SOFIA POST

Mover. Artist. Learner. Coach.

Artistic Work

Current focus project: Utilizing vertical aerial apparatuses as a collaborative partner. Engaging with non circus artists to bridge the gap between the performance world of circus arts and other kids of performing artists.

Movement Coaching

With 5 years of one-on-one coaching experience I offer an array of coaching styles for a range of athletes.I believe that all humans with a body are athletes and each of us deserve to move at our best, for as long as possible. I am particularly motivated to work with the less common athletes (climbers, dancers, acrobats, endurance athletes, etc.).Every time we move we get to add more data to our set of information and are able to use to increase our self awareness and internal understanding. The greater this data set, and the more expansive this awareness, the more we can access within ourselves to reach our physical potential.With online and in person options I am excited to connect with the outdoor and performance communities and help you reach your unique goals!

To inquire about movement coaching please email here

Contact

Contact me for private strength, mobility, endurance, or artistic coaching. Request information for booking performances. Reach out to work into a collaborative art space.

ATHENA

Photos by Jon Beckley

FINDING JOY

Photos by Jon Beckley

Nutrition Coaching

Nutrition is one of the greatest challenges of wellness and often requires significant support. Through one-on-one coaching nutrition can become the catalyst of your goals and be the reason you excel for decades to come.

To inquire about nutrition coaching please email here

Hi!
Welcome to Museletter #1 I am so happy you are here... truly, now more than ever I feel a need to forge a virtual presence that is curated on my terms, without any algorithms, or likes. I am excited to have a space where I can just put out what I want to put out, without my usual reservations... I want this space to be a little vulnerable, a little informative, a little silly, and a little something that we'll all discover together.These ideas are active, in progress, incomplete, and they probably will stay this way, I almost hope that they do, because if they don't I fear that means I have become stagnant.
ART
I have been making lots of things, applying to lots of things, and reflecting on lots of things. After almost a year of working in a duo I have been creating some more solo pieces. The short version of my reflections on this experience is that solo work is so hard! Duo work has its own challenge but I have a new appreciation for having a buddy to keep my accountable, on track, and committed to the artistic process. Allowing the process to be a process is significantly harder when you are your own accountability.Speaking of making things - my most recent piece was for the staff show at Esh. The act I made had no story, no concept, I didn't even decide my beats (the parts where I pause and acknowledge or connect with the audience, ya know, for whimsy) until the day before. But it was fun, it was challenging choreographically, and it allowed me to showcase some skills that I haven't been able to before. It was objective "bad art" because it lacked substance, but I enjoyed it and people clapped, and that's kinda all that matters. The feedback I got did reflect this, people enjoyed that it was simple, just a happy presence and nothing more, no deep dialogue to follow, nothing too... triggering.
MEDIA
Three letters: EDM!!! I have an obsession, I grew up listening, practicing, playing and performing to very traditional, classical music. Classical music has such a warm and precious place in my heart, but the more I listen to different genres of music, the more I realize how closed minded I have been to how I define music.I went with some coworkers to see Inzo and Mersive, it was my first rave, my first big DJ show, my first experience of music that I have come to really love and cherish. What struck me the most is that it didn't feel like any other performance I've ever seen. When I see a musician live I really try and observe them, I like to watch how they move, I like to mirror their mannerism, mimmic how the connect with their own music, but when someone's all they way behind a booth, and you're in the third tier in a crowd of people that just want to dance. I found that I didn't have keep up with what's happening on stage, I found a new kind of presence that I haven't experienced outside of deep meditation. I find this very exciting and am excited to continue to explore it more!
MUSINGS
What even is a "muse"??? The first definition of the Oxford Dictionary is: "(in Greek and Roman mythology) each of nine goddesses, the daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, who preside over the arts and sciences," the second is: "a person or personified force who is the source of inspiration for a creative artist." The first thing that struck me is that a muse is a personification... the second is the idea of inspiration as a force... lets get into it...Personification: I'm not sure that I experience my art and artistic ideas as things becoming people. A lot of what draws me to perform is the idea of being watched and observed, particularly my body, it's an objectification of myself on my own terms. It almost allows me to depersonalize myself in a safe environment, where I don't need to disassociate in order to do so.Force of inspiration: there is definitely something that drives me to do the things I do and make the things that I make. It does feel very forceful, almost aggressive, it's sometimes frightening.

