolving impulse would manifest inas much as horizons would organically expand beyond the conventional body-mind frameworks. In the past 27 years Bruno has been teaching people from all walks of life over 33 countries worldwide. In 2012 Bruno created Play-Fight and Liquid Body, body-mind practices that coalesced out of professional and personal maturity to assume and pursue an original path while at the same time honoring his vast background and teachers. In 2016 Bruno gave another decisive step by founding Formless Arts, a cross-disciplinary hub that foments a community of self-responsible movers from eclectic backgrounds. The current Formless Arts team is committed to explore movement from a larger dimension that includes a vasgt array of interests such as in ontological philosophy, somatics, neuroscience, various forms of psychotherapies, somatics as well as studies in human biomechanics, biotensegrity, science or water flow, just to mention a few. You can subscribe to host of Behind the Movement Kyle Fincham's Movesletter by clicking here.  

Born in Romania, Cluj-Napoca. I started my physical education at the age of 5, as a swimmer. Along the years I practiced various sports, focusing mainly on capoeira. My interest in arts was cultivated while studying music during my first 10 years of education.  I studied medicine for 4 years. Afterwards I quit and decided to take education in my own hands. In present I am studying with Fighting Monkey, applying the principles and philosophy in my practice and in the way I move in the world.  My plans for the future are to spread the love for movement and educate people towards a more artistic engagement with life and their practice.

Lucía Toker is a dancer and acrobat dedicated to movement and pedagogical research. She has been developing her teaching for more than 15 years. Her work concept is to constantly update and search for essencial technical tools and methodological strategies to facilitate the connection and development of the movement practice for people with all levels of experience. Originally from Buenos Aires, Lucía works regularly giving classes in professional dance programs, workshops and seminars throughout argentina and europe. her training started from a really young age and crossed through different disciplines and techniques, such as gymnastics, floor acrobatics, tango, flamenco, contemporary dance, improvisation, rehabilitation techniques, physical therapies, physical training and theoretical studies related to the human body. she participated in the residency bows & arrows 2018, in Italy, invited by Tom Weksler, with whom she thereafter performed a mentorship program. as a performer, she worked several years dedicated to scenic creation but in the last few years, she decided to dedicated exclusively to research and teaching. Some of her latest works are “Collision”, developed in the artistic residency Circo Futuro, together with the group “OM” in Fortaleza, Brazil, July 2019. “lo que queda” and “mar arriba”, both solo pieces, developed in co-production with Paz Ladrón de Guevara, were performed in different festivals and theatres in Buenos Aires.

Jesse Danger loves jumping into things so much he's been doing nothing but for the past decade. He leads the team at The Movement Creative to help people turn their city into a playground and find a group of friends that love to explore. He credits novel movement experiences as being the core of his education. He sees movement as a way to explore the world physically while connecting socially. Those novel movement moments have led to most of the conversations that have helped him grow.

Born in Wild East. Based in North West. Soul coordinates 22°25'00.0"N 12°00'00.0"W She got married somewhere in Switzerland with a man who can carry on his shoulders more than 100kg. She can cook a whole dinner for 17 persons and she can have 3 espressos in a row. A collector of: animal bones - especially golden dragons - complex fragrances, aromatic herbs, stones and rocks. She has knowledge in: how to grow a plant from a single leaf, hip hop music from 1992 to 2010, inner and outer order, anthropology of culture. Believes in the logic of the universe. Likes to walk slowly, terribly slowly since it reminds her that time doesn’t exist and that presence is to be somewhere. Performer, dancer, teacher, also known as the “polish hammer”. Rooted herself with FM practice, and in SEAD, graduating with a double diploma in choreography and performance. Since 2006, she has been following the Fighting Monkey path. This gave an axis to her teaching and life. As a pedagogue, she is motivated by an urge for movement as a consequence of being alive and by an endless and necessary will to share. Her teaching reaches people from various grounds - dancers, actors, circus and sports people - everyone willing to “try”. Natalia is currently busy with FM, TCM, stillness&motherhood, collaboration with Voetvolk- Lisbeth Gruwez. Natalia would not mind being a bird or an ocean –but she is the happiest when she can be herself. If she would be asked to close with a quote she would say: “All I ask is that you step with me into the boundlessness, where constancy, quietude and peace, infinite emptiness reign.”

Steven Sashen is a serial entrepreneur who has never had a job, a former professional stand up comic and award-winning screenwriter, and a competitive sprinter -- one of the fastest men over 55 in the country (maybe the fastest 55+ Jew in the world!). He and his wife, Lena Phoenix, co-founded the footwear company Xero Shoes, creating "a MOVEMENT movement" which has helped hundreds of thousands of people Live Life Feet First with happy, healthy, strong feet in addictively comfortable footwear. Steven and Lena also appeared on Shark Tank, where they turned down a $400,000 offer from Kevin O'Leary.

Physical Therapist (MPT) since 1998 and board certified orthopedic clinical specialist (OCS) with the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties (2011 to 2021). Extensive postgraduate training in neck and back rehabilitation with an emphasis in manual therapy. Certified Therapeutic Pain Specialist (TPS) through Evidence in Motion Institutes of Health Professions in partnership with Purdue University (2020). Jarlo Ilano has been teaching martial arts for over 20 years, with a primary focus on Filipino Martial Arts. His main goal is to teach students how to fight effectively as quickly as possible and enjoy their training.

With experience spanning twenty- five years of dancing, choreographing, performing, coaching, teaching, and facilitating, Anna has reached an expert level of personal development through movement, and uses her knowledge to coach clients through their own journeys as a BodyMind Movement Facilitator. She is deeply passionate about the body-mind practice and somatic experiencing, and works to nurture that connection for people via movement in her signature method and class 'Unstructured', which she offers in person and online. She incorporates dance and movement in various ways spanning from artistry to healing, and everything in between.

I am a dancer, dance teacher and choreographer, originally from Israel and based in Berlin. After studying dance and working as a dancer in Israel, I moved to Europe, where I expanded my knowledge and started to develop my research, practice and methods of teaching and creating. Upon moving to Europe, I participated in a one year post-graduate studies at SEAD, Salzburg, where I met Martin Kilvady, who became my close teacher and mentor for the following 10 years. While learning closely and collaborating frequently with Martin, I have also worked with different choreographers and performed around Europe. For 6 years I’ve been a part of the Ido Portal team and taught in his events around the world. Working with Ido has opened a bridge for me to the Movement world which allowed me to share my knowledge and experience from the dance field with a wide range of movement practitioners. In the last few years I have been teaching contemporary dance and improvisation in different frames for professional dancers, BA and MA education programs, in professional dance companies and in open workshops around the world, while developing my own choreographic work and working as a freelance dancer and teacher.

Dance was a first love for Tracee Kafer, who began at 3 and went on to journey through well over 30 years of training and experience in classical and contemporary genres. She’s moved though these landscapes of student, performer, nationally-ranked competitor, world-traveling teacher, NY-based choreographer, and in the last decade alone shifted passionately and purposefully to the realms of the explorer; practicing and facilitating her own ever-evolving freestyle movement methods to become untethered from genre, style, convention, and apparatus. She believes that if you can move, you can dance, and in honoring that process as a life practice, you can live in a world of personal awareness, connection, and freedom. Tracee created Finding Your Freestyle® (FYF) in 2012, a movement and lifestyle enterprise that encourages freedom in movement, expression, creativity and community. Tracee has facilitated workshops and intensives in the FYF methods internationally, and has fostered a global community of “freestylers” who regularly utilize the practices in their own movement, creative endeavors, and life. In the last 6 years, Tracee has hosted immersive movement retreats as well in New York, Sedona, San Diego, and Costa Rica.  A true inspiration addict with an insatiable appetite for both the cerebral and esoteric, Tracee is currently studying to facilitate Family and Systemic Constellations, practices integrative tarot and crystal work, is Reiki-attuned, certified in HypnoConstellations™ and Floor Flow®, and is a dedicated meditator (trained in guiding with Jeff Warren), bibliophile, and graphic arts nerd. Additionally, Tracee spends the other half of her creative life as a graphic designer and creative director for the world-renowned pole and aerial dance studio, Body & Pole. In years past she has worked with many other movement brands such as elevatED Teacher Trainings, Black Girls Pole, Train P3, Bodybinds, as well as Apple, Inc. as a Software Trainer.

Meri Burgess is a circus artist, dancer, software developer, and general art-and-movement enthusiast based in the front range of Colorado. She specializes in pole dance and cyr wheel, but has also frequently performed aerial, contortion, stilt walking, and roller skating. Meri is known for her experimental conceptual pole performances, working with unique invented apparatuses such as the "tree pole", and developing and integrating bespoke AI and motion tracking technology into her work. She graduated from the Frequent Flyers professional training program in aerial dance performance in 2015, is the 2020 Pole Sport Organization national artistic pole champion, and currently runs Inanimate 48, an annual apparatus based dance-meets-film event that takes place online and is open to anyone who wishes to exercise their creativity with weight bearing objects. https://youtu.be/R4RxE-mhXoM?t=38 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LalF7upCcYo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIO-UpBD33U

Aaron, 43, male. Son of Philip and Anne Cantor. Brother of Gabriel. Father of Bodhi and Jasper. Grew up in Japan and Brazil. Traveled the world pursuing enlightenment and self mastery. Yoga, meditation, martial arts, breathwork, bodywork, biohacking, dance, athletics...Got really good at somethings. Was really successful teaching somethings and that  evolved over 20 years  into a  body of work I called "primal pratice"... not sure what to call it now. My focus currently is 1)stories (mythic)  2)games (embodied) 3) practice (enacted intention) as portals into deep encounters with the Great Unknown (life, the universe and everything). Seems to me that "Play" is what we become when we enter the portals. I'm amazed and grateful to be embodied and em-worlded here with you. If you are reading this, I prey we can play together someday.

Marie Janicek is a Movement Teacher and Guide, here to help others discover how movement shapes not just our physical bodies, but our mental, emotional, and spiritual selves as well. Through her experience as a professional dancer, personal trainer, and health coach, she discovered that bringing attention to the emotions, sensations, and energies we feel within ourselves in relationship to our bodies and our movement practices is key to helping us find a more fulfilling & empowering relationship to our bodies and allows us achieve our desires with more ease and less effort. She hosts the This Thing Called Movement podcast, a forum dedicated to changing our understanding of movement, and is the creator of Evolna, a platform designed to share her personal movement methodology with any and all who want to explore a new way of moving, feeling, and being within their bodies.

