Hello Friends!
Gravity
- "What goes up must come down." We can't see Gravity, touch or smell
Gravity yet all of us can identify with its most common sensation...its
pull of our body towards earth.
But what about the gravitational pull from above? Do you ever connect
to the sensation of an upward gravitational pull? It is there - the
heavenly pull of gravity from the moon, the sun and the stars - the
Universe Think
about it. If the upward pull was not present we would be pulled into
the center of the Earth. We also know it is there by observing nature.
A plant has roots and its stems rise up to heaven. Gravity is a
universal force that acts on everything - it pulls us toward the earth
and pulls us toward the heavens.
What
I notice is most people surrender into the downward pull of gravity. I
see it in meetings with people hunched over their laptops, with their
spine and head collapsed; or slumped in chairs with shoulders drawn in.
People driving down the freeways of life hoovering over their steering
wheels with chins leaning out and the back of their neck compressed.
And then there are the 100s of people walking through their day with
their heads down! No wonder we have a society in pain - we are allowing
gravity to pull on our faces, necks, spine, shoulders, chest, back, organs, hips, legs and feet!! Did
you know you are actually taller in the morning than at night due to
temporary, daily compression of your body? And that most people shrink
between a quarter of an inch and five inches every decade
after 40 due to compression!!
In
Nia class this week we will connect and play with this dual
gravitational pull from earth and heaven, with the intent to experience a
sensation of balance, lightness and decompress our body. If we let our
body move upward, like a flame, we can actually release our joints and
connective tissue, allow our organs to float, our spine to extend and
create more space in our body. I have been playing with this sensation
over that last few days and it is amazing! This dual sensation has the
power to make me feel taller and release tension in my body. Surrounded
by chaos of the day, connection to the upward sensation of gravity also
calms me and connects me back to the joy of life. AHH!!. BLISS..
where I am connected and nurtured from heaven and earth. Ascending and
descending. Flying and grounding. Right now, take a
moment and close your eyes and allow your feet to be on the earth.
Smell the moment and connect with the sensation of a flame inside. While
feeling supported below, allow your body to connect with lightness and
the heavenly pull from above. Breathe...Relax. When you are ready,
open your eyes and walk around the room and sense your body. What do
you sense?
This play of dual gravitational pull is weaved throughout Nia to
help us live gracefully and fully in our body. The Alexander Technique,
movement from the top, invites us to direct our torso up, out, and
away from our hips. The Alexander Technique reminds us that heaven has a
gravitational force, calling to us, supporting us, and encouraging us
to lengthen and reach out and up while dancing and in life. The 3
planes of movement, part of Principle 7, invites us to shift our weight
instead of dropping our body into earth, and then connect to the energy
above so we can effortlessly sink and rise, ebb and flow, while
conditioning our body. X-Ray anatomy, Principle 10, reminds us our
posture is dynamic and through sensation and awareness of energy up,
down, and all around us, we can rearrange our bones vertically,
horizontally and rotationally to bring healing and pleasure into our
body.
So let's connect with Bliss this week, that sensation of support
from Heaven and Earth. You might just grow a few inches!! See you on
the dance floor! My classes this week:
Thursday at 5:30 pm
Saturday at 9:30 am
and Sunday at 4:00 pm
all at http://www.thesynergystudio.com.
Learn
more and go deeper into the connection with you body and your life by
taking a Nia White Belt Intensive. Check out my trainings with Adelle
Brewer at: http://www.nianow.com/joanie
Love & Light,
Joanie Brooks, Nia Training Faculty, Nia White Belt Trainer, Nia 5 Stages of Healing Facilitator, Journey Dance Facilitator, Mindful Change Coach
http://www.joaniebrooks.me/
Nia - Somatic Education for EveryBody. Nia is an expressive movement
form & lifestyle practice that uses The Body's Way to achieve
physical, mental, emotional & spiritual fitness & well-being."
75 trillion cells in your body…Play with them all with Nia!
Hello my Nia Friends!!!
