Banking on Change, One Trainer’s Journey to Trusting a Path of Ease

Blog Content Interviews // January 26, 2023

Estelle Brack is a GYROKINESIS® and GYROTONIC® Trainer & Pre Trainer as well as a snowboarder, kitesurfer, economist, and banker.  Cina Canada, Media Coordinator for GYROTONIC® International Headquarters, had the chance to sit down for an interview with Estelle at a Gyrokinesis breathing course led by Juliu Horvath, the founder of the Gyrotonic and Gyrokinesis Methods. As they spoke, Estelle shared about her unique journey discovering the Gyrotonic and Gyrokinesis Methods and how diving deeper into the movement methods uncovered new opportunities in her personal life and career leading her down a path of happiness and ease.

You can also choose to listen to this interview through the recording below.

 

 

Cina: Let’s begin with who you are, and how you ended up here at this breathing course.

Estelle: I’m Estelle. I’m a French lady. I’m an economist and a banker. I discovered the Gyrotonic Method in 2008 after a knee surgery. I really needed to go further than the classical rehab after surgery. A friend of mine talked to me about the Gyrotonic work. I began and never stopped. For ten years I was just practicing, then I discovered the Gyrokinesis Method.

I think my body was ready for Gyrokinesis movements. I had very kind teachers and they pushed me to study to become a trainer. I’m more into snowboarding, kitesurfing, and judo – not dancing. I said, “No, It’s not for me. I’m too heavy. I’m not a dancer.” Then I did the pre-training and the foundation for certification… and now it feels so natural!

Cina: Is this your first time studying with Juliu?

Estelle: Yes.

Cina:  How are you finding it so far?

Estelle: It’s really interesting to come here with experience already, so you can touch on the details. It’s important to be mature with your practice, to be able to understand, and to have feeling. I really am touched. It’s nice moving our bodies all together. I was really touched this morning at the end of the session. It’s so beautiful.

Cina: It’s a very international community. When you step in the room you see everyone moving together and breathing together… it’s pretty special.

Estelle: Exactly.

On Becoming Limitless

Cina: You touched on something that’s very curious. You’re an economist and a banker? Tell me about that.

Estelle: I am. I received a PhD in banking and finance decades ago. I wanted to work as an economist and manage projects in money, payments, and banking. I’d been working for a bank for 20 years. In parallel, I was doing a lot of snowboarding and surfing. Working for a bank was, for me, an occasion to learn a lot about professional practice, but the more I went to Gyrotonic and Gyrokinesis Training the more I was going to myself and trying to find my own balance. I was uncomfortable with banking.

Cina: Why? What made you uncomfortable with banking?

Estelle: The people. It’s a big company. You have to develop and implement new projects, but you also have to manage egos. There are some people with very deep and big egos. I liked to have the contract, money, and security, but at that moment I felt that my life outside the company was bigger than my life inside the company. Everything was disconnected. From myself, from nature.

I got invited to speak at many conferences as an expert, globally. In Europe, Africa, the States, and Canada. Expanding globally, whereas, within the bank, people wanted my material, but just a small part of me, they were not ready to accept who I was. So, I had burnout at the beginning of 2019 because the distance between ‘me in the job’ and ‘being myself’ was too big.

So I quit… and I founded my company. I don’t earn any money yet, but I feel free. It’s so good. I can balance consulting in banking, Gyrokinesis, and Gyrotonic practice.

Cina: It’s amazing. You’ve been a banker for 20 years and now you’ve said, “This is not my life. I’m going to become something different. I’m going to change my life and change my path.” Now you’re going on to do what?

Estelle: I’m founding my own bank. As simple as that. I was with a colleague at a swimming pool in Cameroon, and we were discussing what we could do and say and if we started a bank. We said, “Okay, let’s do that!”

I think becoming a Gyrokinesis & Gyrotonic trainer pushed the limits I thought were mine. So now I have no limits.

Cina: I’ve heard this before from people. What is it about this work that pushed you and opened you up to new possibilities?

Estelle: I’ve been limited in my education, and other people try to put limits on me, but my father told me I can be anyone I want to be, no limit.

My body is a really good instrument, and it’s working very well. I did some wakeboarding this summer for the first time, and did pretty well, so the guy on the boat said, “No, no. No way it’s your first time.” Yeah, it’s my first time and I can feel the right movement really quickly because now I play with my body. It’s a very good connection between my mind and my body. So I follow this flow, the limit we’ve been taught… it doesn’t exist. Now I don’t have this limit because it doesn’t really exist. We know our bodies, so try not to think about our limits. It’s not about thinking, it’s just doing.

Opening Up to New Possibilities and Finding Ease

Cina: Do you find that experiencing this work in your body has opened your mind to new possibilities?

Estelle: For sure. I trust my intuition more than my fears. I would not say my reflection because my reflection is really important, and it’s linked with intuition, but my fears are not my guides. When I’m afraid or panicking, I calm down. I say, “I am allowed to be afraid, but I will not make a decision at this moment.” Time is often a very good ally.

In Gyrotonic & Gyrokinesis work today we did some stuff I’ve never done. I said, “Ah! I can’t! I cannot do that.” That is fear of the unknown. The first time it looked really ugly, and the second time it was less ugly, the third time I was almost there. So yeah, you can think “I cannot do this”, but if you don’t try, you don’t know. So yes, I was wrong, I can do it.

Cina: How long have you been a trainer?

Estelle: Five years with Gyrokinesis training. Yeah, I’m a baby trainer. And now I am a Gyrokinesis & Gyrotonic Pretrainer.

Cina: That’s amazing. When you move on, opening a bank, will you continue to teach at the same time?

