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Posts Tagged ‘dance class’

Nia White Belt P8 – Core – 2020

Posted by terrepruitt on August 26, 2020

Nia describes the core as three body weights, pelvis, chest, and head. In the training we are currently studying Nia White Belt P8 – Core | Three Body Weights. Again – at least I think I have mentioned it – since Nia is so rich and it is easy to spend a lot of time on one thing, I somewhat feel our two hours are a little rushed, even though Debbie skillfully got through the entire lesson. It would be easy to spend more time. Not only does Nia study the bone structure of the core (the pelvis, chest, and head) but it incorporates the energies associated with each. So the description of the principle is “sensory study of energy centers.”

First we discussed the Nia 52 Moves associated with the core. There are seven.

PELVIS MOVES (2)
Pelvic Circles
Hip Bumps

CHEST MOVES (2)
Chest Isolations
Shimmy

SPINE MOVES (2)
Undulation
Spinal Roll

HEAD MOVE (1)
Head and Eye Movements

Then we discussed the physical body as is represented by the three points of the triad for Principle 8, pelvis, chest, and head. We reviewed the bones in the pelvis and then moved through the two pelvis move. Since Nia is based on how the body moves we spend a lot of time on how the body is put together. When you understand how the bones move in relation to each other is helps you understand how the body is supposed to move AND, if you pay attention, it can help you understand how your body moves. For many people, when bones are likened to objects it helps with understanding how they function, say the pelvis is a bowl or a container that is meant to hold and contain and ribs are like a cage made to protect. Remembering that the hip joint is a ball and socket and NOT a hinged joint could lead to a smooth gait when picturing the movement as a rolling movement and not a back and forth. So, in Nia, we examine the structures, learn how they are supposed to move according to the way they were designed, and then we move in different ways to allow us to sense our own body’s way.

We spend a bit of time reviewing the Nia Moves and how they can be adjusted in regards to the planes, the intensity levels, and different body’s needs.

Then she spent time connecting the areas of the spine and body with the energy bodies or the chakras.

CHAKRA 1 | Base or Root– Association to Core: Pelvis
It is located at the base of the spine, near the coccyx, in the pelvic area between the perineum and the anus. It’s energy is associated with your legs, coccyx, rectum, and sex organs.

CHAKRA 2 | The Sensual Center (Sacral) – Association to Core: Pelvis
Sacral chakra is located in the lumbar region, just above the sexual organs, and about 2 to 3 inches below the navel. It is above the root chakra. It’s energy is associated with male and female sexuality, survival, and creativity.

CHAKRA 3 | Solar Plexus – Association to Core: Chest
It is located at the mid-thoracic area near your solar plexus. It’s energy is associated with your will, self-confidence, and personal power.

CHAKRA 4 | The Heart – Association to Core: Chest
It is located in the center of your chest, at the first, second, and third thoracic vertebrae. It’s energy is associated with love, compassion, joy, and sorrow.

CHAKRA 5 | The Throat – Association to Core: Head
It is located in your throat at the third cervical vertebra. It’s energy is associated with ability to be expressive, to speak up and stand for yourself and for what you believe to be true and real.

CHAKRA 6 | Brow or Third Eye – Association to Core: Head
It is located at the first cervical vertebra. It’s energy is associated with your connection to your intuition.

CHAKRA 7 | Crown – Association to Core: Head
It is located at the point of your pineal gland. It’s energy is associated with your connection to divine spirit, and soul energy.

She also covered the vowel sounds associated with each chakra, as have I in a previous post.

So along with studying what makes up the physical body, how it is put together, and how it was designed to move, we also studying the energy body. We move in ways to keep the energy flowing and balanced and we can add sounds to help with that. Nia is based on Western science as well as ancient beliefs. Nia White Belt Principle 8 – Core / The Three Body Weights is a very deep principle indeed.