oh hey hi... happy March!
February was a wild and wonderful month, chock full and deep cut.
I'm starting to see the light at the end of this cold tunnel, and to mourn this past winter, despite it still being rather frigid in New England.
I took a lovely trip to Colorado to ski and see friends and travel always causes some kind of shift in me that I love exploring.
I did write a Museletter at the end of February, when I’m “supposed to” but the tech gods had other ideas and it was deleted so I started over and this is what we got. Honestly it was a really good practice in patience and self compassion or whatever (aka I only got a little angry and didn’t let it ruin the rest of that day).
ART
I'm making a solo piece and it's kicking my ass. I've done some solo work in the last couple months but this one feels slightly higher stakes. I have set the bar a little higher and asked myself to be more specific with my narrative choices. This is hard for me for many reasons, but mostly for reasons associated with fear and vulnerability.
MEDIA
Two words: Meow Wolf.
The more I experience art the more I want it to feel like a wellrounded, fully integrated experience, and that is exactly what Meow Wolf was. It was weird, wild, and wonderful and I feel so inspired to create something that reflects my experience there. Mostly in the sense that I want to find new ways to engage with people's senses.
Having the foresight to anticipate an individual's experience and target so many aspects of someone's nervous system is widely impressive to me and I want to learn how to do it for myself in my own art.
MUSINGS
I’ve been thinking a lot about flow states. The idea that I can engage with something so intensely that I completely forget about anything outside of what I am experiencing. I didn’t really consider what I do to be a flow experience until I started to actually do flow arts (hooping mostly), but once I experienced something that is explicitly labeled as flow, I realized how flow based the rest of my movement practices are pretty much all just different variations of flow states.So what the heck is flow? Psychology today defines it as a cognitive state of being completely engaged in an activity. This guy from Hungary coined the term while he was studying the creative process… The article I found about it gives advice/steps on how to achieve flow and they lay out some guidelines, or steps to achieve flow state, but I don’t think I totally agree with that as a concept. I think that true flow is undefinable. If you are being totally authentic, present, and honest with yourself and whatever it is you are engaging with, you can’t actually describe whatever it is your experience, let alone define what someone else's experience could or should be.So what have I learned from this realization? Keep doing whatever it is that brings you joy. Go on lots of walks, read lots of books, play that video game, do anything that engages you in a way that makes you feel engaged, but now do it with the intention of being totally present. Consider that what you’re doing brings you into a state that’s our evolutionary ideal. Everything in life that happens outside of that is trying to jar you out of that state of being. Don’t let it.
UPDATES
Class schedule continues at the Bouldering Project in Somerville!I am expanding my business and have been enjoying engaging with folks 1:1. Whether you have a specific movement goal, want to build out a sustainable routine, or have concerns about how to level up your training from recreational to pre-professional, let's chat! More info can be found on my website:)
BIG BRAINS
Ok ok ok, so I started seeing my guy Dr Tim at Boston Injury Rehab Performance (BIRP). They are rocking my world a little bit. Mostly they are reminding me how fucking important it is to periodize training. This reminder is making me realize that actually what needs to happen is that you need (or at least I need to) start to periodize your whole life!So what the heck is periodization? According to my certification course through NASM it’s basically a structure of training that provides a build up in training volume, into a peak portion of performance or training, followed by a deload, or break week. Beyond the scientific evidence to support it, I like to frame it in a similar context to plateaus. Many folks I work with come to me with a significant amount of experience in their sport, and many of them are struggling to progress in one way or another. In short, they’ve plateaued. What periodization does is embrace this plateau. It acknowledges the fact that if you do work, you will only get so much better, you also have to recover.Two things I’m learning (or relearning) from this reminder: I need to take my own advice and periodize my own training program. And, periodization is not exclusive to sports training or movement.Periodize your life? Periodize your life, take it in 6-12 week sections, make 1-4 attainable goals, figure out what small (I mean itty-bitty) steps you need to take daily to reach this goal, then fucking do it. Because, 6-12 weeks is kind of like the 10 second rule (where you can do anything for 10 seconds). If it doesn’t work for those 10 seconds (6-12 weeks), you can stop, adjust, and make changes during the next round. This idea also embraces rest which right now is a radical thing to embrace and I personally need to get better at it.

