Posts Tagged ‘Dance Workout’
Posted by terrepruitt on February 5, 2013
I believe that in 2013 the training material for the Nia Blue Belt is going to change. While it is not changing significantly the change will be significant. 🙂 The ideas will remain the same, but the verbiage and way it is delivered will be updated. While I was attending the Nia Blue Belt Intensive in November of 2012 we were being shown the new slides. The word that was used most often — or that I remember most is – simplify. The idea was to simplify the training. The Nia Blue Belt principle #13 in the manual* shows it as Vertical Routines. We were told it is going to change to Conscious Transubstantiation with Creating a Vertical Body and Life as the tagline. Not a simplification to me, but . . . . there you have it.
I will state again as I have been stating in many of my posts about the Nia principles, what I am sharing is somewhat off the top of my head, what I remember being discussed and it barely scratches the surface of each principle. The principles are deep, I could write pages about them alone and the taglines add yet another dimension with even more information. Here I am just sharing a little portion, just one aspect. Now for the purpose of Nia, transubstantiation does not mean the bread and wine will change into the body of Christ. But Nia is using it to mean change and change the body. 🙂 So, maybe that is the tie in and the reason to use that word. Nia is using the term Conscious Transubstantiation to mean consciously change your body to match the body of the teacher.
This somewhat ties back to Nia Blue Principle #12, which is funny because that also helps explain the vertical portion. It is common for a participant in a lead follow type of dance exercise class to do the move and follow the leader trying to change at the exact moment the leader changes the move. Even if the leader is excellent at cueing the participant could feel rushed into the next move. Sometimes the participant is concentrating and doesn’t hear or see the next move only to look up and realize they are a step behind or not matching exactly so they rush to catch up and do what the teacher is doing. Well with the conscious change it’s ok not to rush to catch up. Get there when you can. No need to disturb the nervous system and interrupt the flow, just catch the next round or the next step. Consciously changing instead of rushing into the move because that is where you are “supposed” to be. Allowing yourself to change consciously allows for a smooth transition. While this is not exactly the same as Nia Blue Principle #12, it is similar in that you are not having to rush to the next move.
The “Vertical” means how things are connected and built upon one another. The Nia Blue Belt Principles are built upon and woven into the Nia White Belt Principles. Nia’s 52 Moves are built upon each other. The “vertical” routines speaks to the moves in the a kata and how we change from move to move, the songs in a routine and the transition between the two and even the bigger picture of routine to routine.
So . . . in a Nia class you are encouraged to move in your own body’s way and “get to” the next move in your own natural time. The idea is not to upset the body, mind, and spirit by feeling as if you are not doing it right because you are not RIGHT ON the mark of the change as it first happens, Conscious Transubstantiation. Take your time and enjoy the movement and the moment you are in. Allow yourself to change when you are ready enabling you to sense the “vertical-ness” of Nia so your workout can be one of Joy.
It might be a challenge to break the habit of interrupting your move to match the teacher when you notice the change, but you might be surprised at the effect it has on your body, mind, and spirit once you do get the hang of it. What do you think? Are you willing to give it a try?
*The Nia Technique – Blue Belt Manual August 206, V4.0
Posted in Blue Belt, Nia | Tagged: blood to wine, body, body of Christ, bread to body, Conscious Transubstantiation, dance exercise, Dance Workout, mind, Nia, Nia Blue Belt, Nia Blue Belt Intensive, Nia Blue Belt principle #13, Nia Dance, Nia workout, Nia's 52 Moves, to Nia Blue Principle #12, Vertical Routines | 2 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on December 1, 2012
So today is the first day of the December 2012 30 Minute Movement Challenge. There are so many things you can do, you know that right? On the days I am teaching a Nia Class I will obviously get in 30 minutes of movement, but at this point, right off the bat, I don’t want to count that as my 30 minutes. I would count Nia as my 30 minutes if I am doing it as a student. Being a teacher and being a student are different, so I am going to count them differently. I will be back today to check in with my 30 minutes completed. But first some ideas on what you can do, yes? You can walk. Walking for 30 minutes is a great exercise. If you walk fast enough and get your heart rate up it can be an aerobic exercise. With your challenge you decide whether your 30 minutes will be aerobic or resistance training. You can also add to it. Moving for longer than 30 minutes. Just make certain you are moving (in an exercise-y type of way) for at least 30 minutes.