Posted in 2020 Nia White Belt Principles, Nia | Tagged: Chakra, chakra energy, chakra vowel sounds, crown chakra, dance class, dance exercise, heart chakra, mind-body workout, Nia, Nia class, Nia Moves, Nia White Belt Principle 8 - 2020, P8, P8 - Core, pelvic chakra, root chakra, solar plexus chakra, The Nia Technique book, third eye chakra, three body weights, throat chakra, Zoom online training | Leave a Comment »

Nia White Belt P6 – Base – 2020

Posted by terrepruitt on August 10, 2020

Wow. We are already on Principle 6 of the Nia White Belt Principles in the first ever Nia White Belt Training Online. Remember this is somatic training so it is about the body. For people that have not taken any type of anatomy training or exercise training the information might be new, but since Nia is based on the body a lot of it is not new because we pretty much have had the same number of bones in our feet since they have been able to count all the bones in the feet (26 in each foot). Nia is based on science but the way Debbie relates it to your everyday life is what makes it fun and amazing. Nia White Belt P6 Base. It is about the base, our foundation, from our feet to our hip joint. The triad consists of feet, legs, hip joints.

I love to remind my students that feet need to be flexible in order to provide the shock absorption we need with each step. Also, in order to help with the entire health of the body they need to be strong, and also allow the energy to flow through. Nia refers to the feet as the Hands that touch the Earth. Feet like hands relay a lot of information to the body. In Nia we dance barefoot to not only receive that information through the hundreds of thousands of nerve endings in each foot, but to help with the health of our feet. Nia has 52 Moves the routines focus on. Twenty seven of them are associated with the base and each move can help keep feet flexible, strong, and allow energy to flow up to the body.

There are four categories associated with the base. The “Feet” category has 8 moves, the “Stances” category has 6 moves, the “Steps” category 9 moves, and the “Kicks” category has 4 moves. Below is the list of “base” moves and links to my posts about them, except the Cha-Cha-Cha.

Foot Moves (8)
1. Heel Lead
2. Whole Foot
3. Ball of the Foot
4. Rele vé
5. Rock Around the Clock
6. Squish Walk
7. Duck Walk
8. Toes In, Out, Parallel

Stances (6)
9. Closed Stance
10. Open Stance
11. “A” Stance
12. Riding (Sumo) Stance
13. Bow Stance
14. Cat Stance

Steps (9)
15. Sink and Pivot Table Wipe
16. Stepping Back onto the Ball of Your Foot
17. Cross Front
18. Cross Behind
19. Traveling in Directions
20. Lateral Traveling
21. Cha-Cha-Cha
22. Slow Clock
23. Fast Clock

Kicks (4)
24. Front Kick
25. Side Kick
26. Back Kick
27. Knee Sweep

If you have never been to a Nia class you might be amazed at how many ways you can do each of these moves. There are many ways . . . you could shift your intention, you could shift your energy, you could shift your focus, you could shift your weight . . . . all of these things would allow you to sense the move differently. And the great thing about them is you don’t even have to be in a dance class to practice them.

Can you spot one you might call a favorite?

Posted in 2020 Nia White Belt Principles, Nia | Tagged: 52 Moves of Nia, Base Moves, dance class, Debbie Rosas, Heel lead, Knee Sweep, Nia Practice, Nia training online, Nia White Belt Principles, Nia White Belt Training, stances, whole foot, www.HelpYouWell.com | Leave a Comment »

Answers To A Few Questions About Nia

Posted by terrepruitt on January 22, 2020

I think it is time to revisit some things. A compilation of re-visitation. How does that sound? This is in regards to Nia. I have all of this information spread out in various posts on my blog and in various places on my website but I thought I could revisit some information for a post. This will help to get the information out there. I will answer some questions that I have received recently as a new group of people are going to be treated to a Nia class.

How is Nia different than Zumba?
Well, based off of my Zumba and Nia training and based off of the Zumba and Nia classes I have attended the main difference is movement, both speed and type. Zumba is regularly faster. Nia can be fast, but in general is slower than Zumba. Zumba’s movements tend to be more Latin; focusing on movement of the hips and feet, whereas Nia is more of an entire body movement type of dance class. Nia incorporates three art forms into the dance (martial arts, dance arts, and healing arts – more about all of that can be found in the “The Nine Basic Movements Forms Of Nia” post.)

Is it sweaty?
Well, that is based entirely on you, the individual. Some people dance Nia and don’t sweat, it could be that they just aren’t the type of body that sweats or it could be that they really didn’t move enough to sweat. I remember teaching one class years ago and a student came up to me as I was toweling off and said, “You really don’t sweat much in Nia, do you?” As I said, I was toweling off, my hair was wet, I was blind from sweat, and my glasses were fogged up. And I said, “No, no YOU don’t.” Because this person had stood behind me the entire class. I never saw this student’s arms or legs or head. So, in other words, this person didn’t move a lot, this person never lifted their arms up or out, nor did they kick out, so there wasn’t a lot of movement on their part so they didn’t sweat. And that is fine, if that is what your goal is. If you want to go to a cardio dance class and not sweat don’t move a lot. If you are the type of person that sweats when you move and you decide to move in the class, then you will sweat. It really is all about what you want for your body that day, during that class.

What do I wear?
Anything you want in order to feel comfortable. Something you can move in and that you don’t mind being on the floor in.

Is Nia done barefoot?
Yes. Nia is designed to be done barefoot. Again, we do not jump – sometimes a trainer might get fancy and excited and include a little jump or two when s/he created the routine, but for the most part we do not jump. We don’t typically twist on our feet, we pick up our feet. There is a lot of foot work in Nia designed to stretch and strengthen the foot. Nia believes that – while shoes can be lovely – they restrict the movement of the foot, so moving in bare feet allows the foot to move as it was designed.

What type of music is played in a Nia class?
All types of music. Some routines run the gamut of tunes from rock to classical, some routines contain only one genre or one artist but the music for Nia as a whole varies. You can click here and click around if you would like to hear some samples of the actual music in some of our routines.

As a note, people constantly confuse IMPACT with INTENSITY. We had been trained to think we have to move fast with high jumps up and down (impact) in order to get a “good” workout and in order to sweat. But if you stand with your feet in A stance (slightly wider than your shoulders) and do squats for three minutes, you might get a little sweaty. You will have done an INTENSE exercise, but not one that is high impact. Nia is not high impact, yet it can be intense. People who do the moves in their bodies way, always come up to me and say what a great workout they just had in Nia. The routines are created from movements that the body was designed to do, but Nia knows that not everyone’s body can move that way so dancers are encouraged to move in their own body’s way. And with that in mind individuals get the workout they need.

Above I mentioned sweating in a Nia class, well, it could be you do sweat when you workout, but it could be that you are taking a Nia class in the middle of your work day or you are meeting friends for lunch after class so you don’t CHOOSE to move a lot and you want to take it easy – that is perfectly acceptable. It is perfect to dance how you want to/how you are able to at that time.

So, these are the questions that I have received of late. I can go on for pages talking about Nia . . . and I have if you look here on my blog you will find plenty of posts about Nia. Or you can check out my website, here are some pages that might interest you:

Nia Information / Nia Class Cycles / Main Benefits of Nia / Tips for a Pleasurable Nia Experience / Principles of the Body’s Way / Nia Tips for Moving with Nia / Sounding Tips / Nia’s 52 Moves / Nia Belt Levels and Focuses

Also, feel free to contact me if you any other questions or want more information. Yay to new Nia dancers!

Posted in Nia | Tagged: Answers to Questions, barefoot, classical music, dance arts, dance class, entire body movement, Healing Arts, high intensity, latin moves, Latin music, low impact, martial arts, Nia, Nia class, Nia Class Experience, Nia dancers, Nine Movement Forms, rock music, sweaty workout, www.HelpYouWell.com, Zumba | Leave a Comment »

THAT’S Not Dance

Posted by terrepruitt on October 10, 2016

I know that I have written posts about how different people think of different things as exercise. I have written about how some people don’t think that a shimmy is exercise. Whether they don’t THINK of it as something that should be IN an exercise CLASS or they just don’t think they get any benefit from it. Some people just don’t think of dance as exercise. I know I even mentioned that TV shows like Dancing with the Stars and So You Think You Can Dance have changed the way some people think. Some people understand that dancing can be considered exercise. But I don’t think I have ever talked about how some people don’t consider all dance dancing. I might have but I don’t know that I have and it was something I was thinking about recently. I was thinking that not all “dancing” is considered dancing by everyone.

