Nia TIP -
from Carlos Rosas and Debbie Rosas - creators of Nia

Focus on being present - being here now and in the moment. Being present
activates body awareness and consciousness. When you are aware and conscious,
you can notice what you do and can more effectively make choices and decisions
that will deliver fitness and wellness. When you dance, let go of distracting
thoughts. Place your attention on what you sense and feel happening in the
moment through your body. Be present to your body's needs and be present to the
experience you are having. Use your presence to make loving choices and
decisions that help you gain fitness and well-being.

Stand in front of a mirror and notice how the mirror is a magnet for presence.
When dancing, to activate this level of presence, imagine there are mirrors all
around you. Every time you step or stand, activate the same high level of
attention you had in the mirror and bring this presence into your workout.

 

Nia UNPLUGGED

The latest Nia workout for the general public. Join the creators of Nia and discover its extraordinary power and passionate nature. As you dance to live percussion, let the music seduce your body, mind, emotions, and spirit to unwind, and let go!

Unplug from rigid exercise and everyday stress by plugging into your own rhythm and passionate ways of moving. There you will find your own pulse and spirit!
Contact your local Nia teacher to order your copy. DVD $25

 

Exploring Nia's 52 Moves

Ball of the foot.

BENEFITS: Practicing Ball of the Foot improves your ability to move quickly and with more agility.

Stand as if you were in high heels, and march in place, stepping directly onto the balls of your feet, and keeping your heels off the floor. Keep your toes relaxed and stretched forward. Boldly sound the word "stick" to accentuate the feeling of balance. Use this move to help heal your feet and ankles and improve your posture.

More Nia moves and tips

 

Where can I find out more about Nia?

Dance the Nia Unplugged DVD.

Get the Book: "The Nia Technique: The High-Powered Energizing Workout that Gives You a New Body and a New Life" (2005) by Debbie and Carlos Rosas. It explains Nia's history, guiding principles, and Nia’s 52 Moves with some easy to follow sequences.

Ask your local Nia teacher. We are passionate about what we do and love to share our Nia stories.

Check out www.NiaNow.com, the international Nia website.

Sign up for Nia’s online education, a monthly email newsletter.

 

creating balance

Sophie Marsh (ed.)

I love sharing Nia and the possibilities for joy and healing that it offers, so I jumped at the opportunity to share my passion as a presenter at November's Every Woman Gathering in the Gold Coast hinterland. I came away with something much more... a renewed appreciation of creating balance in my life.

The weekend's theme of 'nurturing the feminine' was a timely and powerful reminder that being able to receive with grace and gratitude leaves me feeling nourished and empowered. A balanced relationship between our feminine 'Yin' and our masculine 'Yang' is essential to our physical,mental and emotional health. Yin is related to receiving, stillness and waiting.

Yin invites soft, inward directed energy, smooth, melodic movement, being relaxed in "not knowing". Yang is related to giving, expressing and achieving and is reflected by more explosive, rhythmic movement, by activity and outward directed energy. All these aspects of living and moving are indispensable and equally important, yet most of us feel easier with doing, giving and knowing.

Nia respects the body's need to be balanced in Yin and Yang, in the variety of movement choices that it offers. Nia gives us the opportunity to take this balance beyond the class and into other parts of our lives. Now I am... taking time out to play and rest, relinquishing perceived control and receiving the gifts of life and of the festive season, with grace and deep gratitude. warmly, Sophie

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Nia white belt intensives 2009

Melbourne, April 4-10 and Sydney, July 10-16.

The Nia White Belt Intensive Training is the somatic and mindful study of the 13 Nia White Belt Principles. Each day is divided into highly interactive sessions where you will learn, move and practice the Science, Craft and Art of the Nia Body of Work. This 7-day experience offers leading edge education in movement dynamics, body-mind physiology, kinesiology, choreography, physical/X-ray anatomy, and music appreciation.

In addition you will participate with other students in Nia classes to witness the power of the Nia Technique in practice. The Nia Intensive experience empowers everyBody to take their practice and their life to the next level.

Whether for personal growth or professional development, everyBody is welcome to join Nia Black Belt and Trainer, Winalee Zeeb for this transformational experience.

More about Australian Nia Trainings.

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moving with awareness Julie Bartley

I would like to share a pearl from Feldencrais’s teachings which I received recently at a workshop I attended with Jennifer Groves, a Bones For Life teacher and Feldencrais practitioner here in Mullumbimby.

Last week my class focus was " moving with awareness," with the intention to identify movement habits or “tendencies” that no longer serve us. This focus has been an ongoing theme as my personal foci presently is to identify my subtle tendencies “on all realms”.

"Feldenkrais is not a cure all. But it can help your body adjust to whatever the problem is, and that can make you feel better and move better.