There are so many things you can do. I already mentioned walking. There is my ten minute workout. You can do that for 30 minutes consecutively or do three different 10 minute sessions. If you have a device that allows you to create playlist of music you can make up a great playlist and dance for 30 minutes. You could do 30 different exercises for a minute each. Some examples: squats, bicep curls, lunges, triceps kick backs, donkey kicks, push ups, inner thigh lifts, sit ups, triceps dips, frogs, hamstring kick backs, lateral flies, knee lifts, rows, reverse curls . . . . . . and 15 more.
The key is to get AT LEAST 30 minutes in. The thirty minute time length was originally brought up to help people STAY healthy. Many people need more than that to GET healthy in the first place. But we are just doing a challenge for the month of December to make sure we are moving EVERY DAY. With all that is going on during this season it is easy to skip the workout. So committing to 30 minutes EVERY DAY will help.
Keeping to a schedule helps a lot. Committing to a goal, also helps. We also know that sometimes things do come up and even though we have a schedule and made a commitment there might be a day where we just didn’t get the 3o minutes in. To help ensure you get it in I recommend doing it first thing in the morning. I know that when I put things off for later in the day sometimes they don’t get done. The things I do first thing always get done . . . . funny how that works huh? If you happen to miss a day, that is fine, just pick it right back up the next day.
Remember you don’t even have to comment about what you did, just comment that you DID move/exercise/workout for at least 30 minutes! So . . . . what do you think? Do you have a plan? Are you done with your 30 minutes?
Posted in December 2012 30 Minute Movement Challenge | Tagged: 30 Minute Movement Challenge, 30 Minutes In December 2012, 30 minutes of exercise, dance exercise, Dance Workout, December 2012 30 Minute Movement Challenge, lunges, Nia, Nia class, Nia Dance, Nia student, Nia Teacher, Nia workout, running, squats | 6 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on October 18, 2012
I teach a Nia Class for the city of San Jose. The city has it set up pretty cool in that instructors can have a day and a time at a specific community center that we can call “my” class and we can also teach other people’s classes as a substitute. We have this forum where we post requests and needs. 
Many instructors have full time jobs and kids so they have other responsibilities that call them away from their regularly schedule class. Plus there is always a cold, a serious illness, or a bump/bruise or strain. This network of teachers allows us to live our lives and take care of ourselves when necessary. It also helps expose our community to different types of workouts and different teachers. I have shared before how at one point I was trying to make Nia be more like whatever it was I was subbing for. If you haven’t read that post, I am sure you might be able to imagine how that turned out. It made this Nia teacher very unhappy and I don’t think it was a great service for the attendees either. One of the reasons I applied for the job with the city was so that I could share Nia with the community. Recently I taught Nia as a substitute class for Zumba, and my thoughts on Zumba and agility were confirmed.
A few of the student came up afterwards to talk to me about Nia. Some shared how they like it because it was gentle yet allowed them to work up a sweat and get a great workout. One woman made me giddy because she said the same thing that I had just decided about Zumba. It took me a while to get to this conclusion and she jumped to it her very first time. She said that Nia is more complete. She said that she loves Zumba, she does it three times a week, but the moves are not completed. She said it was nice to be able to finish a move. Nia allows you to move through the entire range of motion, through the entire range of the joint. I loved that she was able to get that from one class. I also love and appreciate that she can like both, Nia and Zumba. They are both cardio dance exercise workouts, but they are different. Seeming to always have to explain the two together, I am always thinking about it and just recently reached the agility conclusion. I explained in one of my posts how I feel Zumba seems to only move in one sensation. Well, having gone to a training and experienced the Zumba Fitness Program I believe a Zumba class can move in all five, but it concentrates on agility and touches on the rest. But they are in there if you know to look for them.
So this student who was talking to me after class picked up on that fact that in Nia we move through all five sensations and Zumba focuses on one. This is not to say that is bad, this is just again pointing out how they are different. Also this is me sharing that it is not just other Nia teachers and my Nia students that think that, it is other people who are more familiar with Zumba than Nia. This is just a happy confirmation post sharing that I felt I got it right when I explained Nia and Zumba in that way. Yay.