I was asked to substitute teach a class called Dance Fit. I had asked several times what “Dance Fit” was, but the response was that the students would be happy to just move to music. I had a feeling that the person answering just wanted to make sure that they had a teacher so that they would have a class. So I had been thinking about what I could do. Then I was also thinking about how I was recently at a festival where I overheard some people talking about a particular person there dancing. They were saying that he wasn’t really dancing. They were saying that they thought he wasn’t hearing the music. They just weren’t “getting” his movements. And I was looking at him and I thought it was fine. I could see how his movements fit with the music . . . to me. I thought that he looked as if he was completely dancing in a way that his body was responding to the music. He looked like he was in the moment. He looked as if he was having fun. It was fine to me.

But later I realized that not everyone thinks of all movement as dance. A ballerina might not consider clogging dancing. A ballroom dancer might not consider the pony (remember that move?) a dance. Someone used to doing Latin motion with their hips might not consider a chorus line kick part of a dance. So perhaps those women had specific ideas of what dance is and so they didn’t consider his body movements dance at all.

I think that might happen when it comes to Nia. Some people might not consider a front kick or an upward block a dance movement. People that are accustomed to all the Latin dance steps that are in Zumba they might not consider a jazz square a dance move. Just like some people might not consider a shimmy something that should be in an “exercise class”, some people might think a move such as rock around the clock or a duck walk isn’t really dance and shouldn’t be in a dance exercise class. I think I have overlooked that fact. Hmmmm.

Well, I had decided to not try to create something or TRY to do something that the class MIGHT like – because I really had no idea. I decided to do something tried and true. I decided to do something I do best. I decided to teach Nia. And they loved it. The supervisor was totally correct in saying that the class just loved to dance and they want to move. They were fabulous. We had a lot of fun. Nia is a great “product”, it is a great technique. And when people who like to move get to experience we get to have fun. I am looking forward to the next couple of weeks where I get to fill in as a sub. The students are all about movement of the body being dance and they do great. I was concerned about it for no reason.

What about you? Do you think of only certain moves as DANCE? Do you have a broad definition of dance?

Posted in Nia | Tagged: dance class, dance exercise, Dance Fit, dance teacher, Dancing with the stars, Duck Walk, exercise class, Nia Dance, Nia students, rock around the clock, shimmy as exercise, So You Think You Can Dance, Zumba | 2 Comments »

More To Yoga Than Just Asana

Posted by terrepruitt on January 13, 2016

I have often mentioned how Nia is a cardio dance exercise that you can take to another level and make it a practice, like yoga. Yoga is an exercise that you can take to another level by practicing some of the other limbs of yoga. Yoga has eight limbs. These limbs are things that one can work with throughout a lifetime. They are not necessarily things that one masters – well, not things that I can master. There could be days when it feels as if they have been mastered and then days when it feels like you had never even heard of them because the ideas or actions were just not present. So . . . these things get “practiced”. The physical, exercise part of yoga is just one of the limbs. While Nia is not as . . . I’ll say, “preachey” as yoga we do have some things that can be practiced outside of the dance class, off the dance floor. Things like noticing your movement and being aware of your relationship with others and things. But yoga’s limbs are more like rules to live by.

The eight limbs of yoga are:

1) The yamas. There are five yamas. They are often compared to restrictions. Some think of them as restraints or ethical principles.

2) The niyamas. There are five niyamas. They are often compared to rules. Some think of them as observances or spiritual practices.

3) The asana. There are thousands of poses. This is the physical limb of yoga. This is the exercise that has become very popular. Not only are there a lot of poses, there are many different types of yoga. Some are ancient and some are very new. Some types have created new poses. And sometimes I think that the ancient text has been translated so many different ways we end up with different poses.

