Learning Natural Movements for Health

The Thirteen Principles of Nia (a 13 part series)
Principle Two: Natural Time and the Movement Forms

"All of your Nia movements are done in your own personal, natural sense of time and include movements and energy from nine clasisic forms." - from the fitness book "The Nia Technique"

Commentary by Julia Desmond,Certified Nia Instructor

Principle Two of Nia contains two different yet interconnected parts. The first is Natural Time and the second is the Movement Forms that influenced the development of Nia.

Natural Time is the concept of honoring the rhythms of nature as opposed to following the current calendar and clock that run most of our lives. Moving in Natural Time is about staying true to yourself. It is a tool to help you get in touch with your body's natural rhythm and the reason for the teacher reminding you to dance in your own way. Once embodied by the student, Natural Time results in the participant dancing their body which in turn leads to feelings of fun and satisfaction during and after a class.


In Nia we use a total of 9 movement forms which fall into 3 categories – Martial Arts, Dance Arts and Healing Arts. Nia incorporates the essence of these various art forms rather than attempting to teach the students how to correctly perform these arts. Nia can change the energy and focus of a single movement by changing the Art Form influencing the movement.

Martial Arts:

Tai Chi – The Slow Dance: Inspired bare foot dancing, heel lead, and mindfulness

Tai Kwon Do – The Dance of Precision: Inspired passion, whole body strength, and voice

Aikido - Harmonious Spherical Motion: Inspired the integration of internal and external energy and the use of spirals


Dance Arts:

Jazz – Fun, Showmanship and Expression - Inspired playfulness, softened the martial arts an added Fun to the technique

Duncan Dance – Spirited, Honest Movement – Inspired natural movement, use of imagery and spontaneity

Modern Dance – Playing With Balance, Shapes and Space – Inspired improvisation, use of balance and creative expression


Healing Arts:

Feldenkrais – The Conscious Feeling of Movement – Inspired slow movement, sensory awareness and the knowledge that the body can be retrained to function more efficiently

Alexander Technique – Movement From the Top: Inspired incorporation of the head in movement and directing the body up and out

Yoga – The Conscious Dance of Alignment: Inspired alignment of the bones, flexibility and breath


Principle 2, Natural Time and the Movement forms, is the foundation of Nia. This principle guides all of our movement and when the two aspects are merged in our bodies we experience the Joy of Movement (Principle 1). The class feels "natural" and we have fun!

Commentary by Allison Frederick, Nia Studio owner/operator


In order to keep up with the rest of the people in exercise classes, most of us feel compelled to carefully study the teacher's technique and copy it perfectly. I know that I sometimes feel flustered if I am not in sync with my fellow exercisers and it isn't unusual to see me facing right when the rest of the room is to their left. Nia exercises are helpful in strengthening a connection between what your ears hear; your brain processes, and then what the brain commands your body to do. This is the foundation of mind/body exercises and scientists tout the benefits of mind/body fitness and activities like dancing and martial arts, which help keep our brains vibrant and ward of deterioration diseases like Alzheimer's and other dementia.

Each Nia exercise builds on the foundation of the previous one. I find that one exercise elongates my spine even more or a following dance move reaches deeper into my hips, really working on any stiffness that lurks in my joints. Closely following a Nia routine will give you the most benefits out of the program because of how thoughtfully the moves are designed to build upon each other.

That being said, a primary tenet of Nia, however, is balance. Nia is like a loose, fluid structure. There is structure but the founders of Nia and Nia teachers encourage each person to find their own rhythm, their own pace, or their own level to exercise at. This is the idea behind Principle Number Two, "Natural Time."

Each of us probably has an area of the body that we feel we need to strengthen. We may have weak knees or, for me, tight muscles in my lower back. No matter how much I stretch, I can't seem to loosen my lower back muscles the way I would like. Every time there are lower back moves that help stretch or stabilize my back during Nia class, I slow down from the pace of the class and really focus on the exercise so that I can get the most out of that particular move. For some of us, Natural Time means speeding up a routine or moving our bodies in larger ways to burn more calories. For others, Natural Time may mean slowing down a move and giving oneself a chance to breathe deeply to help heal some troublesome areas.

“To stay connected to Natural Time, stay connected to sensation, an experience which isn’t governed by the clock!”
–Carlos Rosas, co-founder of The Nia Technique

If Nia sounds like something you would like to try, we invite you to take your first Nia class for free. Simply Click Here to receive your coupon. Our Nia fitness classes are offered in Castle Rock, Colorado. Feel free to call us at 303-522-4740 with any questions or visit http://www.niafitnessclasses.com/

How Does Yoga & Nia Help a Golf Swing, a Backhand in Tennis, or even Picking Items up off the Floor?

No one can deny the thorough stretch yoga provides your body.

As you bend and hold a pose, and breathe deeply; you can feel an elongation of the muscles. Depending on the tightness of your body, you may even feel the soothing rush of stress leaving your body.

Nia, also a healing physical art, takes the best of yoga – the deep stretches, long slow breaths, and meditative mind states and then Nia builds on them.

In Nia (pronounced "knee-ah"), yoga is a foundation. It is a beginning, a way to open and awaken your body but a Nia teacher wants you to do more than elongate your muscles.

A Nia teacher wants you to experience a full range of motion – to be able to safely turn and hold your spine in side movements.