Estelle: I will do both. When I was kite surfing with my friends on the beach (who never, never drink water and never, never stretch), I taught them the Eagle. Now they are always talking about the Eagle. They say, “We want to do the Eagle and also the Arch and Curl!” I also have a group of ladies that I teach. I go to their homes. They are all neighbors. They wanted to discover what the Gyrokinesis Method was, so I told them “Okay, we’ll do a session and then they wanted a second session and a third. I’m trying to organize sessions when I’m in Paris.

Cina: Is that where you’re based? In Paris?

Estelle: I used to live in Paris, and moved to the center of France, in the middle of nowhere, to be closer to nature.

Cina: Tell me about where you’re opening your bank. How did you decide on that location?

Estelle: My partner did a really long study (480 pages), to be sure we understood. At the end, he said, “Yeah, I really think we should do it.”

I said, “There’s no need to write 500 pages.” I already knew it. We have a beautiful body, but we also have a beautiful mind. We have a computer, but it’s better than a computer. We always talk about artificial intelligence, but we have natural intelligence. We have so much information and we just know if something is right or wrong. There are so many things like that. I cannot explain how I get there, but I know I’m in the right place.

I really don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow, and I’m excited about that.

Cina: You came from a place, which was probably analytical, and fact based, and then you’re coming into a new place where you have no idea how things are going to take shape and you’re feeling comfortable. How does that happen?

Estelle:  I decided to let it go. I decided to trust that there is a global logic or a global sense. And then if I’m in the right place, then it’s going to be okay.

Cina: What gives you that courage? That takes a lot of courage.

Estelle: I had to defend my values and that gives me confidence. When you defend your values, human respect, and nature… then you must be right. I have many colleagues and the relationship we have is built on confidence, respect, and values. I’m sure that there are some people who really believe in these values. Like all the people here, we all believe something in common and we support each other. We are a big family in many, many places around the globe. People who sincerely want to make things better. We will win. It’s the fight of the light against the dark, and I’m sure the light will win. If you put light in the dark, the dark disappears and becomes light. It’s not possible the other way.

Cina: We just need to have enough light.

Estelle: Yes.

Cina: In all the places.

Estelle: There are many, many people around the world who have experienced change this year. They are concerned because they want change, and we have to change. We have a mission and there’s no time left.

Finding Her Values

Cina: I’ve been hearing this from people in different parts of the world. Defending your values is what gives you confidence, but first you have to know what your values are. How would you encourage someone to find their values?

Estelle: Some values are important. We might think that to survive in the world, we have to put them aside. It’s more than that. I put my values aside for money and stability, but I was unhappy. When I decided to leave the bank, I called my parents. I was afraid my parents would say, “No, don’t do this. We are going to be stressed about that.” Instead, my father said, “Yes, go! We are here if you need us.” I received a lot of support. Only one person told me that I should stay at the bank, but it was because of his history… not mine. My friends and my family supported me. That was a good sign.

Cina: What is your encouragement to other people who know there’s something else, they know there’s something more, but they’re not sure how to make that shift?

Estelle:  We only live once. If we are thinking about the things that make us happy, that means we are in the right moment. Life is supposed to be fun. Life can be difficult and painful, but a good thing to follow is to have fun with what we do. Many people don’t want to leave their job because they are afraid of not having enough money.

I would not say it’s wrong, but we shouldn’t think like that. Money comes when you are in the right place. It’s a means, not a destination. If you are in the right place, connected with yourself, and if you are happy to do things… life is supposed to be fun. The best choice is not the most difficult. Sometimes when it’s easy, it’s because you are going in the right direction.

Cina:  Isn’t that funny that sometimes we put a negative connotation on ‘easiness’ if it’s what we’re supposed to be doing? It’s as if we should be fighting for it, but that’s not the case all the time.

Estelle:  It’s like the water in a river. If you’re like the water, you have to go down the hill. Don’t try to go up the hill, it makes no sense. Just follow the direction of gravity, be respectful of other people, and nature. You cannot just do one part. Rights come with duties. We have to do our duties. Our duties are to respect people and help things grow.

We are not responsible for what happened before us, but we are responsible for what is going to happen tomorrow. My father is a scientist. He studies how life has appeared on our planet. In his knowledge (and his colleagues’) life only appeared on our planet by coincidence. We are the fruit of a coincidence. So, we should lay low.

Among different forms of life, we are the most elaborate. We have intelligence. We have the capacity to build houses, buildings, cars, planes, and we can go to other planets. We definitely have a responsibility to make this planet better and to help life survive. It cannot be different.

There are many greedy people with big egos. These people are sad and struggling with internal demons. We have to be above them, with the light. It’s now or never.

The Impact of Her GYROTONIC® and GYROKINESIS® Practice

Cina: How has this work helped you in your other activities such as snowboarding and kiteboarding? Has this work impacted your practice of other activities?

Estelle: It changed my life. The Gyrotonic and Gyrokinesis Methods taught me to be conscious of the seed center. I do my kite surfing and snowboarding from the seed center. It really helps me find the right position. Now I feel like I’m dancing. So yeah, I’m dancing through my life.

Thanks to the Gyrotonic and Gyrokinesis work, I love my body. It’s a wonderful machine, but it’s more than a machine. I really enjoy playing from inside my body. It’s a strong workout, and I really feel in good shape.

Cina: Thank you so much for joining us and hopefully we’ll get to talk to you again.

Estelle: With pleasure.

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You can connect with Estelle on her website at www.spiralingtwist.com

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If you enjoyed this interview, be sure to read these inspiring interviews with other Gyrotonic and Gyrokinesis Trainers and movement professionals as well:

Movement Professional Finds Fresh Inspiration in GYROTONIC^® Education

An Olympic Runner’s Perspective on Training With the GYROTONIC^® Method

The GYROTONIC^® Method and an Awakening of Artistic Expression

Training and Teaching with Physical Limitations

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