As a child Brendan was drawn to martial arts and began training in TaeKwonDo in 1988 when he was just 5 years old, 3 years later he began wrestling too. Brendan competed in TaeKwonDo from 1988-1994 where he competed and placed multiple times on a national level and wrestled competitively from 1990-2002. In college Brendan discovered Kickboxing and began competing in local fights in Massachetts while he was in college. From 2005–2012, Brendan was a professional mixed martial artist (MMA) and Kickboxer competing on the world’s biggest stages. Fighting out of Jackson Wink in Albuquerque, NM, and Fighting Arts Academy in Springfield, MA, he amassed 16 professional fights (10 in MMA and 6 in Kickboxing). He retired in 2012 with a 7:3:0 record in MMA and 4:2:0 in kickboxing. Brendan trained with some of the industry’s biggest names. His experience includes a professional kickboxing fighting in Thailand and in 2012 Brendan got to live a dream fighting for the UFC's Ultimate Fighter, Season 15. Brendan also was a competitor on Steve Austin's Broken Skull Challenge (Season 3) in 2015. A few years after retiring from his professional fight career competing on the world’s biggest stages, Brendan decided to leave consumer-facing gyms to found B-well consulting in order to expand the reach of his impact to a wider demographic providing services to corporations.  Shortly after, Brendan began getting traction and consulting for a mid-size pharmaceutical company, providing a digital wellness curriculum. In early 2016, Brendan also accepted a more significant consulting position at a large hedge fund where he had been consulting for a few years. There he developed group classes, private programming for the partners of the firm, and performed an operational role managing the gym facility, while he was forming Workweek Wellness.  In February 2017, Brendan launched Workweek Wellness, a fully scalable, white-labeled, content-driven platform designed to improve the lives of people in corporate environments. After spending a year in NYU’s EdTech program and finding traction with Workweek Wellness and finding inspiration from his mother, Brendan then decided to launch a wellness company geared towards active seniors called LyfeProof. The mission is to help retirees increase the quality of their life and prolong their longevity by improving their personal wellness effort by using computer vision. After completing the NYC Media Lab with LyfeProof Brendan wanted to find a way to help during the Covid-19 crisis so he teamed up with a friend who was also looking to make a difference during the pandemic and started Actively Young. He also joined the founding team of Passdoor, whose mission is to provide students with first hand experience of Broadway taught by the stars in the show. In the late fall of 2021 Brendan joined the Nobody team and works in a Business Lead Role for their health and wellness companies where he is brings companies from the idea stage into the market creating and testing M.V.P.s.

Aaron, 43, male. Son of Philip and Anne Cantor. Brother of Gabriel. Father of Bodhi and Jasper. Grew up in Japan and Brazil. Traveled the world pursuing enlightenment and self mastery. Yoga, meditation, martial arts, breathwork, bodywork, biohacking, dance, athletics...Got really good at somethings. Was really successful teaching somethings and that  evolved over 20 years  into a  body of work I called "primal pratice"... not sure what to call it now. My focus currently is 1)stories (mythic)  2)games (embodied) 3) practice (enacted intention) as portals into deep encounters with the Great Unknown (life, the universe and everything). Seems to me that "Play" is what we become when we enter the portals. I'm amazed and grateful to be embodied and em-worlded here with you. If you are reading this, I prey we can play together someday. 

Josh Hash is the creator of Strength Side. With over 800k subscribers on YouTube, Strength Side helps people gain freedom in their body and mind through movement. Strength Side’s mission is to inspire more mindful movement in order to cultivate meaning and a higher quality life. Josh enjoys a life of travel, soaking up sunshine like a lizard, and always has a book nearby.

Born and raised in New Zealand. Lives now in Norway. Currently associate professor of education and social sciences at the Western Norway University of Applied Sciences. Coaching and training background in a number of sports in different parts of the world. Founder of the Emptiness Project, a research and experience group using tools of awareness to explore the human mind and body.

Brittany is a coach and Kettlebell Partner Passing Instructor. After being a personal trainer for 8 years, a competitive kettlebell athlete for 6 years, and a lifelong high achiever, she experienced burnout and realized that she was unfulfilled. Brittany quit social media, took a step back from work and working out, and embarked on a new path in search of meaning. So far, it's led her to discover the importance of prioritizing relationships, finding joy in movement, and being fully present in the here and now.

Trevor’s mission is to help others understand and experience their body and life in ways Western Culture falls short.  He identified as an athlete from a young age, and feels the culture surrounding team sports lead to a poor relationship with his own body and movement, seeing it always as a means to an end.  Through various forms of sport, dance, martial arts, calisthenics, and adventuring, Trevor has come to see the human body as a vehicle for self-exploration, expression, connection, enjoyment, and an infinite source of wisdom.  Now he shares his values and passions through content creation and coaching. 

Nicolette is somatic movement practitioner, who has worked for the last decade studying the life of the body through its bio energetic process. She is student of jiu jitsu, herbalist and trainee of the Feldenkrais Method. Having this diverse and rich background has helped her harness the skill of body reading. In her somatic sessions she links the relationship and interplay of the physical body, emotions and thinking. It is through these combined modalities of an awareness explored via subtle easy movement she has been able to help others connect with their body as continuum of pulsatory and streaming currents, an excitatory ocean.

Virgil is a former Elite and Olympic athlete from The Netherlands with over 30 years in track and field. After various international bouts as a decathlete, hurdler and sprinter he kept running into the same problem over and over again. Even though he should have been extremely fit and ready for everything he wasn't. He could lift heavy weights, sprint fast, jump high and have all types of high level abilities and yet he could not slowly walk for an hour, watch a movie in the theatre or simply rest in a deep squat without pain.  How was it that he could do all the high intensity stuff but not the normal human stuff? It was because of this question he started to obsessively seek out the knowledge of several world renowned trainers, therapists and coaches to learn from them personally. In this search he first came in contact with what he now knows as the Movement Approach and it gave him so many insights that he decided to devote his life to it. Now he is attempting to truly define Movement.

Marcello is known for his studies of movement in a relationship with the environment. His interest and investigations of different artistic and scientific dimensions brought him far and wide. Notably, he helped shape the face of Parkour in Europe, got his Master of Science degree in strength and conditioning at St. Mary university in London, and was part of Ido Portal’s team for three years.    Currently his body of work continues to develop integrating in a coherent philosophy movement dexterity, dance, urban practices, the science of strength & conditioning and athletic principles. Through his teachings Marcello wishes to improve other people’s quality of life, allowing them to find their individuation and identity through deep transformative work.

Luke graduated from the Welsh Institute of Chiropractic (WIOC) in 2015 and started an innovative rehabilitation and healthcare company called Back to Roots (B2R) in 2016. Frustrated by the Chiropractic professions traditional model of care Luke teamed up with Paul McCambridge to create a company that marries up ‘evidence based practice’ and holistic healthcare in a person centred way, greatly inspired by Play. In 2017 Luke and Paul started guest lecturing at the University of South Wales, WIOC, and over the passing years have had greater impact at the University with B2R methods with Paul now being course leader and Luke lecturing weekly in the 3rd and 4th years of the course. Luke has and still mentors healthcare professionals and trainers in the B2R approach and has spoken internationally on the topic of exercise adherence and musculoskeletal rehabilitation. Luke, Paul and the B2R team have been running CPD events around the world for the past 5 years, receiving British Journal of Sports Medicine (BJSM) and Exercise and Sports Science Australia (ESSA)  accreditation. B2R created “Pain Clinic”, A 12 week self management programme delivered via the Results Wellness Lifestyle app which is also undergoing trials for approval to be accessible on the National Health Service (NHS) here in the UK. Luke has also completed a Sports and Exercise Science Degree and has a vast interest in exercise from Rugby, to Weightlifting, to Gymnastics, to dance, to boxing, to capoeira, to strongman just to name a few. At the time of writing Luke has led two SOLD-OUT B2R internships with Samantha Emmanuel. Here we bring leaders of the field of movement, fitness, rehab and evidence based practice into one community inclusive of Coaches, Physical Education Teachers, Dancers, Fighting Monkey teachers, Physiotherapists, Chiropractors, Occupational therapists, Exercise Physiologists, Strength Coaches and students of all fields together to experience thoughtless, fearless, relaxed movement; and to prescribe it; and how to sell it .

Agathe is a movement teacher based in Paris. After sustaining twelve fractures in a life-changing accident in 2015, she entered a five-year rehabilitation process that led her to experience and explore movement "from scratch". She went from teaching traditional ashtanga yoga pre-accident, to exploring a wide range of movement practices, with the central goal and obsession of recovering a fully healthy body. She is now back to working as an educator, and considers it her mission to share with her students what her personal journey towards healing has taught her. Through the learning process of a movement practice, she helps her students build freedom and resilience for the body and the mind. Curiosity, love of life, and open-mindedness are a constant background for her classes.

Jozef Frucek has been studying under the guidance of Master Ming Wong C.Y., also a doctor of Chinese Medicine, the internal principles of movement and their relation to health and aging. Jozef got his ArtD degree on Voice and Movement in 2002 under the supervision of Ludmila Machatsova, who is considered as one of the most influential communication trainers. Jozef Frucek and Linda Kapetanea are the founders of Fighting Monkey Practice. They are both professionally involved in art, athletics and movement research. Since 2002 Linda and Jozef have been developing the Fighting Monkey Practice through a deep study on cross motion analysis and with aim to understand the principles of the human movement, communication and the ageing process.

Chip Conrad digs movement, music, and mutts, Along with being a perpetual student of a dizzying array of strength and flux outlets, he has a hankering for physical culture history, having studied with Jan and Terry Todd, Mel Siff, and Tommy Kono, among many others. He's competed and coached nationally and internationally in multiple strength sports, but won't let any of that get in the way of a good tumble, tree climb, or river dip. He is the founder of BodyTribe in its many incarnations, including an actual gym of almost 20 years, some books, some DVDs, and now a new series on YouTube called BodyTribe Anywhere, in which he, after turning 50, travels the country doing groovy workouts in interesting locations while sometimes interviewing important strength philosophers. Small programs and digital copies of book: https://www.bodytribe.com/shop  Analog copies of the book: https://www.lulu.com/search?adult_audience_rating=00&contributor=Chip+Conrad&page=1&pageSize=10  YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Bodytribechip/videos  IG: https://www.instagram.com/bodytribechip/ FB: https://www.facebook.com/chip.conrad.54

Charlie Roth is a Movement Teacher, based in Barcelona. Growing up he was involved in various sports, table tennis being his main passion. Later on, when studying sports science he became interested in approaching his physical training from a more holistic point of view and came across the work of Ido Portal. At first being mostly self-taught he then went to learn from various teachers such as Joseph Bartz, Fighting Monkey and Tom Weksler.  He is currently leading movement group classes in Barcelona, sharing his ever evolving passion with anyone who is interested and curious to join.  The overall goal of his classes is to facilitate a space where each individual has the opportunity to experience their own body and mind in new ways, along with the group members.