4) Pranayama. There are various types of pranayama. This is the breath work of yoga. I have posted about two types of pranayama, Ujjayi Breathing and Equal Breath
Since this was originally posted I have posted about additional types of pranayama:
Dirgha 03.12.18, and Sitali 06.19.17

5) Pratyahara. This is the withdrawal of the senses. The idea is that when the mind has control over the senses, can withdrawal them, then it can focus on the other limbs of yoga without distraction.

6) Dharana. This is concentration. The idea of concentration of the mind on one thing leads to meditation.

7) Dhyana. This is meditation. The idea is to be able to concentrate on one point. Being able to breathe to a state of withdrawal of the senses. Having complete control. Then concentration is pure. Meditation is supremely focused and then . . .

8) Samadhi. This is transcendence. When one is in control over mind and body.

Each of these could definitely use a blog post of their own. Not sure I will get to them all. But, I will at least do a post on the yamas, a post on the niyamas, and a post on pranayama. Probably multiple posts on each of them. So, if you are interested stay tuned.

I had heard about the first two, and knew that poses and breathing were apart of yoga. But was not and am not so familiar with the last four. Did you know there were eight limbs to yoga? Which ones are you familiar with?

Posted in Yoga/PiYo/Pilates | Tagged: asana, cardio dance exercise, dance class, dance exercise, Eight limbs of yoga, equal breath, Nia, Nia Practice, niyamas, pranayama, Ujjayi Breath, yamas, Yoga, Yoga class, Yoga Practice | 10 Comments »

Not Silent About The Silence

Posted by terrepruitt on November 21, 2015

Wow. This non-verbal cueing that we did in Nia has brought up some stuff. So here is another post about it! I have really noticed since the “silent class” that cueing sometimes disrupts the dance for some participants. Since people are so different, we all hear differently, see differently, concentrate differently, and learn differently, it is different for different people. What I noticed is that when I mention something, some people stop or they look to be interrupted. I had noticed this before, but it seems more obvious to me now that we had the silent class. Nia teachers are supposed to cue at a specific point, to me it is so that the person has a moment to finish the move they are in the middle of, have a moment to know what is coming, then perhaps be able to seamlessly change to the next move. That is the idea. The idea is to NOT interfere with the dance. I see it happens sometimes. I see sometimes it does not. So I think it might have to do with what the person is thinking while they are dancing. It could be, if they are completely in their bodies there is no disruption of the movement, but if they are thinking something else while they are moving, then a cue is given, their thoughts are interrupted so their movements get choppy, then they either finish the present move or move onto the next. I am not sure of the reason for what I am seeing, but it is very interesting.

I feel as if in the silent class they actually have to pay attention MORE. They have to LOOK at me if they want to see what is happening. When you have to LOOK at something, it might help with concentration. It could be that the mind is not wandering and counting on the verbal cue to tell you what to do.

As I mentioned in the last post, the participants were in sync, but that was after the move was done at least once. Without verbal cues there is no way for them to know what the move is after I clap until they see it. So once they saw it, or sometimes in the middle of seeing it they knew what to do.

Since they were so synchronized and got there so quickly, I am also thinking that without verbal cues from ME they were letting their bodies cue them. Muscles have memories and without the benefit of me telling them what to do, they just did what their bodies knew to do. As I mentioned in the first post about the “silent class” we have been doing this routine for a few weeks. Plus it is one they already “know”.

I have had people tell me either before or after classes that they need CONSTANT instruction. They want the instructor to say each move through the entire song. I have had people tell me that I don’t tell them what they are supposed to do enough. I have had people tell me that they don’t like Nia because there is not enough of the teacher telling them what to do. I share that to let you know, as I said before, there are different ways to learn and people like different things.

That is why Nia is so fun. We can do it different ways. If you like constant instruction, think of what new things you are being introduced to with less instruction. If you don’t like any instruction, think of what new things you are being introduced to with minimal instruction. It is all about keeping the body, mind, emotions, and spirit challenged (BMES). Learning and doing new things or learning and doing “old” things but in a “new” way. The BMES likes to be flexed and stretched and stimulated.