Eg. If you have a structural problem, it’s not going to cure that. But if you have neuromuscular imbalances, it can alleviate those.

What happens as a result of "life" is that we have injuries/experiences along the way. The mind learns how to work around the problem. Unfortunately when the body has healed itself the mind continues to act in a habitual way. It dosn't go back to the way it was before the injury/experience. It tends to get set in our neurophysiology (ie habits or tendencies), remaining stuck in the pattern of imbalance caused by past experiences.

(from an article titled “Feldencrais: helping the body adjust to problems” by Jack Kelly, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

One of the many benefits of Nia is that it helps us identify these imbalances by paying attention to body sensation. Integral to maintaining health and well-being is having a sensory and intelligent relationship with our body, mind, emotions, and spirit.

Joy and peace, Julie

Nia international website

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earth festival Nov 2008, Sydney
Su-lin Sze

On Saturday 29th November, Sydney-siders gathered into the green pastures of Centennial Park to celebrate environmentally responsible living and harmony with nature. There were all forms of movement, food and entertainment with hundreds of people seeking new experiences. The first of it's kind in Sydney, it was a joyful experience, I remember at one stage we were jumping on the spot shouting "Earth!", and pounding our fists into the air. I taught a dynamic Spirited movement class first, of which Nia enthusiasts would recognize the influences of Aikido and Feldenkrais. And then later on an "Elements" moving meditation where we danced in Light, Earth, Water, Air and Fire.

The pic you see above was taken during a transition from Light to Air. What I took from the day was a deepening sense of community and transformation, and i met many wonderful spirited people. A fabulous experience in many realms, I loved being part of this! - Su-lin

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joyful awakening Deborah Shaw

The Joy of Movement is more than a catch phrase. It’s got real teeth and possibility for a sensation rich world.

A few years ago when I was studying Somatic Therapy one of the texts fascinated me and recently I went back to it. I wanted to explore the ideas behind The Joy of Movement and moving from a place of choice. I saw it as an opportunity to broaden its implications for community development and action because this is increasingly the area I am being drawn to offer Nia.

The JOM statement is challenging and powerful because it brings back the world of sensation and living with the world of body wisdom, authentic response and relationship based on what is. It invites questions of choice and responsibility. How we view it will effect if it’s transformational or just another neat little thing to say in promotional materials.

Physiologists have for a long time recognised that we have a fight or flight response to stress and threat. But less known is what they call the immobility response, the Freeze. “A baby impala plays dead in a last minute survival strategy hoping for the possibility of escape in an unguarded moment. In this altered state of Freezing, numbness avoids the pain of the cheaters claws and teeth.” (Peter Levine). Freezing is a way to handle overwhelming stress and threat.

It is not everyday that we feel a cheetah stalking us, but many of us are concerned and increasingly stressed and or depressed by our global and personal situations. The environmental crisis, social unrest, injustice, the economic craziness and often personal or familial illness stretch us to cope let a lone thrive.

In this context, it is instinctual and understandable that we move between fight, flight and freezing responses to the perception of threat. We can live on our nerves, (fight or flight) or we can disconnect and shut them down (freeze). Patterns of numbing out, range from gentle distraction with mindless entertainment, behavioural patterns of scape-goating and intolerance leading to conflict, materialism and over indulgence, to the emotional use of food, intoxicants and pharmacological substances. Tiredness, low energy, grumpiness and illness can be added to our list because anxiety can make sleep unrestful and draining rather rejuvenating. Living emotionally unconnected can leave us passionless, dull and dry, unexcited by our lives.

We can no longer deny that our lifestyle choices (numbing) are having substantial impact on our world. Climate Change, habitat loss and species extinction are outcomes of our sleeping walking that are having serious implications for the health of the planet.

When a baby impala successfully fools the cheetah, it shakes itself and shivers to release any residue of the numbing response that have been acting like a drug in it’s body. The shaking brings back sensation and then baby impala runs and runs. They live by their instinct and their nervous system, flight, freeze or fight.

Our brain and nervous system are different. We are wired to learn and adapt. We can examine, practice and acquire new skills and nervous system patterning to achieve particular outcomes. We can choose to seek pleasure and joy as distraction or as a means of deepening our connection to the present moment.

Knowing this, many of us are looking for ways to wake up, stay alert, engaged, and optimistic that we will effect positive change. Nia makes waking up enjoyable. It can be personally liberating and has a role to play in the development of community strength and action. We can use our Joy of Movement as an example of living connected to inspiration and passion and as a means of connecting with others.

Waking the Tiger; Healing Trauma. The innate capacity to transform overwhelming experiences by Peter A Levine PhD, North Atlantic Books, 1997

Be the Change organisation

Have your say...

Thank you for your continued support of Nia Australia. I welcome your submissions, feedback and testimonials for future newsletter editions. warmly, Sophie

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