Hi fellas, HAPPY MAY!
I realize I went a little MIA for March and April, things got… a little wild (in a good way).
Life happens, but I’m happy you're still here!
ART
I made another solo rope piece. This one is a little longer, much more vulnerable, and pushed my technical abilities in a way that I am still surprised by. I performed it in April for NECCA’s Open Stage - you can watch it here! I am taking this piece to Philly for the first Philadelphia Contemporary Circus Festival on Labor Day weekend. Then I’ll perform it again in Jamaica Plain as part of the staff cabaret show at Common Wealth Circus Center (tickets here if you want ‘em).I made this piece for Open Stage in Vermont and thought it would be another one and done piece. I was OK with that, it felt right, it was a piece I knew I needed to create, but wasn’t attached to it carrying me anywhere specific. I won the audience choice award and from there some momentum started to build. I had applied to things that felt slightly out of reach, and they started responding.Momentum is a really powerful tool, and I am intrigued at how it’s showing up in my artistic practices.
MUSIC
I’ve been VERY chaotic in my music choices. I fell back into some classic punk and grunge rock with Green Day and Nirvana. Rediscovered Phantogram (how could I forget them). I recently started listening to Kaeto, she's a trip-pop with a little dance and grunge from Scotland, I’ve been enjoying her a lot!I’m behind on my playlists as per usual, but some folks asked and I’m answering them! This is currently the first summer playlist, I’ll update it as I find things old and new, feel free to add and listen.
MEDIA
I went to see Pilobolus in Great Barrington, they are currently on their re:Creation tour and it is so worth it to get to see them. It reminded me of why I fell in love with moving in the first place. I used to spend hours scrounging YouTube watching clips of their performances and other videos they had posted from workshops. I hadn’t fully realized how much of an influence they had on my journey to becoming a mover myself.
MUSINGS
Unconditional positive regard is an idea that is used in wellness coaching that I’m starting to internalize more artistically for myself as well. Essentially it means that as a coach, I am assuming that the person or people I am working with are doing the best they can to achieve their goals, or meet the ask I am making based on their goals.I am reaching a point where I now need to apply this to my own life in order to give myself grace while taking creative risk and pursuing a wide range of athletic based goals. I operate in a state of high judgement, I’m critical, analytical, I’m working on it, and also learning how to use it as a tool. It mostly feels relevant when I am interacting with other artists. Engaging in creative collaboration, even if it is a seemingly fleeting conversation triggers a lot of judgement, starting to apply this perspective of unconditional positive regard is transforming how I show up to these kinds of interactions, as well as my work.BIG BRAINS
Biotensengrity! Probably a word that you’ve heard in pieces, in various contexts, but maybe not together, or in terms of movement or wellness. Tensegrity is a term that originated in architecture and refers to the idea that structures can isolate compression and tension to self suspend and be fluid and move despite existing in a reliably rigid form.There are some osteopaths and biologists (Graham Melvin Scarr, specifically) who applied this theory to the anatomy of animals, specifically humans. There are folks who vehemently disagree with this theory. I see it mostly as a stepping stone in understanding the level at which the human form exists in an integrative structure. This comes from years of studying individual components of the body in an academic context after having previous experiences in my own body that felt extremely amalgamated.To be clear, I think there is significant value in being able to identify individual muscles and their specific function. I think it is equally important to know how each individual muscle is associated with the muscles in the same group, and what muscle groups might oppose or influence its movement in some way. That being said, any physical being is experiencing their body in its entirety 100% of the time, so why can’t we allow this to be true when moving? The more I train myself and others, the more I become aware of how my body is engaging during a certain pathway. Each time I warm up I discover new parts of my body that are engaging. This feels connected to the concept of Biotensenarity in the sense that whatever I am doing with my shoulder, will somehow influence the experience my knee is having. But this isn’t how I was taught and it feels kinda naughty.