Frank Forencich is an internationally recognized leader in health and performance education. He earned his BA at Stanford University in human biology and neuroscience and has over thirty years of teaching experience in martial art and health education. Frank holds black belt rankings in karate and aikido and has traveled to Africa on several occasions to study human origins and the ancestral environment. He’s presented at numerous venues, including the Ancestral Health Symposium, Google, the Dr. Robert D. Conn Heart Conference, and the Institute of Design at Stanford University. A former columnist for Paleo Magazine, Frank is the author of numerous books about health and the human predicament. He’s a member of the Council of Elders at the MindBodyEcology Collective and a Diplomate member at The American Institute of Stress.

Phaon is the host of The Passive Hang podcast, a platform for featuring practitioners and teachers in the modern day movement community. His wish is to contribute to the growth of this community, bring people together and help others in their journey. He is also a father, husband, and has a non-movement full-time job he quite enjoys!

Alain Couturier is the founder and teacher of Movement Practice Paris (MPP) since 2019. MPP is an ever-evolving, dynamic, and all-level movement group that focuses on aligning one's physical strength with their surroundings, as well as others. Alain's inspiration was born out of his love to move, and the recognition that there was a need for a new way in Paris. His work fosters collaborative movement mainly outdoors in Paris' city center, but also in the hidden parks and gyms of the city. Alain is also a father, former lawyer, non-perfect vegan, and adventurer.

Leah Woods grew up studying West African Guinean, Flamenco, and Middle Eastern dance and continued on to study Ballet and Modern dance in College. She spent 11 years in the Bay Area studying Contemporary and Ballet intensively alongside the many global forms that thrive in that region. She enjoyed an extensive performance career dancing for Loose Change; an Urban Contemporary Dance Company, NAVA Collective and Ballet Afsaneh; Contemporary Central Asian Fusion Companies, Butoh projects with Bad Unkl Sistah, and as a solo Fusion artist. She is a Transnational Fusion dancer nationally, a hybrid form combining Hip Hop, Middle Eastern movement, Contemporary, and Africanist aesthetics. She received her M.F.A. in Dance and Performance from the University of Colorado, Boulder. She was the first Transnational Fusion MFA candidate at CU Boulder where she received her secondary emphasis in Somatics and a tertiary emphasis in Performance and Culture. She studied the Alexander technique, Body-Mind Centering, and the Franklin method alongside Gyrotonics. She is a grateful student of Tom Weksler, Liav Memada, Miriam Peretz, Sadie Marquardt, Marlo Fisken, and Rachel Brice whenever she gets the chance to be in under their facilitation. They have each had a tremendous influence on her. She is a certified Gyrokinesis Trainer, a Gyrotonics Apprentice Teacher, a certified Datura Style Transnational Fusion Dance Teacher, and a RYT at the 300 hour level. She is continually adding to her education most recently by studying with Lucas at Range of Strenth, FRC with Traci Bennet, and with some upcoming PNF and Fighting Monkey courses.

Angie is a strength and mobility coach based in Vienna,  Austria. Her coaching is a skill-based focused for those who want to unlock specific skills in yoga, martial arts and in the training room. Her movement journey started from stillness to movement being meditation her first practice. She was influenced and inspired by Ido Portal’s method. Explored with different movement teachers, today she is a student of capoeira under Gugu Quilombola’s teaching.

Max Hammer is a professional skier, mountain guide, and former member of the United States Ski Team. He was raised by the ski slopes of Jackson Hole, Wyoming and honed his skills on mountains around the world before finding a home in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. The library of information found on his website (skimoregood.com) is born out of a personal desire to understand the art of skiing. The coaching services provided by Max are the result of over 10 years of experience during stints with the Jackson Hole Ski Club, Squaw Valley Ski Team, and US Development Team. Off the hill, Max shares a home with his two boys, Otto and Holden, his wife, Amy and his brother-in-law, Bob. In addition to skiing, Max is also a filmmaker with Houseplant Creative. Andrew Harris likes to be called Bob Hammer and he loves coffee. He is 34-years-young and lives in Reno, NV with his sister, Amy, brother-in-law Max and nephews Otto and Holden. In 2017, he became the first person with Down syndrome to summit the Grand Teton, a 13,776' craggy peak in Jackson, WY. A few of Bob's interests include skiing, hiking, running, climbing, skateboarding, biking, horseback riding, swimming, paddle boarding, kayaking and swinging at the playground. Bob is infinitely capable because he loves doing things. He has an open mind and willing spirit and he eats healthy, delicious food. Bob loves people and Gilmore Girls. He is sweet, loving and comforting; I guess you could say Bob is a real renaissance man. Find Bob at the skatepark, hiking in the desert in Reno, or in the upcoming movie Ducky Goes Up.

Kenan Dinkelmann grew up in Passau, Germany and graduated from Artez, School of Dance, Arnhem with a BA of performing arts and completed the SEAD postgraduate program Bodhi Project directed by Susan Quinn where he toured works by Jozef Frucek & Linda Kapetanea, Martin Nachbar and Robert Clark in Europe. As freelance dancer Kenan worked with Johannes Wieland, Marion Sparber, Ivan Perez, Unterwegstheater and Anton Lachky. From 2015 till 2017 he joined the dance company of Stadttheater Bielefeld where he danced in works by Wim Vandekeybus, Simone Sandroni and Sharon Fridman. Kenan is guest teacher at Stadttheater Bielefeld, Marameo Berlin, TRAK Dance Ensemble and Tanzbüro Basel. Furthermore he tours his Flow Acrobatics workshops in Europe and offers online training programs and online coaching in Flow Acrobatics. As a choreographer Kenan created the piece „Astral“ which was premiered in Sofia, Bulgaria with further shows in Dock11 Berlin and Arnhem, Netherlands.

Andre holds a degree in sports science & physical education.  He spent the majority of his life practicing martial arts having competed in both forms, point sparring & full contact divisions internationally. At the same time, he skateboarded, injuring himself doing it, so decided to learn how to surf and initiated a parkour practice. Parkour opened his eyes for a broader, more holistic approach to physicality, dived in many different training perspectives and methodologies initially to prepare hi body for the parkour practice, but ended up falling in love with the process of being curious, learning, applying, failing, cultivating creativity. Today, he's a husband, a friend, a father of 2 and co-founder of a beautiful movement education platform called Movement Lisboa, with the mission of providing quality education about movement in an inclusive, accessible and HUMAN way

Tiago Martins holds a degree in Fine Arts (painting), and is a former world level gymnast (tumbler).  He is a contemporary circus performer and co-founder of Movement Lisboa.  As a movement student and educator, he is interested in exploring the body in it’s totality. He considers himself a spectator of the body as a vehicle of functionality, intellect and artistic expression,

Samantha is a Leeway Movement Coach, an Inspire by FM Instructor, Pilates mat qualified and holds a BPJEPS Pro Sports Instructor Diploma. She has travelled the globe as a professional belly dancer with a Hollywood company and taught workshops internationally for 20 years. A mother of 2 girls, one currently 6 weeks old and the other 6 years old, she works in collaboration with physiotherapists at a local clinic. She brings non linear pedagogy into a clinical setting for patients and clients, through playful movement exploration and dance as therapy. This month she launches a sold out collaborative project with Luke Davies of Back to Roots, an online 12 week long internship designed to merge the art and science of movement in order to create the alternative we would all like to see in current healthcare systems. @samanthaemanuel23 www.samanthaemanuel.com www.dancesynthesis.com https://backtoroots.community/b2r-internship-2022 https://www.leewaymovement.com/staff https://fightingmonkey.net/about

Traci has been a competitive life-long athlete. She has dabbled in soccer, basketball, baseball, softball, and Crossfit. She has experienced both sides of the coin: being an athlete and being a coach. After several crippling back injuries, she transitioned from a competitive athlete to a Coach, and focused more on the quality of movement rather than the intensity. Slowing down to coach helped her realize her passion, she has a deep drive for helping others move and feel better. Her chronic injuries eventually led her to find Functional Range Conditioning (FRC) and Kinstretch. These systems gave her the thought processes to assess her current state, and how to improve upon her limitations and train her injuries safely back to health. She wants to help people move and FEEL better, setting them up for success with knowledge and tools to empower them to full body freedom!

Roser graduated in Bachelor of Dance at Artez DansAcademie in Arnhem (Holland), in Journalism at Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and just finished a Masters in design and space production in Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya. She worked for choreographers like Anouk van Dijk, Giulio d’Anna, Anouke de Groot and Erik Kaiel, Maria Rovira or Pere Faura. From 2014 to 2019, she danced and performed internationally with the dance company Guy Nader and Maria Campos. Since the beginning of her career as a dancer, she felt the need and the curiosity to create her own work. She has created solo performances like “Simun” and “Tecnologías del yo”, which she performed in several venues in and around Catalonia. And also collaborated with different artist like the circus/dance artist Joan Català, with whom she created a street duet called “Menar”. This piece was awarded ‘best street piece of the year’ by the Catalan critics in 2016. Since 2017, she collaborates artistically and pedagogically with Tom Weksler. In 2019, they formed the performance arts company Wonderground. As Wonderground, they created a street piece called “RISE”, which is being touring in street Festivals around Europe. They also created several works for dance professional Schools like CODARTS (Rotterdam) and SEAD (Salzburg). Currently, Wonderground is in the process of finalizing the creation of a stage duo called “Tears in the Rain”, which Tom and Roser direct and perform and “Shadows of the mind”, another stage duo, which they choreograph for two finish dancers. Roser writes articles about movement and the relationship with culture, history, economics, geography or the political situation of the different places and countries she has the opportunity to visit when she teaches. They are all collected in the blog www.waysofmoving.net

Roya Carreras is an Iranian-Hispanic artist, choreographer, and educator who works within commercial, film, and theatrical settings from New York City to Los Angeles. On stage, Carreras' work has been presented at the CURRENT SESSIONS, Dixon Place, Baruch Performing Arts Center, and The Green Building in New York City; in California, she has presented at The Odyssey, Highways Performance Space, Electric Lodge Theater, Glenn Wallichs Theatre, Diavolo, Brockus Project Space, and BRAVA. She was a resident choreographer for Columbia Ballet Collaborative of Columbia University in 2015 and in 2018 participated in the MANCC residency funded by the National Endowment for the Arts. She has taught ballet, contemporary, and improvisation at Harlem School of the Arts, New Canaan Dance Academy, American Musical and Dramatic Academy, Peridance, Riverside Ballet Arts, Riverside City College, Pasadena Dance Theater, Norwalk Metropolitan Youth Ballet, East Pointe Dance, and Brockus Conservatory. As a performer, she has worked closely with Barak Marshall at BodyTraffic, Bryan Arias, Danielle Russo Performance Project, and Lux Boreal Danza Contemporanea in Tijuana, Mexico. Carreras holds a BFA in Dance with Honors from UC Irvine's Claire Trevor School of the Arts, with additional training from The Ailey School and Springboard Danse Montreal. Her most recent work "Naneh," premiered inJanuary 2020, set on the L.A. Contemporary Dance Company.

