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Posts Tagged ‘agility’

Nia White Belt Principle #7

Posted by terrepruitt on May 25, 2010

The first half of Nia White Belt Principle #7 is the Three Planes of Movement. The second half is Levels of Teaching. (You can learn more about Nia’s Belt Levels here) The three planes of movement in Nia can be easily described as low, medium, and high. The planes are used to allow our bodies to practice agility and mobility. We use the floor, the space in between, and the “high”. We bend and fold. We reach out and stretch up. We move in space both horizontally and vertically.

With all the movements available to us in the three planes we have the opportunity to experience energy as it moves around us. In addition to the possibilities of energies the journey should be to pleasure and comfort. As you move through the planes part of practice of Nia is to observe how our joints open and move more freely.

Just like the three levels of intensity Nia encourages everyBODY – regardless of fitness level – to work and play in all three planes. Keeping in mind everyone’s low, middle, and high is unique to their own body.

Moving through the planes can tie into the levels of intensity. For example if doing the bow stance, the lower or deeper you go could be considered a level of 3 intensity because going down and coming back up would require greater effort and be more intense than staying “high” and not lowering into a deep bow.

Strength, stability, and flexibility will also be a result of working through and in all the planes. The more we play in all of these areas we develop more ability in all of them, the more we can maintain balance in the entire body.

If you want to join me in a Nia class please look at my San Jose Nia class schedule or my San Carlos Nia class schedule. I look forward to seeing you.

Posted in Nia, Nia White Belt Principles | Tagged: agility, Belt levels, Bow Stance, City of San Jose, Levels of Teaching, Mobility, Nia, Nia Classes, Nia energy, Nia White Belt, Nia White Belt Principle #7, San Carlos Nia class, San Jose Nia class, Three Planes of movement | 4 Comments »

FAMSS

Posted by terrepruitt on April 13, 2010

In Nia we refer to FAMSS. We practice FAMSS. We can use it for all types of things. It stands for:

Flexibility
Agility
Mobility
Strength
Stability

And by “use” it I mean, it is often incorporated into each kata of a routine. Or a kata might concentrate on just flexibility, the next one agility, the next one mobility, and so on. Or we could use FAMSS as a focus OR an intention of a Nia class. Either all of them (Flexibility AND Agility AND Mobility AND Strength AND Stability) or just one (Flexibility OR Agility OR Mobility OR Strength OR Stability).

But whatever we do with it or them, they are highly regarded as abilities needed to ensure one’s (high) quality of life. So in Nia we honor them all. In a Nia class we weave them into the workout. In this post I am just referring to FAMSS in the physical. They can certainly be applied to more than just our physical bodies, but that can be another post just by itself.

For now, I am just talking about our physical bodies needing to be flexible, agile, mobile, strong, and stable. Just to move around in daily life these five things are very important. In Nia we can bend down in a forward fold as in the familiar pose one might do in a yoga class, allowing our flexibility to be enhanced. The music might encourage us to run, stop, run, stop, run, stop or move us to play the drums calling upon our bodies to display agility in legs, in arms, in our bodies as a whole. We can move our bodies as if they are grass in a field or seaweed in the ocean, moving each part, each section, each muscle, and all major joints to help ensure their mobility. We could crouch in a bow stance moving up and down exercising the strength in our legs. Then we can we stretch, reaching to the sky as we look up, this can be stability practice, either on flat foot, on the ball of our feet, or in releve. This could be one song in which all of this FAMSS is going on or it could be spread out over the entire routine.

Just tonight in my San Carlos class a woman told me that after her first class last week her hip felt better. She said that after her hip felt better on that first night it encouraged her to do a few of the moves at home that we had done in class. So she started working on her FAMSS in the first class, she was encouraged that movement was working to increase her FAMSS so she moved more. With movement she felt more comfort and less pain. FAMSS is necessary for a high quality of life. Her ever day movements were better not because she did it once, but because she kept doing it. Nia honors Flexibility and Agility and Mobility and Strength and Stability, so in Nia we practice it.

I hope one day you will attend one of my classes (I have two in San Jose and one in San Carlos*) to see how we can improve your FAMSS.

*Please see my website for my CURRENT class schedule. Thank you!

