Terre Pruitt's Blog

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

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Posts Tagged ‘Nia workouts’

Levels of Teaching

Posted by terrepruitt on May 22, 2010

A lot of workouts have different levels of doing.  The second half* of Nia White Belt Principle #7 is (Intensity) Levels of Teaching.  So to a participant of Nia that would be levels of doing.  The different level in Nia are like most workout classes: level 1, level 2, and level 3.

In a Nia class, participants are always invited to try all the levels, if comfortable.  The idea is really to learn the value of each level. Trying the different levels allows the body to learn different things.  Also the changes in movements stimulates the brain.  Often times your energy level might dictate the actually level of intensity you are participating in during a particular class or kata, but that is up to you.  No level is “better” than the other one, the best one is what is good for you and your body. You, as the person that lives in your body everyday, are the only one that can truly decide which level is right for you, which level at any given moment is going to bring you most Joy.

As a Nia teacher, it is my job to show the participants three different levels.  It is also my job to encourage you to try each level.  It is important to remember that YOUR level 1 might not be the same as MY level 1, the same with levels 2 and 3.  It is up to you, as a participant, to find your different levels and play with and play in all three.

When you experience the different levels during your Nia workout you will learn to allow muscles that might be tired to rest and learn to stimulate other muscles.  In addition playing with the different levels will enable you to experience Nia routines in a new light and a different way.

So go.  In your next Nia class or your first Nia class try all three different levels.  Remember that everyBODY’s levels are different!

*The first half of Nia White Belt Principle #7 is the Three Planes of Movement.

Posted in Nia, Nia White Belt Principles | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Energy Allies

Posted by terrepruitt on March 30, 2010

When I attended the Nia White Belt Intensive I had not heard of the Four Agreements so I was very captivated by what we refer to as our Energy Allies.  When I decided to attend the Intensive I had only been to four Nia classes and I had decided I wanted to teach it.  I had no idea what to expect.  So these Energy Allies came in handy for me.

We call them friends and rely on them as you would friends.  I am posting these because I often need to be reminded of my friends and I thought I would share them with you.

I was taught:

1–Speak with impeccability
–We were reminded to stay “on task”.  Often times in a group setting questions are asked that do not actually relate to the subject being discussed.  Or people like to tell stories about something “sort of” related to the subject.
–We were also instructed to use “I”.  When we talk we often tend to project what we are saying instead of saying “I”.

2–Don’t assume anything
–Don’t “make up” stories in our head.  We don’t really always know what the story is so we shouldn’t make it up.
-Quiet our inner mind’s conversation.

3–Don’t take anything personally
–Don’t get caught up in self-pity or self importance.
–Try not to get emotional about a comment.

4–Always do your best
–No holding back
–Follow instruction
–Recognize what is required

I thought this was a GREAT way to start a seminar or in this case an “intensive”.  I wished we could have employed these agreements when I was a corporate trainer.  I think they really assist in keeping the group on task.  When people are allowed to share information that pertains to the subject yet understand that off topic issues will be put on a back burner, that helps keep the subject flow steady.  Keeping the inner mind silent assists in hearing what is being said.  Not taking comments that were made personally allowed the information to be given and received so that it could be useful and not destructive.  Following instructions assisted with the energy in the room.  When we all understood what was required we were all able to focus on the moment’s assignment.

Keeping these four allies around really enabled our group to keep our energy going.  When listening is not at a premium and/or people are emotional about something it really can zap the energy of the collective.

These are friends that can be invited to anything in one’s life.  Do you have these Energy Allies as your friends?  Or are you familiar with the Four Agreements?

Posted in Nia | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments »

Wearing Weights During Nia

Posted by terrepruitt on February 2, 2010

Weighted Hand Gloves from Beachbody

I have heard people ask about this a few times.  Sometimes people want to wear ankle weights or wrist weights while in a Nia class.  I personally would strongly recommend against this.  Nia is not like other types of movement forms, where you can wear weights.  In Turbo Jam for example, Chalene Johnson is wearing weights in one of the workouts.  And her crew is wearing them in other workouts but the movements in the Turbo Jam workouts are different.  They are very linear. When you move in lines the chance of injury is less.  Chalene’s workouts are designed to be done with weights and even then she cautions on using the correct weight and using them carefully.  In Nia we move in spirals, circles, we bend, we stretch, we practice falling off balance in order to practice catching ourselves.  With weights added to that it could be dangerous.