Nil has been involved in various physical disciplines since childhood and passes on his experiences and ideas for a holistic, long-lasting, fulfilling and joyful movement practice in his work. His interest in working with the body and in the second step with the mind began early on. With an academic study in sports science in Munich, educational program to become a massage therapist and many seminar visits on a wide variety of topics, he then began his professional work as a teacher. Nil sees continuous further education, open-mindedness and a constant curiosity towards life as the foundation of his work. His teaching is characterized by his interest and practice of many systems and disciplines, including dance, rehabilitation & health training, parkour, acrobatics / artistry, bouldering/climbing, weight training, gymnastics, combat, yoga, meditation, bodywork, didactics, pedagogy, etc. The way of working is and remains dynamic: new experiences are integrated into the work, obsolete material is discarded. The teaching goes beyond the physical: aspects such as learning experiences and processes, exploration of the self, trust in one’s own body or fear management are an integral part of the approach. Over the years, Nil has attended numerous seminars with various teachers, studied for himself with the help of books, articles, interviews/podcasts and maintains exchanges with various teachers. 

Jason C. Brown has been working professionally in the fitness/athletic development field since 1999 and training Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu since 1996. Jiu-Jitsu (The Gentle Art) is a huge part of his life. The art influences him greatly in the formation of his character and ideas. He practices Jiu-Jitsu as a physical culture and a physical art form, as well as a form of mental training, a method of self- defense and a way of life. He is also fascinated with human movement and nature, and is a father of three vibrant boys that keep him and his wife Jeniffer very busy. Teaching movement, play and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu are his main focuses, and he spends his days helping others create performance rituals to refine & cultivate their beautiful practice.

Wendy (She/Her) delights in finding connections between people and connections between modalities/concepts: poetry and martial arts, rhythm and partner work, ritual and strength training, comedy and circus. She is a clown (theatrical and healthcare settings), a musician, a mover-dancer, and currently holds a purple belt in Brazilian jiu jitsu. Her other explorations have included Xin Yi Liu He Quan, capoeira, boxing and kickboxing, contact improv, parkour, rock climbing, aerial arts and more. As a flying trapeze instructor and catcher in a recreational setting for a number of years, she learned to move through her fear of free fall (which she still has). Wendy created a Master of Arts Degree at Lesley University whose official title was MA in Play: Clowning, Ritual, and Transformation. Her performance thesis was a collaboration with other artists that looked at the rituals across the lifespan through the eyes of a clown. Stay tuned for her burgeoning work combining play, movement, vocal work and empowerment-based practical self-defense. Wendy has moved through the world with Crohn’s Disease for 30+ years and hopes to add more to discussions of mental health, disability, and chronic illness, especially in movement circles. Link to episode transcript: https://www.rev.com/transcript-editor/shared/YUca9yMC1EUxY0_6SzMsa993cTeNudNN4uYmzf0GuCOCbqBvODfRBJZ6D2m_hm94Qw-iFoSQt-AKuSUe4yvU3vwlS0g?loadFrom=SharedLink

Jenn fell into the movement industry over nineteen years ago as a personal trainer. She quickly realized there was something missing, a piece she couldn't quite put her finger on. This led her down a never-ending rabbit hole of exploration and study of all things movement, including yoga, mobility, strength and conditioning, motor control, bodyweight training, and dance. She takes a holistic view to movement training and has a strong interest in how movement affects the whole person. Jenn likes to read research about movement, psychology, motor control, and anatomy and write about the things she thinks are so interesting they are worth sharing. She is the author of the book, "Body, Mind, Movement: An evidence based approach to mindful movement," and two as yet unpublished books. She regularly teaches workshops and leads retreats. More information about Jenn can be found at https://www.jennpilotti.com.

Simon Thakur is based in New South Wales, Australia.  Ancestral Movement is his project, his “big idea” that has come from more than twenty years of practice and research across a wide range of fields.  He has studied the natural sciences since he was in high school and through university – covering the basics of physics and mathematics and going deeper into chemistry, biology, physiology and anatomy (including a year of weekly cadaver studies), exercise science, nutrition, biochemistry, molecular cell biology and molecular genetics, immunology, and neuroscience, as well as psychology, anthropology, archaeology, sociology, history and religious studies.  During all of this time he has also been learning and practicing predominantly Eastern traditions of martial arts and mind-body transformation. He was obsessed with Yoga and martial arts as a child and read everything he could find in the public library (back in Dunedin, New Zealand, where he grew up). He did some Judo as a kid, some boxing and kickboxing as a teenager, then went on a year-long student exchange to Thailand when he was 17, knowing only that he wanted to practice Muay Thai and learn about Buddhism and meditation. He ended up living with his Muay Thai teacher, and ordained as a monk during by the end of his time there at the age of 18, staying for a wonderful month at Wat Tong Pai near Chumphon in south Thailand, and a beautiful couple of weeks at Suan Mokh forest retreat centre near Surat Thani. He was introduced to Buddhism through the works of Buddhadasa Bhikkhu, whose incredible 550 page translation and commentary on the Buddha’s Anapanasati Sutta (discourse on mindfulness based in the in- and out-breaths) is still his most treasured meditation manual, which he returns to every year for further study. Since then he has studied Japanese Jujitsu, Capoeira, Chinese internal martial arts and Qigong, Yoga and Yoga therapy, Feldenkrais, Butoh, Contact Improvisation, Pilates, Kit Laughlin’s Stretch Therapy and Monkey Gym, parkour, smatterings of Russian Systema and Mixed Martial Arts, and more recently Brazilian Jujitsu, freestyle wrestling, and Filipino Eskrima (also called Kali, or Arnis). He has lived for close to ten years in Asia – in Thailand, India, Japan, China and Taiwan – and six months in Brazil, studying and learning from the best people he could find, always trying to get as close as he could to the source of the arts and traditions that he found most interesting.

Wil tries to experience myself, life and all those within, through a physical practice. He feels grateful to then share what he learns along the way, and calling this his job. He founded London Movement Group 3 years ago, and has been teaching both in person and online for a number of years. He values human connection, and put this as a top priority in hi teaching. You can find his work at www.figuringthingsout.com or on instagram @wbrown7 In this conversation, Wil discusses his time studying Industrial Design in University, and his final project of anti-ergonomics.  He talks about his approach to teaching and coaching with empathy, compassion, and respect for individual's subjective experience; and the value he places on safety.  He also expresses his gratitude for being a facilitator of curiosity, a "guide on the side as opposed to a sage on the stage."  And, Wil flips the script and poses a number of questions to Kyle regarding play, failure, and intention.

Flynn is a self-described dilettante, autodidact and occasional iconoclast, exploring physiology, psychology and philosophy through parkour & independent research. Inspired by a slew of shadow-mentors from Eric Weinstein to Moshe Feldenkrais to Jiddu Krishnamurti, he is interested not only in the appreciation of ideas, but in their application. A history of working with fear & anxiety in canines & humans (including himself) has opened a particular interest in embodied cognition, the feeling of safety and the nature of emotion. The Online Exploration group is a culmination of his studies into uncertainty as a psychological constant, the consequences of developing awareness and the power of curiousity in learning. The group explores scientific principles from the ground up, creating teaching tools & seeking deep learning. As a practitioner, he is interested in the interaction between mind & matter, the changing of perception through action and what emerges from embracing uncertainty. In this rich and insightful conversation, Flynn dives into various ideas ranging from layers of sensory experience to the innate intelligence of humans.  He discusses how the key part of learning in not the information, but rather the state of the learner and their relationship with the information.  He also reflects on complexities surrounding the stories we tell ourselves.  And, he talks about the research of the Online Exploration Group.  

Alicia Grayson has been passionately involved with dancing, teaching and performing Contact Improvisation for the past 33 years. She has taught CI as an adjunct faculty at George Washington University, University of Denver, Naropa University and Shenandoah University. She teaches CI classes in Boulder, CO, yoga and pilates online and regularly travels nationally and internationally to teach. Her long time practices of authentic movement, yoga and pilates and her love of nature are important influences on her dancing and teaching. She facilitates women’s somatically based transformational workshops online and in person. She is a certified Hakomi therapist, certified perinatal somatic attachment therapist and certified Feminine Power transformational coach and facilitator. She is currently training to be a biodynamic breath and trauma release practitioner. She delights in exploring and discovering new depths to contact improvisation and related disciplines and is particularly interested in the intersection of physics and expression and the mind/body relationship. She is dedicated to supporting her fellow humans to be the most amazing embodied beings that we are!  www.aliciagrayson.com In this conversation, Alicia reflects on the principle of knowing where the earth is at all times in Contact Improvisation, and in all movement.  She discusses creativity being an emergence as opposed to something to control or force.  She also shares how something deeply familiar can still feel brand new.  And, Alicia and Kyle talk about their mutual love of mistakes, accidents, and imperfections.  

Devin is a teacher. He currently divides hi time between teaching Narrative Excavation, writing, and coaching physical practice. Narrative Excavation is an introspective psychology practice he's been developing since 2013. Half a lifetime of competitive sports, overlapping with five years of full-time study in philosophy and psychology, followed by a decade deep dive into eastern psycho-spiritual disciplines and various physical disciplines: all of these brought to his attention the egregious shortcomings of existing approaches to learning, development, and self-understanding. His approach to physical training and Narrative Excavation attempts to reframe personal development within a paradigm of sustainable, value-oriented practice. In this conversation Devin dives into the idea of civic value, and his reflections on the concept.  He talks about the terms "community" and "friend", and challenges how they're used today.  Devin and Kyle riff on uncertainty, curiosity and dogma. And, Devin shares his concern that often people make assumptions instead of ask questions.  

