The GYROTONIC EXPANSION SYSTEM®
“The ultimate aim is to be at home in one’s body, to be at one with the nature of oneself and to experience exercise as a creative and delightful experience.”
Juliu Horvath
Juliu Horvath is an intuitive genius and I can honestly say that no other movement method has affected me as deeply as his. I have been a Master Trainer for 25 years now and I continue to discover something beautiful about movement, energy, and human potential with every course I teach. The GYROTONIC® method has influenced me in profound, paradigm-shifting ways.
My personal experience with the GYROTONIC® Method started at Long Beach Dance Conditioning. My first GYROTONIC® teacher was Lisa-Marie Goodwin and she hosted Juliu Horvath as well as some of his first generation master trainers at LBDC.
From my first class in the GYROKINESIS® Method, I was entranced and became a curious and devoted student. I began the teacher training process and eventually became a GYROKINESIS® Specialized Master Trainer in 2004, a GYROTONIC® Jumping Stretching Board Master Trainer in 2012, and a GYROTONIC® ARCHWAY™ Master Trainer in 2014. I was lucky to complete all of my master trainer certifications with Juliu Horvath.
In 2004, I introduced the GYROKINESIS® Method to the curriculum at Lauridsen Ballet Centre in Torrance, CA. This experience was invaluable for me, as I was able to use the principles of the GYROTONIC® Method in my ballet classes to help the students with all of the challenging issues that arise with ballet. From approaching “pull-up” in a more functional and dynamic way, to creating lines with energy and feeling instead of aesthetically based exactitudes, we worked with joy, freedom, and power. I remained at Lauridsen for 17 years and saw generations of dancers benefit from the GYROKINESIS® Method, as well as its application to ballet.
From 2012-2019, I had the honor to be a guest master trainer for the LINES Ballet summer intensive. I worked with Specialized Master Trainer Debra Rose and also taught informal workshops for her trainers on how to integrate anatomy and biomechanics with principles of the GYROTONIC® Method when working with dancers.
During my 8 years as the owner of Up Studio (formerly LBDC), I had the luxury of a space fully dedicated to the GYROTONIC EXPANSION SYSTEM® as well as an attached ballet studio. My ballet students, whether they were rehabilitating an injury, or refining their technique and artistry, all practiced the GYROTONIC® Method and the GYROKINESIS® Method as part of my curriculum. Thanks to the GYROTONIC® Method’s beautiful and intelligent movement principles, they learned how to distinguish the tension of effort from the expression of energy and found a way for ballet to feel fulfilling.
Benefits of the GYROTONIC® Method for dancers
Mobility and strength are developed at the same time.
Flexibility is trained dynamically rather than passively.
The nerves are strengthened, which has a direct link to both explosive power as well as enhanced artistry.
Breathing, especially combined with movement, is emphasized.
All exercises involve and develop coordination.
Special focus is given to the spine and activating it in a way that supports all movements; posture and presence improve from the inside out.
With a value placed on playfulness and delight within each person’s unique structure, common perfection-based critical attitudes many dancers have give way to a new sense of freedom and fulfillment.
“I want music in my body and poetry in my body, and I want to be skillful without struggle; it has to come without struggle.”
Juliu Horvath