At the age of 12, I began dancing in shows alongside professional ballerinas from the Royal New Zealand Ballet. I remember seeing how intensely they warmed up and used to think they were mad doing all that extra work on their bodies right before a tiring 8-hour rehearsal. My warm up at that age consisted of sitting myself into a couple of painful stretches (making sure I could at least do the splits) then get my shoes on and be good to go. Certainly not ideal, but when you are young, uninjured and uneducated you don’t really understand the importance of adequately preparing your body to dance ..read more

After years competing in a sport internationally thinking you’ve reached your absolute peak, then learning you haven’t even come close could be somewhat overwhelming, but discus and shot put thrower Apii took the opportunity on with determination to enhance her sports performance with Kinematics. Background Apii Tapoki has been throwing for her country, making the Cook Islands proud for almost two decades. I’ve had the pleasure of working with Apii to improve her throwing mechanics and overall performance during the past 12 months. Last year I wrote a blog on the eight weeks I spent working ..read more

“This is meant to be a hobby” I remember thinking. I felt my body being drawn downwards like a magnet. My eyes shut involuntarily as I battled through waves of unconsciousness. Time slowed- every second felt like a year. I focused on the pounding of my heartbeat in my head, crowding out the sounds of the busy aquatic centre. All I could feel was the cool metal bench on which I lay by the pool. It was comforting. But it was pseudo-bliss. The thought of having a 140kg bar on my back terrified me – after all, I couldn’t even keep my head up let alone squat. Trying desperately not to pass out agai ..read more

Almost 50% of Australians will experience a mental health condition in their lifetime, while only around 5% of Australians meet their daily recommendations for fruit and vegetables (2 and 5 serves respectively). Coincidence or a connection? In regards to physical health, the negative impact of this diet is well-established. However, the impact of diet on mental health is less well known and understood. Mood and Food Depression is associated with a shrinking hippocampus, a region in the brain responsible for mood, memory and learning. A study led by Australian researchers found that people who ..read more