I love that the Nia participants that come to my Nia classes are so willing to try new things. I love that they like to play and experiment. This had opened some new doors for me. It will allow us to have more fun!

Have you been to a Nia class yet?

Posted in Nia | Tagged: BMES, dance class, Nia, Nia class, Nia students, Nia Teacher, non-verbal cueing, silent class, silent Nia | 2 Comments »

Thoughts About The Absence Of Verbal Cues

Posted by terrepruitt on November 19, 2015

In order to keep my post from being really long – I personally like to read short posts . . . I started this story in my last post and I am finishing it up here. In my last post I talked about the ways classes are led. I talked about how Nia was designed to be a lead and follow, with cueing at a specific point, and even certain types of cues (pearls). I also mentioned how Nia is about keeping things fun and new . . . always challenging the body, mind, emotions, and spirit (BMES). With that in mind sometimes Nia teachers might teach classes without cueing. Now the “cueing” is up for interpretation. What we did was NO VERBAL CUEING. I decided to clap to indicate that a change was coming. And it ended up that, during two songs I pointed to indicate direction at a couple of areas in each song.

After the class, I asked what they observed. One student said she like it. I pressed a bit because I wanted to know WHY she liked it. I wanted to know what she noticed about it. Because I noticed things too. So I wanted to know what SHE noticed. She said that she felt as if she could do what she wanted more without the verbal cues. She felt she could dance more. Some others agreed. A couple of people said they felt more connected to their bodies. And it is my opinion that having a deeper connection with your body is one of the reasons why we play with no cueing. However, what I observed was really interesting . . . I thought. I noticed that the class was more synchronized. They were all doing the moves together more than I have ever seen.

There is this one part in this routine that people always “jump the gun” on. There is always someone doing the “big” move before the big move. But during the non-verbal cueing class . . . they all did it perfectly. This synchronization struck me as I watched it, and then again when one of the students said she felt she could do what she wanted more without instruction. Apparently they all want to dance perfectly in unison and my “interfering” as we call it, is keeping them from doing that.

When instructing a small group it seems as if there is less of a need to guide people. In larger groups there seems as if the odds are someone seems to look as if they could use a cue. And as a teacher, I want to help, so I might count, or repeat the instructions of the move. In smaller groups there are less people so less opportunity for that.

This silent class had a fewer people than we have been having.

Some people expressed the opinion that they didn’t feel as much joy and/or energy in this silent class. They shared they really like verbally cued classes better. They were relieved to hear that this is not the norm or where my Nia classes are headed. This was just play. This was just a way to experience Nia different. This was just an experiment with the body and dance.

It was fun. But, at one point I put my fingers to my lips because I wanted to say something so badly, but I didn’t want to break the silence. We did sound because that was the mood we wanted. We wanted the energy and the play of sounding, but we wanted the introspectiveness of no verbal cueing.

We will be doing it again. In fact, we have been dancing another routine I was thinking about trying it with so we will see.

Nia is so fun and so interesting. Have you been to a Nia class yet?

Have you taken a silent Nia class? What did you think?

Posted in Nia | Tagged: BMES, dance class, Nia, Nia class, Nia students, Nia Teacher, non-verbal cueing, silent class, silent Nia, synchronized dancing | 2 Comments »

Deep, Not On The Surface

Posted by terrepruitt on March 24, 2015

A lot of movement forms, from different dances to different types of exercise regimes, use chest isolations. One of Nia’s 52 Moves. See, as I have said over and over, not unique to Nia, but something that we use in our routines. Something we can say and people know what the move is. Even if they can’t do it, they know what it is. This move moves the chest so – as with a lot of moves that involve the movement of the chest – some people are hesitant to do it. Some people think of moves that move the chest as moves that moves the breasts and for some people this creates a lot of issues. As a woman, there are some moves that are just going to move the breasts but that is not the focus. Often times when I encourage people to focus on what is actually the focus of the movement, they can release any feelings or ideas that might be blocking the movement. I mentioned this in my post about the Shimmy. I have seen relief or understanding pass over people’s faces when they take the focus off of what is part of the front of the body/chest and onto the back when it comes to the shimmy. The same with the chest isolations. Your chest is moving that means everything connected to it, but the focus is on the muscles and the bones.