As a professional educator, David Wilson brings a life-long interest in how people learn to both his teaching and practice of movement. He believes that movement is a birthright and that by combining curiosity, playfulness and compassionate self-awareness, anyone can practice movement in ways that will interest them, support them and evolve with them as their lives and bodies change. He is deeply interested in how people might use creativity, critical thinking and the spirit of inquiry as tools of movement, especially as they age. In this conversation David reflects on his 30 year career is a high school educator.  He discusses his journey through various forms of fitness,  practicing Aikido, and later discovering movement.  He also talks accessibility and the role of movement and fitness professionals to open our eyes to what is possible for all people.  And, he expresses his wish for decolonizing teaching.  

Jeremy Fein is 49% skill acquisition coach, 50% nice guy, and 1% podcast bio writer. He strives to bring the same values into his work that he does in the rest of his life: honesty, empathy, consistency, and learning. You can learn more about the projects he's excited about at FeinMovement.com. In the conversation Jeremy discusses his passion for juggling and time in circus school.  He shares his thoughts on learning and skill acquisition.  He also talks about his long term goal of dunking a basketball, and how he is approaching the skill.  And, Jeremy and Kyle dig into their mutual interest in integrating their values into their teaching.

Kim was born and raised in the vibrant and free-spirited Amsterdam. After years of studying at a musical and dance school as a child she decided to follow up with a professional education at the then called Jazz- Musical Dance Bachelor in Amsterdam. After two years, she decided to narrow the focus and continue her studies at the Modern Theatre Dance Department at the Amsterdam School of the Arts, from which she graduated in 2016. Ever since graduating she's been working with choreographers such as Emio Greco, Kris Verdonck, Arno Schuitemaker, Anne Teresa de Keersmaker, Alexander Vantournhout and Damien Jalet. Her personal practice is formed by her time on stage and is shaped by the teachings of Emio Greco, Liatt Waysbort, Martin Kilvady and the ongoing research with the Ferus Animi // Terra Nova collective of which she is member. As a freelancer she gets to enjoy the space to collaborate with artists, movement artists and movement practitioners. This allows her to hand pick her surroundings and have it be the inspirational pool that gets to inform her movement and life practice. In this conversation Kim discusses the observations she's made by being forced to stay in one place during Covid.  She talks about her passion for practicing outdoors and with people, and her recent studies with Martin Kilvady.  She shares her approach to placing intention when she practices, researches, or rehearsal.   And, she talks about witnessing those willing to try, fail, and try again, and her admiration for the mindset. 

Winston Reynolds graduated from Circomedia, specialising in acrobatics & physical theatre (FDA, 2010-2012). And later went on to complete his Bachelor at ACAPA (Academy of Circus and Performance Art,Netherlands, 2012-2016). Within his research he specialised in acrobatic dance, a hybrid mix containing elements from gymnastics, capoeira, breakdancing, improvisation and animal locomotion, as well as undergoing several years of research around acrobatic contact partnering. He is the founder of the education company Yeknom and member of the Ferus Animi // Terra Nova collective, a group of cross disciplinary crafts persons researching in the fields of human physiology and performance, through both an artistic and scientific lens. In this conversation, Winston shares he journey, beginning with his time spent around the circus as a child.  He talks about his research, teaching, and the supplemental work he does to support his practice.  He also discusses his recent passion for practicing outdoors.  And, he reflects on the importance of doing nothing and embracing boredom.  

Emma is a Movement teacher and one of the Founders of Aspen Coaching in Perth, WA. She has been teaching people to move better in an evolving capacity for the past 13 years. Having watched many fitness trends sweep through the exercise world she has carefully and thoroughly danced between them deciding to wander down her own path, endeavoring to make a shift in the common perspective of what it means to be fit and healthy. Along with her Husband, Glenn Robson, and business partner Paul Twyman, they have opened a unique movement space in Perth that encourages people to step outside of seeking weight loss and fitness, and instead begin to create a deeper relationship with themselves, and respect for what their body really needs. Over the past 4 years Emma has worked closely with the Fighting Monkey Practice and is currently wrapping up a year long Mentorship with Jozef Frucek. The study through the FM Practice has been very influential on her teaching and her outlook on how we live our lives. Emma is passionate about working with people with chronic injuries and inflammatory conditions and believes that through movement we can make a big impact on the trajectory of our future. In this conversation, she discusses her newborn baby, and what her life looks like as a new mother.  She shares the backstory of Aspen Coaching, and their approach to a movement practice.  She also talks about managing energy, and having a practice that creates vitality.  Kyle and Emma dig into imperfection and impermanence.  And, she opens up about her desire to teach workshops.  

Tom Weksler is an accomplished teacher, dancer, martial arts practitioner, and lover of all forms of acrobatic disciplines. Returning for the 50th episode, Tom discusses his interest in maintaining coherence across all levels of his work and practice.  He shares about his playful approach towards skills and skill development.  He also talks about pedagogy, and the value he places on what students will create, not what he thinks they should create.  And, he articulates his desire for more metaphors and empathy, and less team choosing.  

Almog Loven is a professional dancer, teacher and therapist from Israel. He holds a degree in Psychology and Humanities from The Hebrew University of Jerusalem where he focused on the study of chronic pain and psychological flexibility. He is also a practitioner and international teacher of the Ilan Lev Method. Before Covid hit, he used to give Weightlessness workshops around the world, emphasizing how physical connection to living environments can take movers well beyond their perceived limitiations. Now he's home in Israel, practicing Tai Chi, treating and living. In this conversation Almog discusses his practice of the Ilan Lev Method, and his observations on patterns and predictions.  He talks about the potential limitations of fearing of boredom, and his passion to communicate to people that "you are enough".  He also shares his approach to facilitating workshops, and the offering of different ways to experience the body.  And, he discusses the state of love, and how he tries to send everything that he does in that direction.

Matan Levkowich is a dancer, teacher and graphic designer. In 2015 he founded Movement Lab - a vehicle for movement education, choreographic work and discursive inquiry. His practice is influenced by his enthusiasm for physical and theoretical research and is revolving around the question of how to develop a meaningful relationship with the body-mind. In the last decade, he devoted himself to educate people from all over the globe about better movement and to reflect upon urgent social phenomena through the medium of performance and recently also through his podcast ‘Material for the brain’. His passion for research and discovery drives him daily to expand his understanding and to further develop himself as a human being. https://movementlab.eu/ http://matanlevkowich.com/ In this conversation Matan discusses finding order within, and managing, chaos.  He and Kyle discuss the term "community" and how it is often used as a buzzword, and Matan shares the qualities that he believes to define a community.  He also talks about his passion for communication through movement.  And, shares the experience of "going to all the rivers only to return to the place you were born."  

Jon Yuen is the one writing this bio, and will from this point on continue sharing from a first person perspective. Hi, I’m Jon. I think there’s a lot we can learn from one another, from other cultures, and from other activities. This is a mindset that I do my best to bring into my work - which just so happen to be training. In this conversation, Jon discusses his childhood, and the freedom his parents offered to explore and try all forms of art.  He shares his observations of gym culture, and offers encouragement to step out of the gym.  Jon questions Kyle about whether he has an itch to return to stand-up comedy, and how it influences his practice and teaching.  He also talks about imagination, creativity, giving less specific instructions, and facilitating play.  And, he opens up about his passion for connecting with other teachers with unique perspectives.  

Originally from South Tyrol, Italy, Marion received her dance training at Varium and Iwanson School. As a teacher she has been working in several schools and festivals in Italy, Spain, Costa Rica, Switzerland, Austria, Russia, Portugal, Poland, India, Germany, USA and Canada a.o at “Deltebre dansa” (Spain), B12 Festival and TanzAHOI (Germany), Circuit-est (Canada), Atlas Festival, Camp In, La Cantera, Encuentros Mutantes (Mexico), Vim Vigor and The Playground New York, Diavolo Company LA, Flow Movement Colorado, Athletic Playground San Francisco (USA), Performact, Lagos Sea Dance and DASS Summer Intensive (Portugal), Marameo, Tanzfabrik, Dock 11, Danceworks, Etage, Seneca, Sozo Visions in Motion, Tanzcompagnie Volkstheater Rostock and Stadttheater Bielefeld, BFZ Nürnberg, Kari-Tanzhaus, Profitraining Freiburg & Leipzig, DancePAT, Tanz s.a.l., Yizong Bagua and Tanzfaktur Köln (Germany), Tanzhaus Zürich and Profitraining Basel (Switzerland), Oliva Dance Project (Italy), Goa Contact Festival and Play Practice Artist Residency (India), Cyrculacje Festival and Sfera Ruchu (Poland), Academy Dancer Russia, Summer for friends and University of dance St. Petersburg (Russia), La Macchine, Espacio Nómada (Costa Rica), Festival Nómada (El Salvador), Guatemala, Descalzinha Danza and Varium (Spain). Marion has collaborated as a dancer with choreographers and companies such as Francisco Córdova in the piece "To be", Stella Zannou in the piece “Strange”, Sonia Rodriguez, performing “Mabel”, ADN-Dialect in the pieces “Zeitzone”, “Urban Shaman and “L’affaire Wettstein”, Stephanie Felber in "Le vide dans l’espace", Eldon Pulak in "The Wetting Party" and as a guestdancer of the Weedance Company. Her solo-work "The Ripe and ruin" and her group-pieces "Big Boys don´t cry", "Shell Shock", "Nefelibata", "Acacia confusA", "Ohne Zwei", "Porzellan-Haus", "Eight" and "Impromptu" have been performed at several international theaters and festivals. In 2014 Marion was part of “EX-IN” In this conversation Marion shares about her class From Inside to Outside, and her various inspirations for the material.  She gives a glimpse into her creative process when developing a solo piece through stories of her recent work.  She also discusses her physical theater workshop, and opens up about regular physical maintenance work she currently explores. And, she talks about the upcoming B12 event in Berlin.  

Mike Fitch is an innovative fitness educator and movement coach with 20 years experience in the fitness industry. He is the Founder/Creator of Animal Flow, a unique ground-based movement program that has certified more than 10,000 fitness professionals in 42 countries.  Mike has also developed multiple other skills-based bodyweight training programs including the Bodyweight Athlete and is a highly sought-after presenter and content contributor. In this conversation, Mike discusses his recent return to teaching weekly classes at Block 1750, and his plan to continue teaching until Animal Flow HQ opens.  He talks about our innate craving for variety and variability, creating space for failure, and welcoming the vision of attainability.  He also opens up about the roots and origins that lead to the creation of the Animal Flow system; ranging from explorations into calisthenics, parkour, circus, and breakdancing. And, Mike and Kyle vibe on their mutual love of the band Tool.  