Both Nia and Zumba are great fun. I encourage you to do whatever it is that will get you up and moving! If you decide what type of movement you want it can help you decide what you can do to get it.
Do you like to take different types of exercise classes? Do you like to just stick to one type of class?
Posted in Nia, Zumba | Tagged: agility, cardio dance, cardio workout, City of San Jose Nia Classes, dance exercise, Dance Workout, Nia class, Nia five sensations, Nia instructors, Nia network, Nia San Jose, Nia students, Nia teachers, San Jose Nia, San Jose Nia class, Zumba, Zumba class, Zumba Fitness | 6 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on May 1, 2012
At this point you might have noticed that I only have a post for 9 of the 52 Moves of Nia. I am going to work on that. I have a Nia friend who is posting about the 52 Moves of Nia on her blog and she has inspired me to continue on. I have the list of the moves on my website. I link the blog post from there so people on my site can click to see a description and possibly a picture. With only 9 post I only have 9 links. This is ten and moving forward.
Nia is a unique cardio dance exercise that combines nine movement forms into a fun and energizing workout. Nia has moves we call the 52 Moves. Many of them are common to other dances. I am posting here about Toes In, Out, and Parallel. I know I have seen these moves in other dances if not done together at least done separately.
To do the move as one move you start with your feet parallel to each other. They can be hip (joint) width apart. Then turn your toes in to face each other. Turn them in as far as you comfortably can. Then swivel your feet out so the toes are pointing in opposite directions. Again, only do it as far as you can — comfortably.
This is the whole move. There is a routine where we are in A Stance and I have the participants dance toes in then toes out. Which I consider a lot of fun. You can play with this move by trying to walk with toes facing in, then with toes facing out.
I like to play with the move by doing one foot toes in and out. Sometimes just letting one foot do a dance all of its own; in, out, in, out, tapping my toe to the ground with each twist of my leg. I also like to do this move with varying stances. My instructions here say to start in open stance, but it can easily be done in A Stance (as I mentioned I do in my Nia class). You’ll notice that different muscles are used when you change the width of your stance.
Moving the feet in this manner allows for all the bones in the leg to rotate which gets the thigh bones moving in the hip socket. Movement is a way to keep the joints health. Movement helps fluid into the joints. I say “juicy joints.” We move to have juicy joints.
In addition to helping the hip joint this move helps keep the ankles mobile and the knees flexible.
With healthy hip joints, ankle joints, and knee joints the enables walking and moving in general to be done with ease. So even though this is one of the moves we use in our dance exercise routines that does not mean the use of it is limited to that.
You can decide to walk with toes in for a bit during your day, then with toes out. While standing you can stand with toes in, then out, then parallel. It is an easy exercise to play with and incorporate into your day. And it really does help with the health of your joints.
Are you gonna do it? On your trip from your desk to the coffee pot? While you are going about your day with the kids? Which on in your favorite, in or out?
Posted in 52 Moves (of Nia), Nia | Tagged: 52 Moves of Nia, ankle joints, cardio dance exercise, dance exercise, Dance Workout, energizing workout, hip joint, juicy joints, knee joints, Nia, Nia friend, Nia routines, Nine Movement Forms, Toes In, Toes Out, Toes Parallel | 2 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on April 28, 2012
When I first discovered Nia I bought The Nia Technique Book to see if I would be able to do it. I don’t mean do it as in do the moves and participate in a class, I mean do it as in “get into it”, as in understand it. It sounded a bit “woo-woo” to me. Listening to your body, voices of the body, energy this, moving energy that. I wasn’t sure I could sync it up with my beliefs. But as I studied it more I realized that it is based on science. It involves human kinetics. Most of the moves, although called the 52 Nia moves are quite common and are seen in many other types of exercises and workouts. The ones that I consider unique are probably part of some other dance I am not familiar with. And the “woo-woo” part, well, I realized that it is woo-woo – at least that is how many people think of certain things like energy, chakras, mind-body, and body-mind practices. I mean look at yoga, when I was young that was one of the “woo-wooest” things around and now people have embraced it. There are so many types of yoga it is difficult to keep track. For some they just ignore the woo-woo while others embrace it because they realize it makes sense. I mean cultures have been using “woo-woo” stuff for centuries. There is meditation, herbs, chanting, drumming — all types of other things that some people think of woo-woo. The woo-woo must not be too far off base though because it seems to work. Recently my posts have been about healing sounds and making sounds, this post is about the vowel sounds related to the chakras and I am sure to some people it sounds a little, or maybe even a lot, “woo-woo”. But I like to imagine that if you are reading this you are somewhat open to new things — even woo-woo things. So you might be willing to try the healing sounds or even the vowel sounds of the chakras.