The movement of the spine, the ribs, the sternum, and even the collar bones is a chest isolations. See, even though it might feel like you are move the front (breasts) the focus is on all the other things. The back muscles help move the spine side to side allowing the ribs to slide from side to side over the hips. The sternum floats to different places over the hips. The collar bones stay level. You can just also press your ribs forward and pull them back. Your arms are out to the side or you can place your hands on your hips to help ensure there is no movement in the hips. You can make your ribs move in circles.

With the side to side motion I used to reference a typewriter carriage. Remember those? They would slide to one side of the machine and kind of hang over then you would use the return arm to get it to slide back. That is a GREAT visual and I actually see some people replicate it. But then I see others in class who don’t even know what a typewriter is. And if they do it was certainly the electric version that didn’t have a visible moving carriage with a return arm-dohicky. So we just focus on the slide.

The chest isolations help keep you spine flexible and mobile. It also helps you use those muscle that are inside, the intrinsic muscles. The little ones that help with balance. While you are doing the chest isolation movement you can focus on the and sense them.

Another way to isolate the chest is you can do a more front-back movement. If you are doing the front back portion of the move it is as if you are closing your chest and opening your back. And then opening your chest and closing your back. Arms can help. Bring your elbows back and draw them together to help open the chest and close the back. Then bring them forward to open the back and close the chest.

This is one of those moves you can do anywhere. You can do it in your car while you are stopped at a traffic light. Don’t worry, other people don’t look up from their cell phones they will never notice you sliding your ribs around. Enjoy the relaxed sensation and flexibility.

Are you familiar with chest isolations? Do you do them in your current dance class? Do you do them in your exercise program?

Posted in 52 Moves (of Nia), Nia | Tagged: chest isolations, dance class, exercise class, exercise program, exercise regime, Nia class, Nia Technique, Nia's 52 Moves, spine flexibility | 2 Comments »

Dancing Away The Stickiness

Posted by terrepruitt on February 12, 2015

More often than not in my Nia classes we have a physical focus. A focus and an intent in an exercise class is not easy for some people. So having a focus that is physical seems, for many, to be easier than a focus that is not. I know I have mentioned this before because I know I have talked about focuses before. Today, as always, I asked my class if “they had anything”. Usually someone comes up with a physical thing . . . sore neck, tight hamstrings, aching back, tight shoulders . . . ya know, something physical. Today someone said, “Unstuck.” I had overheard her mention something about being “stuck” while I was getting ready to teach, and I thought that would be a great focus, but I wasn’t sure how to do that. So I said, “Yeah, I heard you mention that, but I am not sure how to do that.” Someone else piped in about being stuck, too. And I laughed and commented that if I knew how to get “unstuck” I wouldn’t ever be stuck. And the “stuck” we were talking about was a feeling of being stuck either in an emotion or a situation or just the feeling of being stuck! So we focused on getting “unstuck”.

The person that originally mentioned feeling stuck was happy to hear that others sometimes felt that way. That is something I learned about feelings they are like questions . . . if one person has it (the feeling or the question) there is at least one other person that does too. There are no stupid feelings. Now, I do believe there are no stupid feelings, but I will admit to being guilty of thinking and sometimes even saying that as a knee-jerk reaction to someone I love saying something I think of as not nice about themselves. If one were to say, “I feel ugly.” “I feel like a bad person.” My automatic reaction is “that’s stupid you aren’t . . . ” But if they FEEL that way that is not stupid. So I am still learning to curb that reaction. But I digress . . . back to getting unstuck.

As I said, I wasn’t sure how to dance “unstuck”. I wasn’t sure how to make that a focus, but then I decided . . . . because I believe . . . that sometimes just thinking about it can help things move along. So my thoughts were that if you were feeling stuck, just acknowledging it and moving with it could be enough to unstick it. Or it could be enough to think of an idea on how to “unstick” it. Or it could just open you up to an idea that is going to come later. Just all types of stuff. We agreed that dancing with the focus of getting unstuck and the intent of being open to that and whatever it meant and however we could achieve that would be our focus and intent for the class.