Anthony is a father, husband, strength & conditioning coach, physical educator, and professional engineer (not-practicing).  He is also the founder of Engineered Bodies Strength & Conditioning and head coach of the Engineered Bodies Weightlifting Club and our Long Term Athlete Development (LTAD) program.  He has 15+ years of coaching & teaching experience in Ki-Aikido (martial art), strength & conditioning, and physical education. Anthony is committed to continued education and development and has learned from, and continues to collaborate with, the best teachers, coaches, and therapists from multiple disciplines from all over the world. He brings this knowledge and experience to help challenge and support people of all ages and backgrounds to realize their potential and become the best version of themselves as they work towards their own goals. He is passionate and committed to building a strong, inclusive, and ant-racist community. To facilitate this, he created an Inclusion & Anti-racist, continuing education process for our coaching staff to empower them with the knowledge and tools to ensure an inclusive and safe space for all. In this conversation, Anthony discusses his roots in Ki-Akido, basketball, and engineering.  He shares about his core values, and how they help him navigate all things.  He also talks about being a gym owner amid a pandemic, the changes they've made to stay connected to their community, and the creative elements employed that will likely transcend the pandemic.  And, he opens up about his practice, and how he is addressing challenges he has faced with his knees.  

Tomislav is a former professional dancer and performer, who since 2014 has been part of the development of Ferus Animi // Terra Nova, a movement research collective based in Europe. Ferus Animi's mission statement is to share and disseminate the most up-to-date research from a host of scientific and artistic disciplines, including neuroscience, evolutionary physiology, biomechanics, psychology and philosophy, in a relevant and accessible way, to enrich the practices of their students and collaborators. Tomislav is a current Master of Science student at Trinity LABAN Conservatoire (department of Dance Science) in London, and a graduate of the Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance, London Contemporary Dance School and the Oxford School of Drama, holding a 1st-class Bachelor of Arts degree. Tomislav's personal practice is influenced by the research, teachings and practices of GrandMaster Tae Yong Lee, Ko Murobushi, Wim Hof, Linda Kapetanea & Jozef Frucek, Professor Gui Arashiro, Mestre Itamar, David Zambrano, Moshé Feldenkrais, Jon Kabat-Zinn, Kristin Linklater, Cameron Shayne, Bruno Caverna, Ido Portal, and the respective writings of Yoshi Oida, Shunryu Suzuku and 'Neuroplastician' Norman Doidge, in addition to academic research through The University of Oxford (Department of Psychiatry/Oxford Mindfulness Centre), The Buddhist Society, Royal Holloway University of London, England Rugby (RFU), Barça Universitas (Department of Sports Neuroscience) and FC Barcelona. In this rich conversation, Tomislav weaves through a number of thoughts, ideas, and philosophies ranging from an acceptance of not knowing, adaptation to the changes of the modern world, and individual's unique perception of reality.  He talk about developing a range of sensory options and the difference between complicated and complex systems. He also shares his thoughts on imitation, and the role is plays on the road to individual style.  And, he discusses embracing a variety of approaches, discourse, curiosity, and sharing in a non-heirarchical community.

Rod Cooper is owner of The Movement Collective in Newcastle located on the East coast of Australia.  He believes life is a game that we are all playing in our unique way, and he takes responsibility for every move he makes. He shows up to do his best, and uses movement as a tool to grow, play, express and connect.  He loves to support people in developing a feeling of freedom, strength and trust in their bodies. In this conversation Rod tells his story of discovering movement while working as a beer brewer in Vancouver, and his exploration and passion which led him to creating The Movement Collective in Australia.  He shares about the evolution of the years in his personal practice as well as at TMC.  He also discusses his interest in juggling, and his approach to sparking writing ideas.  And, he talks about his recent dive into contemporary dance, and upcoming performance.  

As a surfer, husband, father of two young girls, and a serial entrepreneur, Reis found himself searching for a way to maintain balance in life. After being introduced to the Wim Hof Method, he reignited a mind-body connection that he lost over time and opened up a journey of unlocking his true potential. After a deep exploration of the Wim Hof Method, including two trips to Poland where he summited frozen mountains in sub-zero temperatures wearing only short and learned to love himself again, Reis realize that was really just the tip of the iceberg. The rabbit hole of breathwork and human optimization was blown open. Reis quickly became fascinated by all types of breathwork and began experiencing as many breathing “methods” and schools of breath as possible including studying with some of the leaders in the field like Kasper van der Meulen, Dan Brule, and Brian Mackenzie. Reis now follows a principle-based approach to meet the breather where they are and help to empower them to use the breath as a tool. Reis works privately with clients, including individuals and groups, and also is the co-founder and CEO of a breathwork community called Our Breath Collective. In this conversation, Reis shares about his discovery of, and dive into, the world of breath work.  He speaks about his journey from practicing breath work to facilitating, leading, and teaching.  He also discusses his investigations into different forms of breath work, such as rebirthing.  And he shares about the the creation of Our Breath Collective, and what he envisions for the community's future.  

Ryan Hurst is the head coach and program director for GMB Fitness. With many years of experience in strength and movement coaching, Ryan makes sure that everything we do at GMB puts health first and gets results. He holds black belts in Kendo, Judo, and Shorinji Kempo, a purple belt in BJJ, and practiced 10 years as a competitive gymnast.  He is married with two children and has lived in Japan for over 25 years.   Ryan has devoted his life to coaching others in strength and movement, but always lets his philosophy of “training for a healthy life” lead the way. He is a father to two young children, and the most important thing to him is to be able to play with them without pain or fear of injury. In this conversation, Ryan tells his story of competitive gymnastics, martial arts, and making Japan his home.  He discusses the welcoming of change and keeping things honest.  He also shares about the various injuries he's faced over the years, and how some of those experiences helped plant the seeds for GMB.  And, Ryan and Kyle discuss the difference between learning and being taught.  

Born December 11th 1971, Cameron Shayne is considered the father of the mixed movement arts culture. He is a social philosopher, educator, fighter, yogi, satirist, artist, writer, and founder of Budokon University. Based in Los Angeles, CA, during the 90's, the mecca for yoga in the Western world, Cameron established himself as one of the pioneering voices and transmitters of contemporary yoga and martial arts. As a teacher of teachers, he is renown for his founding of the Budokon Yoga style, the Budokon Mixed Movement Arts System, and his inspiring and provocative writings on the contemporary movement scene. His radically honest and transparent style of teaching through critical analysis has established him as a guiding voice for modern yoga and the movement culture. Cameron and Kyle cover a lot of ground in this conversation.  Cameron discusses developing an athletic foundation, and the ability to move between various movement languages, rather than only being focussed on tricks.  He talks about teaching, studentship, learning, and mastery of craft; qualities that can be confused or lost in the age of social media.  He also shares how education of the various modalities of his Budokon system are integrated.  And, he talks about the illusion of an objective reality.  

Kimberly Johnson is a Sexological Bodyworker, Somatic Experiencing practitioner, yoga teacher trainer, postpartum advocate and single mom. She helps women heal from birth injuries, gynecological surgeries and sexual boundary violations. She is the author of early mothering classic The Fourth Trimester, as well as the upcoming Call of the Wild: How We Heal Trauma, Awaken Our Own Power, and Use It for Good. In this conversation Kimberly discusses how emotions act as signals of our physiology, and how a richer understanding of this physiology can allow people to relate better.  She talks about how bodies need other bodies, and the importance of non-verbal communication.  She also opens up about replicating the playful roughhousing of a jaguar mother and cub with her daughter.  And, she shares types of somatic therapy she has found valuable and interesting.  

Alex Milewski is a full time movement artist, wellness coach, educator and founder of Block 1750 currently based in Boulder, Colorado. Since 2006 he has competed, taught and performed all around the world. His movement style is rooted in BBoying, Martial Arts, Tricking, Contemporary and House Dance. His mission is to lead people through movements and emotions that they have never experienced before, inspiring new thinking and creativity. Alex focuses on this mission full time by continuing to be a student in many styles of movement and performing, competing, and exchanging with dancers and students on a daily basis. In this conversation Alex talks about the roots and beginnings of Block 1750.  He also opens up about his passion for movement, and desire to always be exploring new approaches and methodologies.  He shares about honesty in teaching, and developing an education structure for break dancing.  And, he talks about the annual Block Party, where dancers from all over the world descend on Block 1750 to compete.

Mercedes Pollmeier (@modusathletica) is a strength and conditioning coach focused on helping climbers achieve their best strength, flexibility, and nutrition to climb harder. She is the author of two books, award-winning title Peak Nutrition, and self-published title Simple Strength. She owns her own online training business, Modus Athletica, and holds a Master’s in Human Movement. In this conversation Mercedes shares her story of playing Division 1 tennis, climbing competitively, and discovering a generalist movement practice.  She discusses her passion for supporting the climbing community's growth with strength and flexibility education and training.   Mercedes and Kyle talk about the benefits of a generalist practice for specialists.  And, Mercedes shares how her philosophies on training have changed and evolved since her first book.  

Shira Yaziv is a dancer, bodyworker, and facilitator.  She enjoys encouraging people to be in their bodies while learning new skills, being creative, listening and adapting to the changing present moment.  Shira is the co-founder and owner of  Athletic Playground (tapgym.com), a dynamic indoor place-space, inspiring physical play through a wide variety of movement classes. Details about upcoming retreats and workshops: shira.yaziv.com In this conversation Shira discusses dance, technique, the space in between, and "loving to be."  She shares about her passion for being a facilitator, and how facilitating differs from teaching.  She also talks performing, and how her enjoyment lies in the preparation and collaboration before a performance.  And, Shira and Kyle share about their mutual appreciation and interest in practicing outdoors.  

Soisci is a movement and meditation teacher based in Australia. She has been practicing for over seventeen years and teaching for the past nine years. Her formal movement practice began with martial arts, which culminated when she became Muay Thai world champion in 2011. Soisci transitioned into a generalist movement practice in 2013 when she studied personally with Ido Portal and Odelia Goldsmidt for four years. Today she studies movement from Jozef Frucek and Linda Kapetanea, and has a spiritual mentor, Rajivji Kapur, whose influence has been most transformative for her. Soisci's story and teachings are an amalgamation of all the different unique experiences that have made up her life so far; her Eurasian heritage, growing up in eight different countries, competing professionally in BJJ and Muay Thai, having a keen passion for cooking and creative expression, meditation, learning from some of the best contemporary movement teachers, and using movement practice as a method for self-observation, creativity and embodying your highest self. In this conversation, Soisci tells her story of competing in martial arts and the discovery of a generalist movement practice.  She talks about becoming unfulfilled by the acquiring of skills, and how she found herself drawn towards the ability to move from her heart.  She also shares about the wisdom in the movie Kung Fu Panda.  And, Soisci and Kyle discuss the value of playfulness.  

Rafe is the founder of Evolve Move Play, a natural movement teaching method, rooted in his dozen years of parkour training, 25 plus years of martial arts and various years of dance, gymnastics, and strength and conditioning training. In addition it is deeply rooted in his study of human evolution, ethnography, anthropology, play research and complex systems. Evolve Move Play is recognized worldwide as leading voice in natural movement and broader movement culture. Prior to forming evolve move play, he co-founded Parkour Visions, the first parkour gym on the west coast and acted as lead instructor there for 4 years. In this conversation, Rafe discusses his philosophy of natural movement and a generalist practice.  He shares about his approach to strength training, and what should be the "meat and potatoes."  He also talks about the need to build better problem solvers, and dives into his thoughts on spirituality.  

STEPHEN JENKINSON, MTS, MSW is an activist, teacher, author, and farmer. He is the founder of the Orphan Wisdom School in Tramore, Canada and the author of four books, including Die Wise: A Manifesto for Sanity and Soul, the award-winning book about grief and dying, and the great love of life. In 2015, he created Nights of Grief & Mystery with Canadian singer-songwriter Gregory Hoskins. With a 5-piece band, they have mounted international tours and released three albums, most recently DARK ROADS and ROUGH GODS. For more information you can visit orphanwisdom.com In this conversation, Stephen discusses approaching art as a citizen as opposed to an individual, the illusion of control in health and fitness, and his new albums DARK ROADS and ROUGH GODS.  And, the episode closes with the track "Exegesis" from ROUGH GODS. 

Samantha Star utilizes her knowledge of pole, gymnastics, yoga and handstands as a dynamic performer,  playful competitor and informative instructor. She believes perfecting fundamentals is the best way to gain strength and coordination,  leveraging these to achieve a higher level of fitness and grace. By focusing creatively on technique, she helps students attain a solid platform from which they can achieve confidence, strength and power. Samantha teaches at  Body & Pole,  Warrior Bridge and virtually on zoom from her living room in NYC . She also travels the world to perform, compete, judge, train and teach workshops. In this conversation Sam talks about her family and childhood spent camping, climbing, snowboarding, and doing gymnastics, and her journey into the world of pole.  She shares about her experience in pole competition and her evolution into teaching.  She also discusses her passion for handbalancing, and her goals and current approaches in the practice.  And, she reveals teachers she looks forward to practicing with and learning from in the future.

Yuri Marmerstein a professional acrobat based out of Las Vegas, Nevada.  He comes from mainly a self-taught background and eventually went on to perform on a professional level and teach all over the world. In addition to performing, he teaches workshops in hand balancing, acrobatics, and the physical arts to help people gain a greater sense of freedom and self-awareness. In this conversation, Yuri discusses his recent exploration of voice-over and film acting.  He shares his story and process of learning acrobatics, hand balancing, and gymnastics.  He also talks about his work as a professional performer, often for Las Vegas corporate events.  And, he opens up about how the material he teaches in workshops is often a vehicle for even deeper concepts, and the power of the process as opposed to getting focussed on the outcome.  

Brian Johnson is the owner of The Movement Standard in Dallas, Texas.  Brian began as a student of Ido Portal in 2014 and continues to study, practice and teach what he has learned from his and others to his students. He is passionate about the holistic quality a movement lifestyle brings and combines his knowledge of physiology, anatomy, nutrition and biochemistry to help others live out their dream and express themselves with and through movement. Brian holds a Bachelors of Science in Exercise Physiology and has been teaching/coaching for over 20 years. During this conversation, Brian discusses his approach to maintaining his business and community amid the pandemic.  He shares about his practice as a student of Ido Portal, and explorations with different teachers and the observations he makes about the material, approach, and delivery.  He also opens up about his passion and gratitude for teach and sharing, while at the same time being a student and continually developing a richer understanding of himself.  And, Brian and Kyle talk about being a human generalist and technology's reduction of direct sensory experience.

Sean Langhaus is a NYC based movement and acrobatics teacher and the founder of the studio Warrior Bridge located in downtown Manhattan. His movement background includes years of experience in partner acrobatics, martial arts, yoga, flexibility training, handstands, skateboarding. His teaching is informed by the study of anatomy and movement science and brings together techniques and tools from a variety of movement styles and lineages. You can learn more about how to work with Sean by visiting WarriorBridge.com During this conversation, Sean shares about the origins of his studio, Warrior Bridge.  He also discusses his extensive movement background, and how we went from skateboarding and martial arts to yoga, partner acrobatics, and hand balancing.  With a rich understanding of yoga's origins, he also fields Kyle's questions about the practice.  And, he shares about his approach to teaching hand balancing.

Phil is co-founder of MindfulMover: An online training company that focuses on a unique form on minimalist training!  The minimalist training is about finding the MAXIMIZING the range of gains and carryover made while MINIMIZING the time it takes to train and get them.  This allows you to make gains in things you ARE directly training as well as things you AREN'T directly training while leaving PLENTY of time for other things in life like passions, hobbies, family, friends, rest, relaxation, etc.  They do that with a mixture of bodyweight and weight training and constantly test to find ways to improve the amount of gains made and minimize the time it takes to make them! During this conversation Phil and Kyle discuss reevaluating their approaches to strength training.  Phil talks about the minimalist approach to strength training and the research he has done to arrive at his current philosophy.  He also shares where he gives his time now that he spends less of it in the gym.  And, he reflects on his years in martial arts, meeting students where they're at, and the need for compassion.

Elke Schroeder is a Toronto-based dance artist. A graduate of The School of Toronto Dance Theatre in 2005, she has worked with Lucy Rupert /Blue Ceiling Dance (as a dancer and artistic associate), Alias Dance Project, TILT Sound + Motion, Frog in Hand, and with choreographers Jenn Goodwin, Amanda Acorn, Susie Burpee and Andrea Nann (among others). Currently she is creating solo works for her company One Animal, just finished a creation for L'École de Danse de Québec, and is dancing in a new creation by Karen Kaeja. Elke’s diverse movement background includes dance of many styles, floorwork, acrobatics, yoga (Octopus Garden Teachers Training and Mentorship programs graduate), functional movement and martial arts. Her greatest influence is the Fighting Monkey Practice, a task-based, longevity-driven practice created by Jozef Frucek and Linda Kapetanea (RootlessRoot). A close student of Jozef and Linda, Elke is a designated FM instructor. In addition, she owes much credit to her other main teachers: David Zambrano (creator of Flying Low), Iñaki Azpillaga (Ultima Vez) and Peter Jasko (Les Slovaks). A passionate teacher, Elke has taught for organizations such as Spirit Loft (Toronto), Toronto Dance Community Love-in, L’Artère Danse, L'École de Danse de Québec, The School of Toronto Dance Theatre, the University of Calgary, Ryerson Unversity, Jane Clapp/Movement for Trauma, GMD (Toronto) and YMI Dancers (Toronto). Elke is known for her explosive performance quality and skills on the floor; she moves like, “an almost literal ball of effervescent energy, like a swiftly tilting planet falling out of orbit” (Mooney on Theatre). She is an active creator and performer and travels her work throughout Canada and abroad. During this conversation Elke and Kyle discuss embracing uncertainty, exploration, and shedding rigidity.  Elke shares about her first exposure to Fighting Monkey coordinations.  They ask the question, "What is a generalist?"  And, they dig into the the concepts of resilience and change.

Kevin Neglia is a student, teacher, and entrepreneur. He owns a studio space on Long Island, New York, and shares his philosophy and experiences with his community there. He has studied with many great teachers and has been studying “movement” since 2016 with Ido Portal. This practice has led him to adopt a philosophy which addresses our lifestyles, connection to our bodies, and that bodies connection to our world and nature. His practice continues to evolve with a craftsman like mentality to discover what we can draw from it, and how we can pass it on through collective knowledge. In this conversation Kevin and Kyle discuss the changes, adjustments, and sliver linings of practicing and teaching amid Covid-19.  Kevin shares about his passion for collective knowledge.  He also talks about his recent exploration of gardening and hunting.  And, Kevin and Kyle question, "What is strength?"

After a 20 year career as an international and collegiate gymnast, followed by an 8 year run in the Las Vegas spectacle “Le Reve”, Yuval Ayalon transitioned into a full-time handstand practitioner and teacher.  As an experienced hand balancer he now shares what he has learned throughout his life in handstand workshops on a regular basis all over the world.  He follows the teaching of the late, legendary handstand artist and teacher Claude Victoria, and continues to research this incredible art form through practice and self-exploration. In this conversation, Yuval shares about his experience as a collegiate gymnast, and the later transition from competitor to performer.  He discusses his focus on the art of hand balancing, and his approach to teaching.  And, Yuval talks about how he continues to find opportunities to be a beginner, and his current research in head standing.  

Joseph Bartz is a movement teacher based in Berlin, Germany.  http://www.josephbartz.de During this conversation Joseph and Kyle discuss the concept of being a human generalist.  Joseph shares about his use of imagination as an educational tool.  He also discusses interacting with the world through our innate senses and through technology.   And, he shares his thoughts on the importance of change, and the willingness to say, "I don't know."

Carsten Stausberg is the founder of Martial Movement Arts in Cologne, Germany. A multidisciplinary space with emphasis on Martial Arts & Movement Training.  As a long time student of Luo Dexiu, his main background are the Internal Martial Arts of Bagua Zhang, Xingyi Quan & Taiji Quan, which he teaches in classes, workshops and through Online Coaching. He spent 20+ years in various martial arts such as Shaolin Gong Fu, Chen- & Yang Style Taiji Quan, Karate, Wing Chun and Judo, focusing on the Internal Arts over the last 15 years.  Apart from his martial arts background, Carsten holds a B.A. in Chinese Philosophy & Literature from National Taiwan Normal University, graduated from a Chinese Medicine program and is a Certified Coach for Personal Development. During this conversation Carsten shares the principles of internal martial arts.  He talks about a recent teaching collaboration with Tom Weksler.  He also discusses Bagua Circle Walking, and his more recent research in Brazilian jiu-jitsu.  And, he and Kyle talk books.

Margot Ciccarelli was born and raised in the London, United Kingdom, but has been based between New York and Hong Kong in most recent years. She has studied martial arts for 20 years within Chinese martial arts, Kendo and Brazilian jiu-jitsu. She is currently a brown belt under Murilo Santana at Unity Jiu jitsu (New York City) and commonly known as one of the most active nomadic competitors as well as travelling coaches. She has a Bachelors in Mechanical Engineering (Imperial College) and divides her time around the world training and teaching jiu-jitsu.  Her current movement practice is a blend of Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, contemporary dance and house dance. She is also the founder of Nomadic iD and current passion project is around the topic of classroom design and pedagogy in jiu-jitsu as well as curating better learning experiences both online and offline. During this conversation, Margot and Kyle commiserate on the last 6 months of lockdown, and what that has meant for teaching and practice.  Margot shares about her multi-level passions of athlete, artist, and teacher.  She also discusses her thoughts on, and approaches to, creativity and transferable skills.  And, she talks about teaching, and her desire to not just teach technique, but give students the tools to learn.

Marlo has studied dance for 30 years, taught movement for 20 years, and has performed in movies, commercials, and TV shows. She holds degrees in Anthropology and Public Relations is an international pole dance champion, and has developed several teacher trainings for pole dance and floor work. Marlo is the creator of Flow Movement. She specializes in helping people access a Flow state as they play and dance with their environments. During this conversation, Marlo discusses her journey including professional dance, fitness, and pole dancing.  She also shares thoughts on her approach to teaching, and the use of imagination as a teaching tool.  Marlo talks about lessons and inspiration from improv comedy classes, and a vision for creating a movement and comedy collaboration.  And, both Marlo and Kyle share their apartment nightmare stories from their early days in New York. 

Paul Schreiner is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt under Claudio França who worked extensively with Garth Taylor, Marcelo Garcia, Dave Camarillo among others. Co-founder of the Kaijin Academy in Santa Cruz, California, Schreiner also gained notoriety in BJJs community as a coach at the Marcelo Garcia Academy – Alliance New York, where he helped develop the games of several high-end athletes produced by this prestigious training ground. During this conversation, Paul and Kyle talk about teaching technique as vehicle for developing sensory and kinesthetic awareness and the broader skills within the art jiu-jitsu.  Paul shares about his passion for fly fishing and surfing, and the transferable skills they share with BJJ.  He also discusses his practice of Iyengar Yoga and his interest in breath work.  And, he talks about the plans the Marcelo Garcia Academy has for reopening after closing in March due to Covid-19, and what classes will look in the beginning.

Rodrigo is the owner and founder of the largest movement facility in Brazil: Pratique Movemento.  He has a degree is physical education, practiced capoeira for 16 years, and has been studying with Ido Portal for 7 years (5 of which under his Mentorship Program).  Along with teaching at his facility, he also teaches movement to professional fighters at Cerrado MMA, the largest MMA facility in Brasília.  On this episode Rodrigo and Kyle discuss meeting at Movement Camp in Thailand.  Rodrigo shares about his experience managing his facility and instructing his students during Covid-19, and the lessons he has learned.  He talks about his education, capoeira, and working in an office with a government job prior to teaching movement.  And, he opens up about his passion for syntropic farming.

Jozef Frucek is one the founders of Fighting Monkey Practice, developed through a deep study on cross motion analysis and with an aim to understand the principles of the human movement, communication and the ageing process.  He has been studying under the guidance of Master Ming Wong C.Y., also a doctor of Chinese Medicine, the internal principles of movement and their relation to health and ageing.  Jozef got his ArtD degree on Voice and Movement in 2002 under the supervision of Ludmila Machatsova, who is considered as one of the most influential communication trainers. This conversation with Kyle and Jozef was recorded with a live Zoom audience.  Jozef shares about his upbringing and education; including table tennis, basketball, and theater.  Jozef discusses the ideas and philosophies surrounding the Fighting Monkey approach to movement and education.  Questions are taken from the live audience regarding creativity and art.

Phaidra Knight is a former international athlete, sports media talent, motivational speaker, lawyer and business entrepreneur.  For nearly 18 years, Phaidra traveled the globe as a professional rugby player, establishing herself as the one of the premiere players in the sport. She made three appearances in the Rugby World Cup and was selected as the top player in the world in her position in 2002 and 2006. In 2010, she was named the US Rugby Player of the Decade. In November 2017, she was inducted into the World Rugby Hall of Fame. During this conversation between friends, Phaidra and Kyle reflect on how they were connected via Kyle's aunt who hosted Phaidra in Florida while she trained for Olympic bobsled tryout.  Phaidra discusses her passion for trying new things, whether they be in sport or business.  She also shares about her training in MMA, and plans to compete.  And, she talks about the missions and goals behind her non-profit PeaK Unleashed and her new clothing line PSK Collective.

Gabe Polsky is an acclaimed documentary film director, writer, and producer.  His films include In Search of Greatness and, most recently, Red Penguins.  During this conversation, Gabe shares about his journey from competitive hockey to film making.  He and Kyle talk about creativity, and the role generalization plays in its development.  And, Gabe discusses his latest film and future ambitions in feature films.  

David Foster is a licensed acupuncturist and herbalist in Traditional Chinese Medicine, specializing in the treatment of neurological and autoimmune conditions.  Kyle and David met when they were both performing stand-up comedy in New York City.  After 15 years in stand-up, David decided to step away from the mic and focus his attention on Chinese medicine.  Kyle and David reminisce and commiserate on their days in comedy, and their decisions to quit.  David discusses his Traditional Chinese Medicine education, and what people can expect from work with a practitioner like himself. 

Maillard and Kyle met as students of the coaching program at CrossFit Virtuosity.  Maillard went on to open CrossFit Prospect Heights, and is now the co-owner of Dean CrossFit.  Maillard shares about his journey, and the lessons he's learned, as a small business owner in Brooklyn; the ups and down, and successes and struggles.  He also discusses the recent changes at CrossFit HQ, and his participation in expressing to the owner and CEO the ongoing changes that must be made for the betterment of the community.

Nelson Cuadras is the host of The Daily Practice, a podcast that explores the routines of its guests; many of whom are educators and performers in the physical arts. When he’s not working on The Daily Practice, he’s teaching his client’s, in person and online, how to bring more focus and presence to their lives with the aid of hand balance training. You can find him in Miami, Florida or online at @nelsoncuadras. On this episode Nelson with Kyle about his journey into movement, and later into his focus on hand balancing.  He also discusses his Cuban heritage and his job providing movement tools to corporations and businesses.  And, he and Kyle talk about change and honest expression.  

Keith is a CrossFit Level 4 coach and has been coaching CrossFit, jiujitsu, yoga, barbells, kettlebells and gymnastics for 20 years. He is a former owner and operator of two separate CrossFit gyms in New York City.  He now lives and coaches in New Jersey, and work on the CrossFit Seminar Staff.   In this talk, Keith shares about his journey through BJJ, yoga, and CrossFit.  He discusses practicing BJJ in 1997 in New York City with Renzo Gracie; discovering yoga, and later becoming a yoga teach; and the early days of CrossFit in parks and martial arts schools. 

Carl is a Swedish-American Lifestyle Coach who grew up as an Elite gymnast in Spain. He launched Gymnastics WOD in 2010, assisting Jami Tikkanen in coaching Annie Thorisdottir to win back to back CrossFit Games titles in 2011 and 2012, writing the New York Times Bestselling book Freestyle, becoming a member of the Ownership Group of STRIKE MVMNT a footwear and apparel brand where he currently serves as their Global Ambassador, and in 2012 Carl founded Freestyle Connection - a Media and Digital Learning company based in San Francisco, CA dedicated to helping people design a life worth living through fitness and personal development. In this episode Movement Brooklyn owner, Kyle Fincham, speaks with Carl about his journey; teaching improvised workshops and seminars, developing his book, and being on the road.

Matt Bernstein is a passionate student, teacher, and father. He is the co-owner of Ape Co Movement in Boulder, and opening soon in Denver. Movement Brooklyn owner, Kyle Fincham, and Matt connected in 2013 when Kyle began studying movement with Matt. In this talk, Matt discusses his time in CrossFit, and going through the coaching program at CrossFit Virtuosity. He shares about discovering movement with teacher Ido Portal. He also opens up about his PTSD and the work he’s gone through to address it.

Fabio started off as a competitive gymnast before running away to join the circus at the age of 15 to become a professional acrobat. He pursued a life-long career as a physical actor, dancer and movement educator. He has toured the globe performing and teaching with the high-impact STREB -EXTREME ACTION dance company for over 14 years. Movement Brooklyn owner, Kyle Fincham, speaks with Fabio about his journey from Brazil to NYC, performing with STREB, and his studies and teaching of the Klein and Alexander techniques.

Darci has been practicing and studying the body and human movement since 2008. Her work is deeply informed by relationships between human animals and non-human animals as well as questions of Nature and Culture. Movement Brooklyn owner, Kyle Fincham, talks with Darci about her journey through the world of movement; the teachers she’s learned from and the tools, methodologies, and insights she’s found value in. Darci also discusses her concern with our disconnection from the natural world and the relationship we have with the food we eat.

Hudson Taylor is a 3X NCAA All-American wrestler from the University of Maryland and ranks among the top 5 pinners in NCAA history. He is a former wrestling coach at Columbia University and is the Founder and Executive Director of Athlete Ally. Founded in 2011, Athlete Ally's mission is to activate athletic communities to exercise their leadership to eliminate homophobia and transphobia in sports. Movement Brooklyn owner, Kyle Fincham, talks with Hudson about his life balanced in both sports and the arts, his passion for learning and his willingness to “be a white belt”, and the story behind his non-profit Athlete Ally. And, he discusses his magic and sleight of hand practice, and even performs an illusion over the Zoom call.

Emily Sanderson is a dance and movement instructor, pole dancer, performer, and practitioner of improvisation. In this episode Movement Brooklyn owner, Kyle Fincham, talks with Emily about dance, teaching, movement, and improvisation. Emily discusses her journey; including a start in Irish dance, later practicing African dance, and discovering pole dancing. She also talks about her passion for improvisation and how she approaches this topic with her students.

Alanna is a professional dancer with 15 years of experience. She shares he knowledge of movement across various disciplines including dance, theater, and sports. In this talk she shares about her experience in dance and her evolving movement practice.

Movement Brooklyn owner, Kyle Fincham, speaks with Paul McCarthy on this episode. Paul is an accomplished martial artist and founder of Cognitive Kali. Paul discusses his collaboration with neuroscientists looking into the cognitive benefits of complex movement. He also speaks on his experiences through a wide variety of martial arts, insight on practice, and teaching vs leading.

Dan is an accomplished martial artist, holding black belts in judo and Brazilian jiu jitsu. He also runs his own BJJ program in Manhattan, Dan Covel jiu jitsu. Movement Brooklyn owner, Kyle Fincham, talks with Dan about his practice and passion for teaching.

Tom Weksler is an accomplished teacher, dancer, martial arts practitioner, and lover of all forms of acrobatic disciplines. Movement Brooklyn owner, Kyle Fincham, interviews Tom about all things movement, followed by a Q&A with the live Zoom audience.