Biostretch is a system of body work, which emerged from the combination of my long experience in dance with different Somatic Education methods. In 1997, after years of training and practice as a classical dancer, I had, as a CAPES scholar, the opportunity to do a specialization in modern dance in New York. A year living there allowed me, in addition to studying dance, to approach transforming practices of body awareness, paving the way for the emergence of this innovative way of working the body, which I call Biostretch.

Having started my practices in childhood, at the ballet school, developing muscle conditioning through effort connected to discipline, it would be expected that the knowledge of my body would be full. In fact, the physical development and specific aptitudes, which are the focus of work in training the classical dancer, promote a science of movement and an expansion of body perception, at least, extraordinary. But, at a certain point in my career, an injury forced me to rethink my relationship with my body and to look for new possibilities, even to be able to continue working.

I found Somatic Education with its different techniques. Work systems that prioritize not simply making and repeating movements, but encourage perception and consequently reflection on how we move and position ourselves in the world. They are practices totally based on experiencing and discovering how our body works and that require us to be attentive and present and, at the same time, relaxed and receptive. Thus, I began to explore new dimensions of body work that also address the fabulous functioning of our nervous system. This, which forms a complex communication network in the body and circulates signals between the parts, coordinating their voluntary and involuntary actions.

Even further, I began to question how my experiences and knowledge could be shared with people who are not dancers, not athletes, but ordinary people who want or need to work on their bodies. People who seek to reduce muscle tension and pain, improve their posture, make their muscles more resistant and malleable, prevent repetitive strain injuries, in short, who are simply looking for a better quality of life. This was the beginning of a new journey, an extraordinary journey that I still follow, deepening myself in self-knowledge practices, immersing myself in meditation and in techniques of self-research and relaxation.

Biostretch integrates all these wonderful tools. Very simple execution exercises are developed that are no less powerful, which therefore can be practiced by people of all ages and with any physical condition. The illusory simplicity hides a complex and profound work, where you will relearn your movements and postures, becoming aware of your habits and thus, naturally, allowing your body to find new ways of moving, more efficient and pleasurable. Through a body practice where the essential thing is to respect and understand the body as an intelligent and integral system, a new way of working emerges, totally connected to the development of an increasingly intense body awareness.

Biostretch sessions, in groups and individually, have taken place periodically, transforming the lives of people who end up falling in love with discovering new possibilities in their bodies and who decide to take responsibility for their well-being. Gradually, the clarity emerges that no one can know your body better than you do and that this power should not be given to anyone else.

At Biostretch, we are cultivating the innate bodily intelligence that we all have, but also questioning how we relate to our bodies. This also means becoming more aware of the ideas, images and judgments we have about ourselves, a revealing process that inevitably leads us to contemplate our bodies in a more gentle and loving way.

The Biostretch sessions provide an instigating, pleasurable and transformative learning process because it arises based on your own ability to understand how your body works through the unique and non-transferable experience of self-knowledge.

We have a playlist with videos for you to learn a little and practice Biostretch at home, allowing you to develop your curiosity about your own body: click here to watch the playlist.

You can also get to know the principles of Biostretch and begin to understand how to apply this learning in your daily life: Biostretch – principles

Keep reading more about Biostretch here.

Tânia Baumann

∗ Ballerina and director of Porto Alegre Cia de Dança, creator of Biostretch.