Nia Fitness?

[qos]

Has anyone heard about or practiced Nia Fitness?

There was a poster about it at the dance studio last night, and I just looked it up online.

First, any fitness system that has "Celebrating Pleasure" as a tagline is a system I want to check out -- especially given the way my inner life has been moving lately.

This is what I found on a website:

Nia Blends Nine Movement Forms
Martial Arts: T’ai Chi, Tae Kwon Do, Aikido
Dance Arts: Jazz Dance, Modern Dance, Duncan Dance
Healing Arts: Yoga, Alexander Technique, The Teachings of Moshe Feldenkrais

Nia teaches you how to physically interpret and internally direct your actions and choices, and to listen to the voice of your body and allow the body to be your guide in discovering Dynamic Ease. Practiced barefoot to music, Nia is self-guided, adaptable and safe for any fitness level, from stiff beginners to highly fit athletes. Delivering cardiovascular, whole-body conditioning, Nia is based on creating a loving relationship with the body and following The Body’s Way – the innate intelligence of the body.

It sounds like a wonderful antidote to the estrangement from my body that I've experienced for much of my life. One of the things I like is that there are 52 basic movements, but each is expressed at three different levels of intensity.

I'm going to contact the teacher and find out more. . .

Comments

[blessed-harlot.livejournal.com]

When I was involved in InterPlay, we were often sharing space with Nia instructors. It appeared as though there would be some common ground there, and I think I knew an InterPlayer or two that enjoyed Nia as well. I didn't know much about it, but it looked like something I could be interested in.

[blessed-harlot.livejournal.com]

Oh, I didn't know of its connection to Alexander and Feldenkrais tchniques. Interestinger and interestinger. Those are two other "one of these days" areas for me.

[qos.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the input! I thought of you several times while reading the material.

I had a small introduction to Alexander Technique during my theater major years, and it was amazing. I loved the table work, during which the instructor put her hands on us and "suggested" the body relax into better alignment. I felt amazingly light and open afterward.

I've forgotten most of it over the years, but I still remember some of the basic alignment directions and try to draw on them.

[royalbananafish.livejournal.com]

I've done Nia. (The founders, and their studio, are in Portland, OR.) The first class I went to was just "eh." The two friends who came with me did not like it, which probably influenced how I felt about it. The second and third I liked. I didn't go more because I started to do the Roth Nine Rhythms and was taking bellydance and Irish dance three nights a week.

The classes had all body types, which I liked. The focus was always something positive. Also good. I think the "belt" system for instructors is silly, and most martial arts devotees sniff loudly at the assertion that Nia borrows anything from them. (I didn't necessarily see much from yoga either, besides the admonition to listen to what your body needs and go at your own pace.)

There is a book about it that is decent enough, but you'll get more of a technical guide than an embodied experience. I'd say just go, without expectations, and try it. Try more than one instructor; as with all disciplines, they vary wildly.

[qos.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the insights.

There are two different classes relatively close by, and I'm going to check them out.