The vowel sounds related to the chakras are as follows:
CROWN CHAKRA: EEE as in “me”
BROW/THIRD EYE CHAKRA: AAA* as in “say”
THROAT CHAKRA: EYE as in “my”
HEART CHAKRA: AH as in “ma”
SOLAR PLEXUS CHAKRA: OH as in “go”
PELVIC CHAKRA: OOO as in “you”
ROOT CHAKRA: UH as in “cup”
The idea is to say these sounds in a specific note. If you have a keyboard or a phone with an app that has a keyboard or an app that can give you examples of the notes it might help you. Or you might be musical and know what the notes sound like.
EEE is to be made in the B note
AAA is to be made in the A note
EYE is to be made in the G note
AH is to be made in the F note
OH is to be made in the E note
OOO is to be made in the D note
And UH is to be made in the C note
These sounds are to help open and heal the chakras. Or to keep them balanced, all depends on your needs and your practice.
As with everything there is a wealth of information out there on how to “do” the vowels. The commonalities I am seeing is to sit comfortable with a lengthened spine. Be relaxed. Use a normal breath. Repeat each sound seven times.
I have used these sounds in my Nia classes when we are using a chakra as a focus. I am going to take this list and use the vowels sounds just as I did the healing sounds. The focus can be the chakra vowel sounds and we can create an intent from there. Yay! I love thinking of things to use as focuses in my classes. I also think that sitting down to make these sounds as a specific exercise is a good idea. What do you think about chakra vowels? Might you try the exercise?
*Many places note this as “AYE” but to me that is AYE, as in what a pirate says. So I noted it as AAA, like Fonzie would say. 🙂
Posted in Chakras, Nia, Sounding | Tagged: Chakra, chakra energy, chakra vowel sounds, chanting, crown chakra, dance class, dance exercise, Dance Workout, exercise class, Fonzie, Healing Sounds, heart chakra, mind-body workout, Nia, Nia class, Nia Moves, pelvic chakra, root chakra, solar plexus chakra, The Nia Technique book, third eye chakra, throat chakra, unique workout, workout class, Yoga | 9 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on December 8, 2011
I was talking about Nia with my Nia students recently after our Nia Class. They were telling me what they think Nia is. They said that Nia should come up if they were doing a search on the internet using the term dance exercise. I was really happy to hear that. I always get stuck when people ask me what Nia is because to me it is a lot of things. If you have read any of my posts on this blog about Nia you know how its principles can be applied to life and how at its very basic level it is a workout. But way beyond that it is a practice. When people ask me about it my enthusiasm takes over and I want to tell them ALL about Nia, when I could just stick to the basic level – it is dance and dance is exercise.
Even though it is exercise and it is a workout it is fun. I love that “Dancing With The Stars” really helped show people what a great workout dancing is. Dancers have always known that dancing is a great workout–both aerobic and strength. I think people have always known to some extent that PROFESSIONAL dancers get a workout, but I think that show opened the door to more people understanding that dancing even if you aren’t a professional is a workout. Yes, the “stars” do end up dancing as much as professionals to learn the dances, but still for some reason it seems like it enabled people to see that dancing is exercise—but it is fun!
As with any workout the participants can put what they want into it. If you really want to get a workout you can move bigger, farther, higher, lower, faster . . . whatever works for you to get the workout you need and want. The possibility to move small, slow, and just be mellow is always there. It is very versatile. It is cardio but if you really move — especially during floorplay — it can be a great strength training workout.
