change of scenery

otispunkmeyer · **change of scenery -** 12-17-2005, 05:06 PM

hello all.... just registered because im thinking of a little change in my life.

(if you cant be arsed reading....skip this bit)

ive been a swimmer for the longest time now, i started when i was 5 and now im nearly 20! ive made it up to national level, and ive made it up to european level in speed lifesaving. i know im not gonna get much further and tbh swimming is becoming long in tooth.

15 years of pounding up n down, 4 early mornings a week (when i was 15).....40-50km a week in the pool.

currently a 2nd year at uni, and i think i quickly found out that i enjoyed the breakdancing nights the most of all, even though they are rare. i love the music, i love the moves, the people are great and it makes my jaw hit the floor....

the phrase "i wish i could do that" loops round in my mind for the entire night. i have some mad respect for you guys.

(and start reading here

)

anyway back on topic....im thinking of a change, swimming -> breakdancing. being a swimmer id say ive got pretty decent core stability, strong triceps (they pretty much dwarf my biceps lol), and good shoulder strength. im 6ft 2in and weigh roughtly 70-75kg's (155lbs)

i am well aware, i'll need to work more on all the above (im no gymnast) but will i be well suited to breaking? with the above pshyique? also since swimming is a non-impact sport, alot of my joints/bones are rather "soft". holding my weight on my wrists/fore arms etc feels like im snapping my joints!

i know a couple of the guys at our uni in the breakdancing...and im ok to join (the chair has asked me if id like to join)

im also considering dropping swimming at my current level, and also start learning gymnastics in the summer.

Masochist · 12-17-2005, 07:05 PM

Welcome to bboy.org!

When I first tried to bboy, it was me doing circles on the ground when I was 7. I didn't really care, because it looked easy. I was never NEVER a physical being. I was a gamer, HARDCORE before I started last August/September. And even then. I thought I'd have terrible problems with bboying, because I was known to be a non-physical person.

How wrong I was, even though some people can't admit it, my bboying skills have soared far above any from my old school in Thailand. (currently in Easton, PA) No one could admit it. Some of the biggest jerks to me have been saying stop showing off or you suck or you can't do that because you're not strong enough.

That was all B.S. Probably one of the strongest, best coordinated soccer, basketball, EVERY sport playing person who happened to be a very good friend of mine, managed to roast me until June 2005, where I started to leap ahead of him, which was "conviniently" placed after my last school year in Thailand. (I still kept in touch over the IM program)

A lot of people couldn't believe how this person with no life, could become obsessed with bboying all of a sudden, and become so good. You know what they did? They didn't believe it. They thought somehow I was doing it wrong, and that my friend, as amazing as he used to seem to me, continues to get better.

OMG they were wrong.

Considering you're a swimmer, you're already well conditioned to bboying. I had no conditioning, and I'm already at a decent level at just over a year of dancing.

The catch is that I'm actually an on/off bboy and that I still have school, singing, and gaming lives to take care of. On and off for 1 year, and where I am, I feel proud in a way.

otispunkmeyer · 12-17-2005, 07:53 PM

thats wicked dude keep it up

yeah ive been told that i'll be able to pick up the basics fairly swiftly, and begin adding my own style to things. im not afraid of hardwork, and ive definately got the staminar to just keep on going...duracell bunny style.

im definatey gonna give it a try, ive got nothing to lose.

i love the music, really get into it, and even though ill be the first to admit that, atm, i just cant dance for shit, (forget 2 left feet...im talkin trying to dance on 2 bloody stumps) i just dont care, im having a wicked time dancing in my own way to the music, and if people wanna stand there and go WTF is this guy doing....more power to them. definately not the type who needs to be plastered with alcohol before even considering any kind of dance

Masochist · 12-17-2005, 11:38 PM

You'll pick it up. I suggest buying the DVD if you want to invest in it. Then watch videos and get ideas from many people. Several bboys you should watch for style: Machine, Dyzee, Abstrak, Kaku has cool toprock, and many others.

Oh, and you should really stretch your legs out. MINIMUM flexibility should be around being able to bring your touch your toes feet together without a warm up.

Commander Keen · 12-18-2005, 12:28 AM

If you have a lot of swimming physical strength you'll find a lot of moves unusually easy. Other ones won't be any easier than for anyone else.

