Shauna Curphey - Writing

Send an email to request a photocopy of the original version.

The Masquerading Martial Art

Healthy Answers, June 1, 2001

By Shauna Curphey

More than 400 years ago, African slaves cast on the Brazilian countryside developed a martial art called capoeira. To prevent watchful owners from discovering their art, the slaves disguised it as dance. To this day, capoeira students must learn to play Brazilian folk instruments and chant in Portuguese. Visit a class and you’ll find a ring of white-clad students singing and clapping while two classmates leap, lunge, kick and cartwheel in a fluid exchange of strength and cunning.

Part song and dance, and part deadly force, capoeira requires power, balance and speed. These come together in an impromptu choreography of feints, blows and flourishes that capoeiristas call a game.

“It’s like an artist sculpting bodies from ground zero, from clay. After a while, it’s a beautiful art piece,” says Edna Lima, a capoeira mestranda (master) who, at 20, became the first woman to achieve the master level. The complex interplay of attack and retreat moves in a capoeira game gives students a complete cardiovascular workout while building their strength and agility.

Capoeira’s high, sweeping kicks develop students’ flexibility and balance, while handstands and leaps build muscle tone and endurance.

Though capoeira has recently gained popularity in the United States, its flashy style intimidates many would-be newcomers. “The first day was like Mars,” admits Santiago Vega, a capoeirista. “But with time, you work through it.” From an au, a simple cartwheel, to more daring moves, such as a spinning handstand called a parafuso, capoeira training pushes initiates to perform feats they never thought possible.

“It’s nurturing your brain with more information about your body alignment in different positions,” says Lima. This awareness, combined with the intense concentration required during the fast and forceful exchange in a capoeira game, makes for a tough mental workout. Says Vega, “The real challenge is the challenge of yourself.”