Many
of you have met and danced with my nephew Conrad in my Nia classes, and
this month he turns 10! In my family we love to celebrate birthdays
all month long (sometimes longer..hee hee), and Conrad's birthday is no
exception. His birthday is July 24th and I have already started the
celebration!! In the Mayan cosmology, 10 is the number of Manifestation, the number that allows manifestation to occur. In honor of my dear nephew, I am focusing on manifestation in class this week. Conrad is a manifestation of healing. My sister Liz's purpose for Conrad ever since his accident has been to
help him reach his maximum potential. She has manifested this
with his therapy and healers that have come into his life; and most recently
through her research and development of a Pilot Study to improve the understanding and treatment of
anoxic brain injury. Many of you
have also contributed to Conrad's manifestation of healing through your prayers,
actions and words, and I hope you will join me and my fellow Nia
teachers on Thursday at 5:30 pm, for a special Nia class to dance and celebrate Conrad's self manifestation.
I believe the key to manifestation
is clear intention and purpose, with a grounding in love. Liz and
Conrad have demonstrated this. Debbie and Carlos Rosas clearly proved
this when they co-created Nia. Nia was founded based on the premise
that fitness
could feel better, be fun and cater to the whole person. And it is and
does!!! Nia is a Joyful Manifestation of body, mind, emotions and
spirit that inspires unlimited possibilities for healing. Nia is based
on the foundation of self love, and teaches people the art of living in a body through movement that awakens us to the sensations of our body! Nia
has been the container for me to reach my potential and my
manifestation of health, well being and transformation, and has given me
the path to become a Sacred Athlete, a teacher and healer to all
people. My life purpose is to give love and healing light to everyBody,
and I manifest this with every Nia class, workshop and training. This is why I practice, teach and train the body of work called Nia!!!
What does your heart desire to manifest? Join me this week in dance and manifestation. As Isadora Duncan says: "The dancer's body is simply the luminous manifestation of the soul." See you on the dance floor!
My classes this week:
Monday at 5:30 pm
Thursday at 5:30 pm: Special birthday celebration class with Joanie, Jan, Adelle, Sandy and Angie.
Saturday at 9:30 am
and Sunday at 4:00 pm
all at http://www.thesynergystudio.com.
Learn
more and go deeper into the connection with you body and your life by
taking a Nia White Belt Intensive. Check out my trainings with Adelle
Brewer at: http://www.nianow.com/joanie
Love & Light,
Joanie Brooks, Nia Training Faculty, Nia White Belt Trainer, Nia 5 Stages of Healing Facilitator, Journey Dance Facilitator, Mindful Change Coach
http://www.joaniebrooks.me/
Nia - Somatic Education for EveryBody. Nia is an expressive movement
form & lifestyle practice that uses The Body's Way to achieve
physical, mental, emotional & spiritual fitness & well-being."
75 trillion cells in your body…Play with them all with Nia!
Happy 4th of July Week my Nia Friends!
Blessings
to everyBody as we step into the 4th of July celebration week. This
week I am bringing back my Nia routine, called El Momento! The focus of the routine is Form and Freedom with the intent for you to uniquely & creatively express the
spirit of your Nia dance (Freedom) in every movement (Form).
This routine explores the forms of Nia (Movement forms, 52 moves, 7
cycles, music, choreography) as an inspiration into Freedom and
expression of your spirit, your uniqueness, your creativity. The simple
patterns, steps, stances and kicks allow you to develop your skill of
the movements, and by connecting to body sensations and the music, the
free expression of your body will unfold bringing Freedom &
creativity to your movements.
Your Body’s Way in the Now, the Moment, El Momento. Use form to
find freedom and use freedom to transcend your form. As a Sacred
Athlete, the potential is limitless as your freedom comes alive with
your creativity, beauty and expression. Join me on the dance
floor...let's celebrate and create fireworks!!! Plus full moon on
Tuesday...WOW!!
My classes this week:
Monday and Thursday at 5:30 pm, and
Saturday at 9:30 am
all at http://www.thesynergystudio.com.
Love & Light,
Joanie Brooks, Nia Training Faculty, Nia White Belt Trainer, Nia 5 Stages of Healing Facilitator, Journey Dance Facilitator, Mindful Change Coach
http://www.joaniebrooks.me/
Nia - Somatic Education for EveryBody. Nia is an expressive movement
form & lifestyle practice that uses The Body's Way to achieve
physical, mental, emotional & spiritual fitness & well-being."
75 trillion cells in your body…Play with them all with Nia!