INTRODUCTION
Hi friends, let’s celebrate June (the best month)MOVEMENT OFFERINGS
July feels slower but the schedule is mostly the same! no more T/TH 6:45 am @ BP
Mobility: Mondays at 12 pm, Tuesdays at 7 pm
Barbelle Club: Wednesdays and Fridays at 12 pm
Yoga: Fridays at 4:30 pm (for climbers!)excited to soft launch private in person training at Turbo Crossfit on Thursdays between 9 and 3 pm!and always accepting virtual nutrition and movement consultations, can be a one of check in, program building workshop or specific movement patter coaching.ART
The piece I made in April is living a full life. I've performed it three times now, in three different states, it feels good to have time to let a single piece iterate… I’m letting it cook.MUSIC
I’m re-entering an R&B/trad rap eta that I thought I left in high school. Everything from Tribe Called Quest to Little Simz. The Pharcyde released some new stuff that’s also significantly influencing my vibe. The summer playlist is a pretty chaotic jam of this and some more folky stuff that has a similar underlying base that I’m finding interesting. You can check it out here:)MEDIA
FKA TWIGS WHO ARE YOU AND HOW DO I MAKE ART LIKE YOURS. Holy Moly if you haven’t listened or watched one of her performances or music videos check her out. My fav is this one here!Her show was another one that expanded my perception of what performing arts is.MUSINGS
Staying coachable… (this is a long one y’all)I’m realizing that learning never actually ends. In my movement practice I quickly learned that my coaches are only a few steps ahead of me, sometimes more, sometimes less, sometimes the steps are bigger than the ones I’m taking, sometimes they are smaller and I will pass them sooner than I might wish. I have this image of this as a cycle, where these continuous loops are touching each other as they move forward, but eventually they loop back into each other and then just turn into a chaotic mess of squiggles. Like this image below but so much more chaotic…READ THE REST OF THIS CONCEPT THOUGHT ON MY SUBSTACK:$BIG BRAINS
I’m burnt out. (This section is a little different from past Museletters). But it’s nothing like what I remember experiencing, or feel like I imagined… Some context might be necessary. I’ve been working on my most recent act for about 5 months now. 3 of those months I have been performing it fairly regularly. I haven’t had much time to train or work on new skills or just explore.Despite all this I am still working with a coach, and am still finding ways to move that are different and feel new and exciting. However, I’m realizing that chasing novelty is not sustainable. But I want it to be. The thing about movement is that it creates a pattern or framework for new things to happen. But the more movement based things I try, the more familiar the patterns become, the less I feel I can find novelty in them.The internet describes it as exhaustion, detachment/cynicism, and reduced efficacy. After some more research I realized that all of these symptoms are the result of over exposure to a pattern. So the logical thing to do if you are experiencing burn out is to break the pattern.I read a lot of crap about strategies to recover and avoid future burn out. Where I get more nuanced with it is with the idea of acceptance. If you do the same thing for too long and it stops filling you up and starts draining you it means it has completed its cycle and is forcing you out. You have to acknowledge that which can be hard. Letting go of a pattern can be the same as leaving a relationship, getting the ick for your favorite food, or discovering your favorite artist is actually an asshole (a topic for another Museletter). But allowing yourself to grieve the new lack of fulfillment is so very necessary. As soon as you grieve it you can be launched into the space of newness that creates a new pattern and allows you to be reenergized and become more attached.Where the intellectualization of burn out lost me was at this idea of "efficacy"... I don’t exist in the corporate world (clearly) so I don’t have the perspective of it. But my suspicion is that the most successful people are the ones who are not necessarily able to produce a specific result, rather who are able to create space for the result to be discovered. Let me explain…In the wellness world we use SMART goals, where I see the biggest difference between good and excellent coaches (and where I see the biggest results) is when a coach can pivot based on the information the SMART goal actions are changing. These changes are inevitable and should be celebrated.I think the lesson I am trying to teach here is that your burn out is providing you information about your current cycle. My wish for you is to listen to it. Let yourself be changed. Allow the next cycle to begin.QUERRIES TO CONSIDER
Consider the last time you felt exhaustion… What did you do about it and how did it inform your wellbeing?