Beginning Capoeira

I’ll be going to my first class tomorrow night, but over the last month or so I’ve been doing some preparation to try and hit the ground running.

The first thing I did when I first got interested in capoeira was to find out about the history and culture of the game. Wikipedia has a decent enough overview, but for more in-depth research, Capoeira Connection is hard to beat. With translated books and lots of articles, you can find out plenty about the history and philosophy of capoeira and really get a taste of what it’s all about. There are also articles about the music and movements of the game which I highly recommend.

The next step was to take a good look at my physical shape – not great! I’m slimly-built with a slight belly and skinny arms, plus my flexibility isn’t too hot, so I set about a daily routine to improve my upper body strength and flexibility. Admittedly this only consists of 10-20 minutes a day before work, but you can get plenty done in that time.
I start out with about 5 minutes of stretches – mostly lower body stretches for the hamstrings, calves and abductors. Next is at least 10 press-ups (I had to start by resting on my knees, there’s no shame in that), going all the way to the floor and all the way back up again. As I get stronger I’m increasing the reliance on my arms rather than my knees for support, but if you are more advanced you can just to more reps. These help to build up a few different muscles in your arms, as well as your back and shoulders.
Next, about 20-30 sit-ups – as slowly as possible, and again do more reps if you find it too easy. This is partly to help lose the belly, but also it helps to build up the abs which are used anytime you go from being bent over to standing, or vice versa, which happens quite often in capoeira!
Finally, I’ll finish up with 5-10 minutes of ginga-ing to some capoeira music, with the odd esquiva thrown in. This helps to get the blood flowing and your heart pumping, but also helped me get used to the rhythm and flow of the game, with the objective being to be able to esquiva without breaking rhythm.

I learned to ginga and esquiva by watching Advogado’s excellent videos on Expert Village. He covers all aspects of learning capoeira, from basic things like the ginga through to playing the berimbau and much more in between. That said, if what I learn in class is different then I’ll go with what I learn in class, naturally. But at least now I have a general idea of how to ginga and esquiva, so I can go into my first roda with a little more to help me than I would otherwise!

Last and by no means least, I made a (small) start on learning some Portugese with the excellent “Portugese for Capoeiristas” tutorials – now I know my cintura from my cotovelo! (with all due respect to the old English saying…)

So that gives you an overview of my personal preparations for my first class – you’ll find out if it pays off in the next installment! :) One final thing, I’ve memorized this list of first class do’s and don’ts on The Capoeira Blog, just in case…

Wish me luck!