Tasha Louie

1. How would you define your personal practice?

It’s a work in progress, defining my practice. But for now: My personal practice is one of figuring out better, and sometimes more interesting ways to move.

2. What turning points have you encountered on your movement journey?

The first was when I traded my life of the starving filmmaker/artist/bartender for one as a personal trainer when I kicked habits like smoking, drinking, and partying. The second was when I tore my ACL and had it surgically replaced. I had limited to no physical therapy and essentially rehabbed it myself for a majority of it. The third is learning to do physical things I thought impossible, especially in my mid 30s, things that would delight the crap out of kid Tasha. Now I’ve made a business out of teaching/coaching others.

3. What role has injury played in cultivating your current niche?

A huge one. It taught me to develop more options for myself in movement. It taught me to expand my movement vocabulary to accomplish the tasks I needed/wanted to complete.

It also led me down a path of movement expression that is incredibly cathartic for me.

4. Do you consider yourself a teacher? Why or why not?

Yes, I would love to consider myself as one. Good teachers empower students with the tools to think for themselves and own their own unique solutions. I love being a part of that process.

5. What has been your experience with physical education, both in the schooling system and sought out knowledge/ know-how elsewhere?

PE in K-12. Varsity tennis in high school. Plenty of bicep curls, crunches, and treadmilling in college. Some rock climbing and yoga after college. Plenty of coaching certifications offered by 24hr Fitness and Spartan. Worked with a ton of people, accumulating over 3000 sessions before I went solo. Movement Guild with Jeremy Fein and Jon Yuen. Lots of reading, on and off the internet, chatting with smarter and more interesting people than myself, then applying it all by messing around trying things for myself.

6. How do you involve your mind/ emotions into your physical routines?

I let it fuel or guide my practice. Sometimes it’s the other way around and I let my practice fuel or guide my emotions/mind.

7. What are your personal aspirations regarding movement? How do you hope to find purpose and use in the skills you have built?

I aspire to remain curious and investigate movement by learning as much as I can stumble upon and develop for myself, and teach aspects that could be useful to others.

8. How can people find/ contact you? Do you have a site or social media handle to share?

Instagram: @tasha.louie

Website: bendermovement.com

Email: [email protected]