Nia strives to create stability in your body no matter how you move. Strength training (this time without the weights) as you move your body in an arc, can not only help your backhand in tennis but also your golf swing.

Our bodies need to experience a full range of motion, not just the elongation yoga provides.

The creators of Nia recognized this need so they added the influence of 19th century dancer, Isadora Duncan, and some circular movements from the Japanese martial art of aikido to the Nia moves.

The result is that your body is not only strong and limber in your central midline – along your spine – but it is also strong and stable when you reach off to the side to pick something up – whether it is your shoes or a grandchild.

The wonderful benefit of a fusion fitness routine like Nia, is that like fusion food, you can take the best elements of many things, combine them, and create something even more powerful and flavorful. Nia takes the best principles of yoga, adds Duncan dance, aikido, and several other disciplines, to create a unique, free-flowing fitness routine.

Now you can experience Nia and see if it makes your body feel good again. Your first class is free. Get your coupon for a FREE Nia class by CLICKING HERE. There are no obligations – just come, try it, and see if you have fun.

Castle Rock Nia Fitness Studio - Classes begin March 31, 2009
303.522.4740
http://www.niafitnessclasses.com/

Nia classes now in Castle Rock. Serving the south Denver metro area.

Suburban Women "Bust-a-Move"

It happens slowly, little by little.

The demands of a full-time career leave little time for fun (unless you are one of the lucky few that has fun in your full time career).

Coordinating your schedule to go out with friends becomes an act of full-force creativity and ingenuity.

Add to that a romantic relationship; throw kids into the mix. Move into the suburbs to have a nice, safe neighborhood for your family and suddenly you find yourself commuting to work.

Little by little, we find that the spare time we had fades away. But we aren't just losing time. We are losing ourselves. We find that we laugh a little less often. Many of us have desk jobs that root us to chairs and discourage us to move our bodies. After a while, we notice we aren't as limber as we once were. An ache may settle in and decide to stay. Perhaps our lives seem more about "doing" and less about "being."

I am a suburban woman. I don't have the kids to worry about, but I find that my life now is very different from what it used to be. I find myself being more serious than is really necessary. But then I stumbled upon a remedy.

A few weeks ago, I took my first Nia dance fitness class. I was surprised I went. I haven't been dancing for years but this class was less about sassy steps and more about simply moving my body. I felt my body thanking me for each movement as I moved my spine to the left then the right. I found muscles that I thought had long closed down. My lack of coordination didn't seem to matter because the teacher encouraged us to each listen to our bodies and move in a way that was most natural to each of us.

One of my greatest challenges is not the cardio portions or even the few dance steps. My challenge is taking up space. In some of the Nia moves we travel around the room, moving into a different space. We are encouraged to use our arms to extend and take up more space. I've always been tall and I've frequently felt awkward about that. Taking up space was not something I liked to do. I tended to hold and keep myself in a tight little (as little as I can be) sphere. Nia is becoming for me, a real personal development exercise. My muscles aren't the only ones getting a workout. My brain and my psyche are involved too.

The founders of Nia took the best parts of many exercises and disciplines and combined them into a series of workouts that really makes sense to your body when you are practicing Nia.

They use isolating stretches of yoga and Feldenkrais Method to gently awaken the joints and elongate the muscles. They blended the focused, fluid movements from Tai Chi and Aikido into circular movements that calm and expand the mind. Then they combined the energy of Taekwondo and modern dance to get our bodies moving.

The result leaves a smile on the faces of everyone in class. I am not kidding when I say that. In fact, we will soon start Nia classes in Castle Rock. I will offer a money back guarantee to anyone who tries a class. If they take the class and do not smile or laugh in class, then I will give them their money back.

A Nia class is a safe environment because the motto is "Have fun!" The women in the classes tend to form genuine friendships and quickly introduce themselves to newcomers. I have found this to be the case in every Nia class I've taken throughout the Denver metro and Colorado Springs area. There are some very fit women in the classes but the majority of women are re-entering the exercise world.

For me, as a suburban woman who has left the land of night clubs and frequent "girls nights out," I find Nia just the kind of activity that keeps me feeling happy, calm, and energized. I am committed to bringing Nia to Castle Rock. We will hold classes in our Aikido studio, Castle Rock AIKIDO, which is centrally located in town and is just off the highway at the Wolfensberger/Downtown exit.

Free Nia Class
I am going to put together a Nia class in Castle Rock so that Castle Rock residents can try the class and we'll see if that is the kind of fitness program that will do well in Castle Rock.

Email me at niacastlerock@gmail.com to let me know you are interested and I will send you an email when the Nia class is set up. I hope the class will be in late February or early March.

A Nia class lasts an hour and there are plenty of breaks to have a drink of water in between. My cardio fitness is low so I was nervous about trying an "aerobic class," but the instructor assured me that the class is appropriate for beginners and advanced Nia students because you work out at your own pace. She was right.

The classes I've attended had some women in their 30s, many in their 40s and 50s, and a couple in their 60s, and one or two lovely 70 year olds (seriously).

Click here to watch the Nia video to see if it is something you might like and I'll do my best to offer Nia classes in Castle Rock. Email me at niacastlerock@gmail.com and I'll put you on the email notification list when the Nia class is available.


Nia classes in Castle Rock. Serving the south Denver metro area.