Posted in Nia | Tagged: agility, Carlos AyaRosas, exercise class, FAMSS, five sensations, flexibility, FMASS, kata, Mobility, Nia, Nia class, Nia exercise, Nia focus, Nia intent, Nia Practice, Nia routine, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia's Five Sensations, San Carlos Nia, San Jose Nia, San Jose Nia class, San Jose Workout, San Jose Workout class, San Jose Yoga, stability, strength, workout class, Workout San Jose, Yoga class, Yoga Practice, Yoga workout | 4 Comments »

Nia and Modern Dance

Posted by terrepruitt on December 1, 2009

As you might now be aware Nia includes elements from three different movement forms from three different arts. One of the arts is the dance arts and one movement form is Modern Dance. With Modern Dance concepts added to Nia it allows us to play with balance, play with shapes, and play with space. We can form any shape we want. We can use arms and legs, fingers and toes, torso and head to make the shapes we envision. We can allow gravity to pull us to the ground, or gravity to pull us heavenward. With all that Modern Dance inspires us to do we can gain strength and flexibility. Agility plays a part also as we shift our weight and change our speed.

Jazz Dance allows us to play and be showmen, and Duncan Dance allows us to play and use our imagination, and Modern Dance allows us to play and in addition really use our bodies. Muscles get a great workout as we expand and contract, shifting our weight, and making shapes. An invitation to experiment with all planes, directions, and levels only helps to confirm that our muscles will be used as we dance and play. Bringing Modern Dance into your workout can also be an exercise in timing and speed. Modern Dance can be the encouragement to make different combinations. For example, walk across the floor, walk high, walk low, walk fast, walk slow, stumble and recover.

This movement form is a great way to explore the floor, you could fall gently to the earth, then rise up slowly, fall gently and spring up. Again, multiple combinations can be a result of letting Modern Dance into the workout. This form also suggest moving one body part and allowing others to follow, so maybe as you are on the ground your hand rises into the air and your body follows and your hand takes you around the space you are in.

Modern Dance really allows for freedom in Nia. It gives you permission to mix things up and make the steps of a routine your own. It is another form that gives us permission to play and make the workout fun.

The Nia Technique Book and The Nia Technique – White Belt Manual have additional information regarding the movement forms that were blended to create Nia. The books are by Debbie Rosas and Carlos Rosas.

Posted in Movement Forms of Nia, Nia | Tagged: agility, dance arts, dance exercise, dance routine, Dance Workout, different movement forms, Duncan Dance, exercise that is fun, flexibility, freedom dance, fun exercise, fun workout, Jazz Dance, modern dance, Nia, Nia exercise, Nia routine, Nia workout, strength | 2 Comments »

Personal Trainer – Just Helping You Move

Posted by terrepruitt on March 10, 2009

In my introduction I made a comment about blaming my husband again, because a couple of years ago I made a comment and his response was “Why don’t you do something about it?” and so I have been working out ever since. I try to eat healthy. I don’t think I am a fanatic, I just try to exercise and eat well. I also wanted to help people like me so, at that time, I thought the best way to do that would be to become certified as a personal trainer. I, Terre Pruitt, am a certified personal trainer through the National Council on Strength and Fitness (NCSF).

(Pause)

So, what image popped into your head when you read “personal trainer”? Doesn’t matter what it was I am pretty sure it was not me. Most people think of huge gyms, machines, heavy weights, big muscles and sweat when they think of personal trainers. When I became a personal trainer I was thinking more along the lines of “movement coach”. Just trying to help people realize that they need to move because there is truth in the old axiom “move it or lose it.” And I fear the day when my age group loses it. I think that the time will come sooner then it did with earlier generations who were accustom to movement in their everyday lives.

So I wanted to help people with functional fitness. Yes, there is such a thing. It is exercises and movement that actually help your body stay mobile so when you need to put your arms up to get a shirt on you will be able to. When you need to stretch and reach for something on a shelf you will be able to. At the same time you can be working on building your strength, stability, flexibility, and agility because all these things are what we use in our everyday lives. Things like that is what I am interested in.

I still believe that weight training is important, and you have to get your heart rate up to burn the calories to lose the fat, but I do not subscribe to “no pain, no gain”. Although, I might define pain differently than you . . . I don’t think you need to be in pain, per se, to gain. There are all types of “gain” so it really depends on what your goals are. I also think that a form of stretching is necessary to keep the body mobile. Some exercise forms combine these different elements, some forms keep them separate. It is best to find something you like so you can stick with it. Whatever works for you.

What form of exercise interests you?

Posted in Exercise and Working Out | Tagged: agility, certified personal trainer, coach, eat well, exercise, fanatic, flexibility, functional fitness, generations, gyms, healthy, interests, mobile, movement, Muscles, National Council on Strength and Fitness, NCSF, pain, Personal Trainer, stability, strength, stretching, Terre Pruitt, weight training, weights | Leave a Comment »

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Terre Pruitt's Blog

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I teach yoga, Nia, and stretch online!

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