In Nia we do have punches and kicks which are linear and could possibly be done with weights, but in our routines right after a punching sequence we might have a spiral spinal movement where we use our hands to help activate our spine and this is the type of movement that could easily lead to injury if there were extra weight on our hands/wrists.

I also think since Nia is so body centered weights would interfere with the connection to the body.  While you could sense the sensation of weight on your wrist it does not seem the same as connecting to your own body without the added weight.  I believe one of the purposes of Nia or one of the exciting aspects of Nia is that we strive to learn to sense what our body’s messages are.  What does our body FEEL like . . . not our feelings, but our sensations.  And if we add weights to that is could be distracting.  It could keep us from being able to truly sense the different energies that we are bringing into the workout.

As an example, and I have stated something like this before, if you move your arm gently you could say it is energize with Duncan Dance or Modern Dance.  If you do the same movement, but apply the energies from one of the Martial Arts the sensation would be entirely different.  Yet with a weight attached to your wrist it might be difficult to go back and forth between the gentle and the strong. The message being transmitted from the limb would be very different with a weight attached.  To me it would seem as if the connection was to the weight and not my body.

So, my conclusion and recommendation when it comes to using weights and Nia is: don’t do it.  The risk of injury is too great, plus, I believe you would miss out on one of the fundamentals of Nia and that is connecting to the body . . . . YOUR body.

Posted in Nia | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Twitter

Posted by terrepruitt on September 5, 2009

Twitter is interesting.  Twitter is nothing to be afraid of.  Twitter is a tool to be used as one sees fit.  Unlike a hammer that basically has a specific use, Twitter can be used in different ways.  I have some friends that use it as a main source of instant communication:  “Hey, ya wanna go to lunch today?”,  “Meet me at . . .”,  “I am in front of the fountain.”  And other people just pump out their business information with no conversation at all.  I think that however you want to use it is fine.  It all works.  Everyone is different, do what you want. I use twitter to meet new people, to connect with people, learn things, introduce people to Nia, get the word out about my business, and make kissy faces at my husband.

So that last part doesn’t really fall under what I think of as my “business account” but it sneaks in every once in awhile.  (Shrug!)  That is what is so great about it.  It is MY account and I can use it like I want.

I do actually try to manage my account, and here again, people can manage their accounts all different ways.

I use TweetDeck to see stuff all at once:  tweets of people I am following, mentions, DMs, and other columns I have set up.  Then I use Twitter.com to look at my list of new followers and look at their profiles.  I also use Twitter.com sometimes because DMs and “mentions” come to it faster than TweetDeck.  Also, I look at my tweets from Twitter.com.  I try NOT to tweet a bunch of tweets in a row especially if they are “general” tweets.  Sometimes I am having a conversation and so they are in rapid succession.  Twitter.com allows me to see them all in a stream and when I am sending out Nia information or business announcements I try to space them out.

TweetDeck allows you to do some of these things too, but I like Twitter.com for some things.

I also use Mr. Tweet to see who that system recommends.

I use FriendorFollow.com to see who I am following but who is not following me (“following”).  It also shows you who is following you that you are not following (“fans”) and it shows you who you are following that is following you (“friends”).

I also use Twittergrader to sometimes check who is following me.  Friendorfollow is not always accurate.  I also use Twittergrader to see who I can follow in my area.   One of my goals of being on Twitter, as I mentioned,  is to expose people to Nia and along with that I want to obtain students for my Nia exercise classes.  So I try to follow people in San Jose, Los Gatos, Milpitas, Mountain View, and basically the Bay Area, so that I can see local tweets and maybe they will follow me back.  Sometimes that works out.

As you can see if you know anything about any of these programs this is a very rough overview.  If you don’t know anything about anything I have just mentioned then—perfect, I told you something new hopefully without confusing and overwhelming you.  Just go to these sites and check it out. I promise you can’t break them nor the internet!  From these sites you can work on managing your twitter account or get information on your account.

There are so many systems and programs to use.  It is amazing and overwhelming.  Just try it.  Don’t be afraid of it.  Have fun.  Be safe.

If you already use different sites and programs, what do you use?  How do you use it?  Please leave a comment and share with me and my readers because I am not an expert.  I am just learning and I love to hear about all the other stuff out there.

Posted in Twitter | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »