Day 8 of 365 - The NIA Technique - What the Heck is That?
I've tried different exercise strategies over my lifetime, from looking at and trying to copy exercise routines shown in magazine articles as a teenager, to joining volleyball and track and field teams at school, to running on my own and swimming laps at the university pool or the Y, and eventually to doing group classes of different types as an adult.
You may wonder why someone who identifies as an introvert would like group classes. I think it's because it is a very focused, guided activity and I am 'just one of the crowd' unless I do something glaringly different, which believe me is rare. I've never been one who could stick with going to a gym and using a lot of equipment. And, one of the big appeals to me for the particular class I'm discussing today is that it is choreographed to music.
In the 80's sometime, I started going to aerobics classes at the Y which were routines done to music, often loud pounding music to motivate us. This was a combination of 'me time' and exercise time which I did a couple of times a week. At one point I signed up for a 90 minute high impact class once a week. It was a combination of fun and grueling but I thought it was good for me. Most of the attendees were younger than me. I usually stayed at the back of the room, struggling to keep up with those younger adults in their funky spandex while I wore sweat pants and a T shirt.
In the late 90's I was browsing our city recreational class guide and came across a few classes which were under the category of dance. Jazzercise was very popular at the time and I had thought of trying that but the class offered did not fit my schedule. There was another one called NIA, which I had never heard of, but it sounded interesting and fit my schedule, so I signed up for a series.
So what is NIA? To quote from Wikipedia - "The NIA Technique is a mind/body physical conditioning program that initially stood for Non-Impact Aerobics, a health and fitness alternative that emerged in the 80's, and evolved to include neurological integrative practices and teachings. The NIA Technique was founded in 1983 by Debbie Rosas and Carlos AyaRosas in the San Francisco area."
It was not yet popular in my city in the late 90's but that would change. The first class I went to was only a few people and the teacher in a big gym. Now I go to classes at a dance studio with sometimes twenty or more students depending on location.
NIA is based on movement forms from the dance arts, the healing arts and the martial arts, all choreographed in a specific way and flow to great music. It is done barefoot, best on a wooden dance floor if possible. There are many different routines, each designed by master teachers and then shared with qualified trained teachers of the technique who teach them to their students.
An important principle of NIA is that we experience the joy of movement. There are different levels and intensities for the choreographed movements but it is important to move in a way that feels good for you. There's no need to do exactly what the teacher is doing or even your other classmates for that matter.
I enjoyed my first NIA classes so much as a form of self-expression and body awareness as well as a type of fitness, that over time I began attending them three times a week, which I generally still do. There is a great NIA community in my city, of both teachers and students, and I have made several great friends there. It is as much a social time for me as a fitness time.
Our community is fortunate to now have multiple teachers in a few different locations so we can choose times that work for us and also experience different styles of teaching and different routines.
NIA has been, and continues to be a big contributor to my health and vitality in body, mind and spirit. If you are interested in seeing what it is like there are many videos available online which show excerpts from classes. And by the way, I now have my own funky dance wear which is part of the fun.
You may wonder why someone who identifies as an introvert would like group classes. I think it's because it is a very focused, guided activity and I am 'just one of the crowd' unless I do something glaringly different, which believe me is rare. I've never been one who could stick with going to a gym and using a lot of equipment. And, one of the big appeals to me for the particular class I'm discussing today is that it is choreographed to music.
In the 80's sometime, I started going to aerobics classes at the Y which were routines done to music, often loud pounding music to motivate us. This was a combination of 'me time' and exercise time which I did a couple of times a week. At one point I signed up for a 90 minute high impact class once a week. It was a combination of fun and grueling but I thought it was good for me. Most of the attendees were younger than me. I usually stayed at the back of the room, struggling to keep up with those younger adults in their funky spandex while I wore sweat pants and a T shirt.
In the late 90's I was browsing our city recreational class guide and came across a few classes which were under the category of dance. Jazzercise was very popular at the time and I had thought of trying that but the class offered did not fit my schedule. There was another one called NIA, which I had never heard of, but it sounded interesting and fit my schedule, so I signed up for a series.
So what is NIA? To quote from Wikipedia - "The NIA Technique is a mind/body physical conditioning program that initially stood for Non-Impact Aerobics, a health and fitness alternative that emerged in the 80's, and evolved to include neurological integrative practices and teachings. The NIA Technique was founded in 1983 by Debbie Rosas and Carlos AyaRosas in the San Francisco area."
It was not yet popular in my city in the late 90's but that would change. The first class I went to was only a few people and the teacher in a big gym. Now I go to classes at a dance studio with sometimes twenty or more students depending on location.
NIA is based on movement forms from the dance arts, the healing arts and the martial arts, all choreographed in a specific way and flow to great music. It is done barefoot, best on a wooden dance floor if possible. There are many different routines, each designed by master teachers and then shared with qualified trained teachers of the technique who teach them to their students.
An important principle of NIA is that we experience the joy of movement. There are different levels and intensities for the choreographed movements but it is important to move in a way that feels good for you. There's no need to do exactly what the teacher is doing or even your other classmates for that matter.
I enjoyed my first NIA classes so much as a form of self-expression and body awareness as well as a type of fitness, that over time I began attending them three times a week, which I generally still do. There is a great NIA community in my city, of both teachers and students, and I have made several great friends there. It is as much a social time for me as a fitness time.
Our community is fortunate to now have multiple teachers in a few different locations so we can choose times that work for us and also experience different styles of teaching and different routines.
NIA has been, and continues to be a big contributor to my health and vitality in body, mind and spirit. If you are interested in seeing what it is like there are many videos available online which show excerpts from classes. And by the way, I now have my own funky dance wear which is part of the fun.
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