The hard thing will probably be, you're quite tall which is an edge in swimming but not in bboying. That's not really a problem though, just a hurdle of sorts. What I'm getting to saying is something you seem to know already: Find the dance that matches your body, and you'll be original and high class. I hope you keep loving bboying because it's great to find something you really like!

STIFF_UK · 12-18-2005, 12:06 PM

Where are you from? What university too?
Let me know especially if you are in or near Manchester.

I used to swim when I was at highschool, never to a really high standard, but I did give the school's best swimmers the shock of their life once. I've always been swimming since my earliest memories, I used to enter every highschool gala competing against the other house groups in the school, and always did it for enjoyment. Only race I was ever in that was won, was a relay, and I swam the bad leg.

Anyway, unbeknown to them I started to train, eventually finding my way onto the Bury and Elton town team. Come the last gala I was to enter (final year in Highschool) people were saying "Why do you always enter every year? You never win anything!" I said nothing other than "because I enjoy it" (if you know british highschools, you'll know admitting you enjoy something school-related isn't the coolest thing you can do - I got some very funny looks for that)

Anyway it came to the day of the gala and I was ready to race. Only, I'd been swimming in a proper league, and was used to proper starts. The teacher starting the race wasn't. He actually started the race when i was still sorting myself out on the block. By the time I started my dive, the other racers were already surfacing off theirs.

You can probably imagine the look of shock on the face of "the best swimmer in the school" - after such a nice dive (I know it was good - I watched him make it - lol) and his track record of winning everything - when he finished the race and stood up to cheer in victory, and saw I was already standing there, goggles off, and smiling.

THAT was a satisfying moment.

Anyway - bboying. LoL.
I've seen people from all kinds of backgrounds come into bboying. The one thing they almost all have in common, is how the 2nd week they turn up saying "I've been in agony all week!" See bboying uses some muscle groups that just aren't used the same way in other activities.

Don't worry about not being a gymnast. The simple fact is that most gymnasts who turn to bboying, suck. They think they know it all because they've got acrobatics down nice, but they can't dance, have a REALLY rigid look (because that's the gymnastic way) they point their toes in EVERYTHING which looks WACK and usually aren't willing to listen to and learn from a person who can't do half the tricks they can and no formal training.

Hope it goes well for you, as Massochist said, get the DVD on here - it's the best video instructional you're likely to find.
Tops, Drops, Footwork, Freezes (Baby and Chair primarily)
Concentrate on that stuff first - when you can do them easilly and not need to think about them much, THEN work on the flips and spins.

otispunkmeyer · 12-19-2005, 05:27 PM

currently at loughborough uni (but im home in Middlesbrough for xmas). im actually still on the lboro swim team (national squad) , but havent trained in 4 weeks due to lots of work (mech eng course)

they said i could start back anytime, id be welcome back, so they must think im worth having. but im getting abit meh about it all now, its begining to lose its fun.

im in the same boat as you, ive never won alot, came close, but never won too much (specially not at the big events) but i dont care, long as i swam faster than last time, then thats a result

i know what you mean about gymnasts, my buddy on the l'boro lifesaving team (not the swim team mentioned above) used to be a gymnast, and still spends alot of time down the gym. he's got the front/back flips down, flares, windmills and other power moves down.......but he cant actually dance for shit, its so funny. top rocking is beyond him completely.

definately gonna pick up that DVD after xmas, it'll be damn useful.

STIFF_UK · 12-19-2005, 06:36 PM

Maybe ask for it FOR christmas?

Masochist · 12-19-2005, 10:45 PM

A gymnast's toprock would seriously look like ballet with their pointed toes

STIFF_UK · 12-19-2005, 11:41 PM

Dude - no. LoL.
I've seen ballet and seen ballet dancers bboying, and believe me - it's a million miles away from the bad gymnast crossover.
It's just nasty, and not in the good way. Haha.

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otispunkmeyer Registered User Respect: 1 Posts: 11 Join Date: Dec 2005	change of scenery - 12-17-2005, 05:06 PM hello all.... just registered because im thinking of a little change in my life. (if you cant be arsed reading....skip this bit) ive been a swimmer for the longest time now, i started when i was 5 and now im nearly 20! ive made it up to national level, and ive made it up to european level in speed lifesaving. i know im not gonna get much further and tbh swimming is becoming long in tooth. 15 years of pounding up n down, 4 early mornings a week (when i was 15).....40-50km a week in the pool. currently a 2nd year at uni, and i think i quickly found out that i enjoyed the breakdancing nights the most of all, even though they are rare. i love the music, i love the moves, the people are great and it makes my jaw hit the floor.... the phrase "i wish i could do that" loops round in my mind for the entire night. i have some mad respect for you guys. (and start reading here ) anyway back on topic....im thinking of a change, swimming -> breakdancing. being a swimmer id say ive got pretty decent core stability, strong triceps (they pretty much dwarf my biceps lol), and good shoulder strength. im 6ft 2in and weigh roughtly 70-75kg's (155lbs) i am well aware, i'll need to work more on all the above (im no gymnast) but will i be well suited to breaking? with the above pshyique? also since swimming is a non-impact sport, alot of my joints/bones are rather "soft". holding my weight on my wrists/fore arms etc feels like im snapping my joints! i know a couple of the guys at our uni in the breakdancing...and im ok to join (the chair has asked me if id like to join) im also considering dropping swimming at my current level, and also start learning gymnastics in the summer.


Masochist He showed up for a day!!! Respect: 1 Posts: 1,322 Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Easton	12-17-2005, 07:05 PM Welcome to bboy.org! When I first tried to bboy, it was me doing circles on the ground when I was 7. I didn't really care, because it looked easy. I was never NEVER a physical being. I was a gamer, HARDCORE before I started last August/September. And even then. I thought I'd have terrible problems with bboying, because I was known to be a non-physical person. How wrong I was, even though some people can't admit it, my bboying skills have soared far above any from my old school in Thailand. (currently in Easton, PA) No one could admit it. Some of the biggest jerks to me have been saying stop showing off or you suck or you can't do that because you're not strong enough. That was all B.S. Probably one of the strongest, best coordinated soccer, basketball, EVERY sport playing person who happened to be a very good friend of mine, managed to roast me until June 2005, where I started to leap ahead of him, which was "conviniently" placed after my last school year in Thailand. (I still kept in touch over the IM program) A lot of people couldn't believe how this person with no life, could become obsessed with bboying all of a sudden, and become so good. You know what they did? They didn't believe it. They thought somehow I was doing it wrong, and that my friend, as amazing as he used to seem to me, continues to get better. OMG they were wrong. Considering you're a swimmer, you're already well conditioned to bboying. I had no conditioning, and I'm already at a decent level at just over a year of dancing. The catch is that I'm actually an on/off bboy and that I still have school, singing, and gaming lives to take care of. On and off for 1 year, and where I am, I feel proud in a way.
	Thank you for everything.


otispunkmeyer Registered User Respect: 1 Posts: 11 Join Date: Dec 2005	12-17-2005, 07:53 PM thats wicked dude keep it up yeah ive been told that i'll be able to pick up the basics fairly swiftly, and begin adding my own style to things. im not afraid of hardwork, and ive definately got the staminar to just keep on going...duracell bunny style. im definatey gonna give it a try, ive got nothing to lose. i love the music, really get into it, and even though ill be the first to admit that, atm, i just cant dance for shit, (forget 2 left feet...im talkin trying to dance on 2 bloody stumps) i just dont care, im having a wicked time dancing in my own way to the music, and if people wanna stand there and go WTF is this guy doing....more power to them. definately not the type who needs to be plastered with alcohol before even considering any kind of dance


Masochist He showed up for a day!!! Respect: 1 Posts: 1,322 Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Easton	12-17-2005, 11:38 PM You'll pick it up. I suggest buying the DVD if you want to invest in it. Then watch videos and get ideas from many people. Several bboys you should watch for style: Machine, Dyzee, Abstrak, Kaku has cool toprock, and many others. Oh, and you should really stretch your legs out. MINIMUM flexibility should be around being able to bring your touch your toes feet together without a warm up.
	Thank you for everything.


Commander Keen Hippie Respect: 1.5 Posts: 613 Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: San Diego, CA	12-18-2005, 12:28 AM If you have a lot of swimming physical strength you'll find a lot of moves unusually easy. Other ones won't be any easier than for anyone else. The hard thing will probably be, you're quite tall which is an edge in swimming but not in bboying. That's not really a problem though, just a hurdle of sorts. What I'm getting to saying is something you seem to know already: Find the dance that matches your body, and you'll be original and high class. I hope you keep loving bboying because it's great to find something you really like!


STIFF_UK Jesus Loves You Respect: 7 Posts: 2,861 Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Manchester UK	12-18-2005, 12:06 PM Where are you from? What university too? Let me know especially if you are in or near Manchester. I used to swim when I was at highschool, never to a really high standard, but I did give the school's best swimmers the shock of their life once. I've always been swimming since my earliest memories, I used to enter every highschool gala competing against the other house groups in the school, and always did it for enjoyment. Only race I was ever in that was won, was a relay, and I swam the bad leg. Anyway, unbeknown to them I started to train, eventually finding my way onto the Bury and Elton town team. Come the last gala I was to enter (final year in Highschool) people were saying "Why do you always enter every year? You never win anything!" I said nothing other than "because I enjoy it" (if you know british highschools, you'll know admitting you enjoy something school-related isn't the coolest thing you can do - I got some very funny looks for that) Anyway it came to the day of the gala and I was ready to race. Only, I'd been swimming in a proper league, and was used to proper starts. The teacher starting the race wasn't. He actually started the race when i was still sorting myself out on the block. By the time I started my dive, the other racers were already surfacing off theirs. You can probably imagine the look of shock on the face of "the best swimmer in the school" - after such a nice dive (I know it was good - I watched him make it - lol) and his track record of winning everything - when he finished the race and stood up to cheer in victory, and saw I was already standing there, goggles off, and smiling. THAT was a satisfying moment. Anyway - bboying. LoL. I've seen people from all kinds of backgrounds come into bboying. The one thing they almost all have in common, is how the 2nd week they turn up saying "I've been in agony all week!" See bboying uses some muscle groups that just aren't used the same way in other activities. Don't worry about not being a gymnast. The simple fact is that most gymnasts who turn to bboying, suck. They think they know it all because they've got acrobatics down nice, but they can't dance, have a REALLY rigid look (because that's the gymnastic way) they point their toes in EVERYTHING which looks WACK and usually aren't willing to listen to and learn from a person who can't do half the tricks they can and no formal training. Hope it goes well for you, as Massochist said, get the DVD on here - it's the best video instructional you're likely to find. Tops, Drops, Footwork, Freezes (Baby and Chair primarily) Concentrate on that stuff first - when you can do them easilly and not need to think about them much, THEN work on the flips and spins.
	A bboy without style, is like a broken pencil. There's just no point.


otispunkmeyer Registered User Respect: 1 Posts: 11 Join Date: Dec 2005	12-19-2005, 05:27 PM currently at loughborough uni (but im home in Middlesbrough for xmas). im actually still on the lboro swim team (national squad) , but havent trained in 4 weeks due to lots of work (mech eng course) they said i could start back anytime, id be welcome back, so they must think im worth having. but im getting abit meh about it all now, its begining to lose its fun. im in the same boat as you, ive never won alot, came close, but never won too much (specially not at the big events) but i dont care, long as i swam faster than last time, then thats a result i know what you mean about gymnasts, my buddy on the l'boro lifesaving team (not the swim team mentioned above) used to be a gymnast, and still spends alot of time down the gym. he's got the front/back flips down, flares, windmills and other power moves down.......but he cant actually dance for shit, its so funny. top rocking is beyond him completely. definately gonna pick up that DVD after xmas, it'll be damn useful.


STIFF_UK Jesus Loves You Respect: 7 Posts: 2,861 Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Manchester UK	12-19-2005, 06:36 PM Maybe ask for it FOR christmas?
	A bboy without style, is like a broken pencil. There's just no point.


Masochist He showed up for a day!!! Respect: 1 Posts: 1,322 Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Easton	12-19-2005, 10:45 PM A gymnast's toprock would seriously look like ballet with their pointed toes
	Thank you for everything.


STIFF_UK Jesus Loves You Respect: 7 Posts: 2,861 Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Manchester UK	12-19-2005, 11:41 PM Dude - no. LoL. I've seen ballet and seen ballet dancers bboying, and believe me - it's a million miles away from the bad gymnast crossover. It's just nasty, and not in the good way. Haha.
	A bboy without style, is like a broken pencil. There's just no point.