One person mentioned not getting “too unstuck” which gave me the opportunity to remind people that we are dancing our own interpretation. When I suggest people move as if they are floating in water, everyone moves in their own way. They imagine their own “floating in water”. The same with getting “unstuck”. One can get as “unstuck” as they feel they need to be. The person that mentioned this left early so I didn’t get to delve into what she meant . . . because it could mean so many things.

After class, I actually felt better and a little less stuck. “Unstuck” could relate to letting go or being loose. It is one of those things that if you are feeling anything related and you focus on it with the intent of acknowledging it or relieving it, it can just happen.

For those that are challenged with focusing on things that are not strictly physical “unstuck” works for that because one could have a tight muscle that is “stuck”. Or a joint that might need some loosening because it feels “stuck”. So dancing to “unstick” is really a great focus.

I am always amazed at how my class comes up with such great things to focus on. I am further amazed at how so often what they come up with is something I am feeling the same need for. Getting “unstuck” is great.

Do you ever feel “stuck”? In what way? What do you do to get “unstuck”?

Posted in Nia | Tagged: aching back, dance class, dance exercise, exercise class, focus and intent, Nia Classes, Nia Dance, Nia Technique, physical focus, sore neck, tight hamstrings, tight shoulders | 6 Comments »

More Street Dancing

Posted by terrepruitt on October 2, 2014

Nia is a dance exercise . . . dare I say it? It is much more if you want it to be. Otherwise you can keep it just as that, an exercise class that you attend where you dance. That is fine. When you attend regularly you will more-than-likely experience more, but you do not have to take it any farther than that. But . . . since I love dance and I teach a dance exercise class, I am going to post AGAIN about dancing. I am not writing about dancing in an exercise class at the gym, community center, or dance studio, I am talking about dancing ON THE STREET! My last post was about dancing on the street. It was the fun idea of dancing while you are waiting for the crosswalk signal to change. You can check it out HERE! This post is highlighting yet another video about dancing on the street. This time it is about dancing WHILE you are crossing the street.

Now it did cross my mind that some of these people looked almost as if they were doing Free Dance in Nia as they were very absorbed in their dance. Some looked as if it might actually not be a safe thing to do. But then I remembered that many people don’t pay attention when they cross the street as it is. Many people have their face down and they are looking at their phone. So I don’t feel that dancing while crossing the street is any more dangerous than the “phone-walk”.

This looks just as fun as dancing while waiting. I think they should come up with a crosswalk sign that is ALL dance. Dance while you wait, then dance across the street.

I do love how so many people seemed to dance while crossing the street. So many people seemed to get into the moment and just go for it. So fun. I love the girl at the end. She was completely surprised. I was thinking that some of these people were “planted” and were dancing as part of the people filming the video. And that could be true, but that girl’s shoe flying off her foot was not planned. She was surprised.

Not everyone is into dancing or be what you might call a dancer. That is one great thing about Nia you don’t have to be experienced in dance you just have to be willing to move. Could be that you don’t have to dance while waiting for the crosswalk sign to change or you don’t have to dance while crossing the street, but you still could take a moment during your day to enjoy life. That really is what all of this dancing is about. The people who like to dance get enjoyment from it so they do so while waiting or crossing. If dancing is not your “thing” that is fine, take a moment to do something that is. Do something — if just for a moment — that brings you joy.

I love all this dancing! Thanks, SoulPancake! A friend of mine post this one on Facebook. Have you seen this video yet?

(click the pic to watch the video)

Posted in Misc | Tagged: community center, dance across the street, dance class, dance exercise, dance studio, dancer, dancing crosswalk signal, dancing on the street, exercise class, Facebook, gym, Nia, SoulPancake | Leave a Comment »

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Terre Pruitt's Blog

In the realm of health, wellness, fitness, and the like, or whatever inspires me.

I teach yoga, Nia, and stretch online!

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