If I were to make a list of the "necessary evils" of learning and growing, failing would certainly be on it. But even using the word "failure" triggers negative emotional responses for many—fear, shame, sadness—because that label carries significant normative weight. We assume that if we have "failed," we aren't "good enough" in some moral way, rather than attributing the failure to any number of mundane miscalculations, missteps, or happenstance. Whether we "fail" at something, though, depends on the goals we set and the latitude we give ourselves to engage in exploration. Failure/success is a false dichotomy: there are infinite shades of gray, progress that seems nonlinear, and learning and growth that can only happen by finding out what doesn't work. That's true whether we're talking about the work you do in the gym or your movement practice, or the work you do politically in your community.

Physical training and physical movement are inherently politicized because bodies are political, but they are themselves the foundation for building a political practice. Political transformation requires hard work, discipline, and commitment. Who knows those patterns better than people who practice physical movement?

If you've caught yourself thinking "...but I'm just a [personal trainer / yoga teacher / coach / artist / performer / dancer / juggler / bodyworker / etc.]" this is for you. It's easy to feel powerless or helpless or like you aren't the "right type" of person to contribute in this moment, but the truth is that everyone has something to offer, and how you act in this moment can determine the path we chart collectively. Here are a few things you can do.

The physical practices you engage in — strength training, stretching and mobility, calisthenics, acrobatics, handstands, yoga, dance — are political practices. I am not the first or only person to have this insight, but I want to express it definitively because it's at the center of the work I do, as well as how I understand my own personal movement in the world.