I actually started teaching Nia because it was a dance exercise. I don’t know if I have mentioned that before in this blog, but I was looking for something to teach that was very dance-y yet was exercise. I knew a lot of women who said they loved to dance and they would like to dance but their partners didn’t like it, so they thought that a workout that was dance would be great. It is. It is very fun. We dance to all types of music. There is a lot of opportunity for self-expression. Even when we are doing specific steps there is a lot of room for one’s own movements.
Nia was created to be fun, to address the entire being. Debbie Rosas-Stewart and Carlos Aya-Rosas brought us this wonderful movement practice through years of hard work and research, that started in 1983. Carlos retired at the end of 2010, and Debbie is moving Nia forward in a great direction. Body-centered, spirit-filling, and mind-blowing. We are dancing up a storm and loving it. It is dance, it is exercise, it is dance exercise and if you try it you will love it.
Posted in Nia | Tagged: aerobic workout, cardio workout, Carlos Rosas, dance exercise, dance practice, Dance Workout, Dancing with the stars, Debbie Rosas, Nia, Nia class, Nia Dance, Nia Practice, Nia students, Nia teachers, Nia workout, professional dancers, professional dancing, strength training workout, White Belt Principles | 4 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on October 20, 2011
Nia routines are choreographed movements to music. Nia’s choreography is pretty. In fact in many cases it is beautiful. Most Nia katas are based on the 52 Nia moves. Steps and moves have been carefully selected to fit with the music, for the most part. There are times when we are invited to just dance without a design. No matter the choreography we are always encouraged to dance in our own way–and that just might not be “pretty” to some people. The body — our bodies — the human body is put together in a specific way. Our parts are connected in a specific way. Movement is allowed and restricted by the way the body is constructed. Some bodies cannot move as was intended. Some bodies might have actual physical limitations that do not allow for soft, fluid, “pretty” movement. For some lifting their arm over their head might cause discomfort. It could be that they are not accustomed to lifting their arm that high so it might not be easy—at first. Some might have tight hamstrings or other muscles so their movement might be less than natural. But Nia is a journey, a practice. Over time the joints will loosen with practice and/or the muscles will become more flexible and be able to move with ease. It could become “pretty” or not. Nia might not be pretty, but it is authentic. It is not a performance. It is how our bodies move. Your body, my body, not the same body so we will move differently and it could be pretty or not. What I might think is pretty you might not. Let it be authentic.
Some bodies have other types of restrictions, could be mental or emotional. It could be, having been taught all her life “ladies” don’t move their hips “like that”, there is an automatic stop placed in her mind so her hips don’t thrust or gyrate. It could be that she thinks that movement is “ugly” so she won’t allow her body to do it. It could be that chipping away at that barrier will take time. And the learning might not be “pretty”. It might be choppy and not happen all at once. It could be that there is an emotion attached to a particular movement. An emotion can act as another type of mental block and not enable or allow the Nia participant to move as the body was designed. And that could, in turn, result in something that isn’t “pretty”. Nia might not be pretty, but it is authentic.
It could also be as previously mentioned — some have an idea of what moves are “pretty” and what moves are not, so for them maybe the “ugly” moves should be kept off of the dance floor, but Nia is not a performance. It is authentic movement of the body.
It could be an arm-raising, hair-whipping, sweat-dripping, face-reddening, body-jiggling, foot-stomping, voice-howling, eyes-crying, heart-softening, spirit-raising, mind-opening, body-moving dance exercise which, to some, just might not be pretty. It is not a show, it is not a performance it is a movement, it is a practice, it is a dance, it is an exercise, it is a workout, it is an experience, it is authentic. It is what you allow your body to do. It is what you want it to be. It is what you sense.
When we allow our bodies to move in an honest way we defer to the body’s intelligence. The body speaks to us, but we need to listen. It will tell us if what we are doing is causing pain so we can tweak the movement and move towards pleasure. Also we can learn which areas of our bodies would benefit from more flexibility or more strength if we listen. All the while, to someone who is expecting a performance this might appear “not pretty”. But to those who have experienced the freedom of listening to the body’s intelligence we see it as beautiful. We know there is a path, there is a journey.
I personally feel that it is beautiful when a participant moves to the music in a way that only s/he can move. Sometimes I might catch a glimpse of one of my Nia students and I have to remind myself that I too need to move according to the sense of the music because otherwise I would stop and watch. It is an amazing wonder to witness a surrender to the music. To some it might not be “pretty”, but it is truly beautiful. So dance your dance. Dance in your body’s way. Don’t judge. Don’t worry about if it is “pretty”. Movement is a glorious and beautiful gift to be enjoyed and not stifled. Let your movements be authentic and don’t worry about those who might think it is not pretty.
Posted in Nia | Tagged: body intelligence, dance exercise, dance performance, Dance Workout, Nia, Nia 52 moves, Nia choreography, Nia katas, Nia Music, Nia Practice, Nia routines, Nia students, the body's way | 4 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on September 29, 2011
Nia White Belts focus on the body. The body is what we can use to teach. It is fascinating. By the time we teach a routine in front of a class we should know the music and the choreography so well we don’t have to think about it. I know I have shared before about how there is a point where I can’t learn any more without taking it to the class. That is not necessarily the way we were trained to do it, but that is how I do it. I have worked on learning a routine, got as far as I felt I could go, taken it to class and only done it for one class before I go back and work on learning it some more. With that one class I was able to get past the learning plateau. But for the most part we know the music and the routine well by the time we share it with our Nia students. This allows us to concentrate on what we are sensing. This is White Belt Principle #13, Teaching What You Sense.
One of the Nia White Belt Manuals says:
While Nia impacts every aspect of our lives, it is first and foremost a somatic practice rooted in physical sensation.
© 2010 Nia Technique, Inc. | NiaNow.com Principle 13 Lesson Plan | 1
Teaching what we sense, what we are experiencing in our own bodies allows us to connect with what is going on in our students’ bodies. When I feel the stretch in my side, I can say, “Everybody sense your side.” This allows each participant, each individual body to sense what is going on in his or her own body. It could be a stretch. It could be a twinge which might be a signal to tweak the movement. Whatever is sensed belongs to the individual. I am not saying, “You SHOULD feel . . ” I don’t know exactly what they should sense. Each person is different. Nia teachers invite Nia students to SENSE parts of the body so each person can get the workout their body needs.
While we are dancing the moves we are showing the Nia students the Nia choreography, we are also guiding them with our words. In addition to guiding them through the Nia routine’s choreography we are guiding them through a somatic workout. A workout that is rooted in the Body’s Way. By teaching what my body is sensing participants learn what THEIR bodies are sensing and in turn we all learn our our own individual’s body’s way.
Learning all of this in a cardio dance workout class might seem like a lot, but it is something that happens over time. It might also sound different than other exercise classes, and that is because it is different. It is unique. Each class brings new awareness. When students desire to they can take what we touch upon in class out into their lives. Being aware of the body’s sensation as we live and go about our everyday chores and pleasures. We could call it “Noticing what we sense.” But for me, as a Nia teacher/student I am encouraged to teach what I sense and it makes a world of difference in the workout you receive.
Posted in Nia, Nia White Belt Principles | Tagged: cardio, cardio dance workout, Dance Workout, Nia cardio dance workout, Nia choreography, Nia class, Nia Music, Nia participants, Nia routine, Nia students, Nia teachers, Nia White Belt, somatic practice, the body's way, White Belt Principle #13 | 2 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on July 12, 2011
Nia is a cardio dance workout. We turn on music and we dance. We have Nia routines that we do to certain music or we can put the patterns to different music. We are not limited to these two choices this is just an example. We dance to music, we have fun, we don’t even realize we are exercising. To me, it is “like” Zumba in that way. But Nia is a practice. Nia has different levels and each level has principles. If you choose to experience the different levels you can, but even if not the principles of Nia can be applied to the workout and to life. To me, Nia is like Yoga because of the fact that some of the “stuff” you do in a workout can be applied to life. Since the ideas and principles of Nia can be applied to life they are not necessarily “new”, most of it is not made up by the creators of Nia. Some of it you might recognize and have heard elsewhere. It is the way it is applied and put together. I have stated this before . . . that things are not new, so you aren’t imaging that. I do like to repeat it because a lot of people have not heard of Nia so they might think it is something new and “way out there”, but it is not, it is based on science and things you know. Some of the things I am learning are things that I have to continue to “practice”. 🙂
Here are a few of the things, in no particular order:
–It is ok not to be perfect. That is not really the way we state it when we talk about it, but I have started many posts with what we really say and maybe one day I will post one, but I am not ready to deal with the spam and odd comments I might receive from our actually verbiage of this same idea. But basically we don’t have to do things perfectly. Which is really great because there really is no such thing.
—The Four Engery Allies are always something I am having to practice. (Speak with impeccability / Don’t assume anything / Don’t take anything personally / Always do your best)
–Even silence is music. We actually practice listening for the silences in our music. A lot can happen in a silence, it could be a birthing place for something spectacular. Or it could just be a place of rest and calm. Either way it is sometimes something to look forward to.
–Natural Time is a gift. Moving and living in ones own natural time and not having to do everything by the clock that society runs on, is not always possible. There are some things you just have to do, so when there is an opportunity to move and live in natural time I take advantage of it and I consider it a treasured gift.
–Live in the moment. I am always doing one thing and thinking another. We live in a society of multi-tasking. It is celebrated and even rewarded, but it is not joyful nor rewarding. Sometimes I forget why I walked into a room because I started walking there to do something and then after the first two steps my brain has already jumped to the next task. So I arrive in the room thinking, “What am I doing here? I know what I want to do when I am done with why I came in here, but I don’t know why I am here.” So this is something I am always having to practice.
All of these things are things we learn in our Nia workout. We don’t have to dance perfect, we have our energy allies when we dance, silence can be part of our movement, we move in our own natural time, and we move in the moment and dance to the music. All of these things work in and off the dance floor. So Nia teaches me a lot and it continues to teach me.
Posted in Nia | Tagged: cardio dance, cardio dance workout, dance exercise, Dance Workout, Energy Allies, exercise workout, joyful exercise, Natural Time, Nia, Nia Dance, Nia Movement, Nia Music, Nia Practice, Nia principles, Nia routines, Nia workout, Principles of Nia, Yoga, Yoga Practice, Yoga workout, Zumba, Zumba exercise, Zumba music, Zumba routines | 2 Comments »
Posted by terrepruitt on June 16, 2011
Music is a great motivator. Often times it is used to set a mood. Sometimes we even use it to memorize things. I’ve been putting on Lady Gaga’s album, The Fame or Katy Perry’s Teenage Dream album to do my Ten Minute Workout to. Such fun songs on both the albums. As you know the workout is only ten minutes so I don’t get through much of either album during the workout. Somtimes I am in a middle of a song and I just say or I’ll do some additional sit ups or whatever I am sensing I want more of. If not, like when I’m in a hurry, I carry the music about with me.
I often listen to Nia music (music that we use for Nia routines) because I am always wanting to learn it better. Or I am trying to learn a new routine (and sometimes that takes me awhile). But I don’t like to do a timed set of exercises to Nia routine music because I get distracted and start doing the Nia choreography or something else pops into my head and I move those moves to see it they fit. I do the same thing with other music — dance to it — but at least if I am doing specific moves new/other moves don’t pop into my head as with Nia routines which are always in my head so they just kind come out. 🙂
So this is MY placeholder. I will be back to report that I did my workout. What about you? How are you doing with it? What is your favorite song(s) to workout to?
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June 16, 2011 at 11:37 am
Ha! I am done. I was done awhile ago, but when I logged in to post I had a comment and I wanted to answer it. And as you can see it is longer than the original post. HA! I always do that when I comment. I do it on other people’s blog. My comment is longer than their post. Now I am doing it to myself!!!!
Well, anyway, today I did my little workout to Prince. What about you?
Posted in Ten Minute Workout check-in | Tagged: dance moves, Dance Workout, exercise music, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, motivator, Music as Motivation, Nia choreography, Nia exercises, Nia Moves, Nia Music, Nia routines, Nia workout, Prince, sit ups, Teenage Dream, ten minute workout, The Fame, workout music | 3 Comments »
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