Energy of Your Heart!

Good morning Dancing Friends!

In the glow of completing my 10th Nia White Belt training, my heart is open wide and full of love for my family, friends and YOU, my fellow dancers.  Movement is medicine, and through movement we find health and joy!! 

Focusing on the Energy of Your Heart this week, I will be facilitating a JourneyDance™ - Energy of the Heart (Click on the word JourneyDance and it will take you to the registration) workshop this Saturday, June 21, from 3-5:00 pm at Total Yoga Harmony Studio in The Alley on Bitters.  Wonderful studio!  I have a few spots left and would love for you to join me.  Cost is $25 if you register before this Thursday, then it goes to $35.  You will love the dance and the movement exercises.  Register a partner!! 

Take a deep breath with me and then release with the sound "AHHH", and let this sound vibrate and expand your heart.  Have you ever noticed how we use this sound when something deeply touches us, or when settling into the arms of a loved one?  Now, place your hand on your heart, in the center of your chest, and sense the beating, the unique rhythm of your heart.  Did you know that every day your heart beats about 100,000 times, sending 2,000 gallons of blood surging through your body? Although it’s no bigger than your fist, your heart keeps blood flowing through 60,000 miles of blood vessels that feed your organs and tissues...your entire being!  Your incredible heart! 

In Nia we shimmy, use chest isolation's, and spinal undulations; we smell the moment, sing, laugh, cry, growl, say Yes and No, all to move the energy and condition our heart.  We also connect within and with each other as we dance, making our heart strong and resilient.  Join me in Nia class this week...your heart will thank you!!

My classes this week:
Thursday Nia at 5:30 pm
Saturday Nia at 9:30 am
and Sunday at 4:00 pm
all at The Synergy Studio

Love & Light,
Joanie Brooks,
Nia Training Faculty, Nia White Belt Trainer, Nia 1st Degree Black Belt

Journey Dance Facilitator Nia 5 Stages of Healing Facilitator
Mindful Change Coach
Laughter Yoga Leader

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!

Art of Sensation - Nia White Belt Intensive this Thuraday in San Antonio!!!

Hello Dancing Friends!!

I am excited!  This week (Thursday to be specific) Adelle and I will be facilitating a Nia white belt intensive at The Synergy Studio.  The Nia White Belt is 7 days dedicated to U, your body and your life.  You go deep into each one of the 13 principles of the Nia White Belt where you create a loving relationship with yourself and your body.  Nia is more than a fitness class and the one hour dance...Nia is a life style practice, and many of the tools we learn in the white belt we can use in our life to manage stress, enhance relationships, create a balanced life, and bring more joy and pleasure in our life.  We also explore techniques using body, voice, intent, mind, emotions and unique spirit to master getting into and living in your body.

There is still room if you would like to step in with us!  Let me know.  We also have another training here in October.  You can register at:  http://www.nianow.com/node/800224.  Empower yourself, open up to your potential and step into your greatness!

So let's get ready to dance this week in class.  The schedule of classes during the intensive is below and I invite you to join us and welcome our wonderful trainees.  It will be magical and your support is appreciated!

My Nia classes this week:

Monday, 5:30 pm.  Focus:  13 principles of Nia (YAY!!!)

Thursday, 5:30 pm (start of intensive).  Team teaching with Adelle.  Focus:   Joy of Movement
Friday, 5:30 pm.  Team teaching with Adelle.  Focus:  Natural Time and the 9 Movement Forms
Saturday, 9:30 am.  Team teaching with Adelle.  Focus:  Base
Sunday, 4:00 pm.  Team teaching with Adelle.  Focus:  Core

The intensive is a split weekend and will pick back up on Friday, June 13th.   EveryBody have a wonderful week!

Love & Light,
Joanie Brooks,
http://www.joaniebrooks.me/
Nia Training Faculty, Nia White Belt Trainer, Nia 1st Degree Black Belt

Journey Dance Facilitator Nia 5 Stages of Healing Facilitator
Mindful Change Coach
Laughter Yoga Leader

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!

Dancing our Freedom!

“That's what it takes to be a hero, a little gem of innocence inside you that makes you want to believe that there still exists a right and wrong, that decency will somehow triumph in the end”...Lise Hand

Happy Memorial Day!

Celebrate your freedom and your gratitude to our hero's  who have bravely stood for our peace and freedom.  Today at 5:30 pm at The Synergy Studio we will dance to one of my favorite Nia routines, Mood Food, celebrating freedom.  "Throw off any Shackles" (1st song - HA!) that inhibit your freedom, and express your free spirit!   Another song we will dance to is called Spiritual High III and it puts to music the infamous  speech "I have a Dream" by Martin Luther King, Jr.  After all these years of dancing to this song, I still get chills...it is about freedom!!

The rest of the week I hope you will help me celebrate my birthday, as we dance to some of my Nia favorites - so many to chose from! 

Have a safe and JOYous day and I'll see you on the dance floor!

My classes this week:

Monday (today) and Thursday at 5:30 pm
Saturday at 9:30 am
Sunday at 4:00 pm all at The Synergy Studio

 

Interested in the Nia White Belt Intensive? 

There is still room!!!  Our next training in San Antonio is a split weekend that starts at 3:00 pm on Thursday, June 5 and goes through Sunday June 8. The next weekend is June 13, 14 and 15 (Friday, Saturday and Sunday). This is a PERFECT opportunity to take the Nia White Belt w/out having to take a full week from work.

Love & Light,
Joanie Brooks,
http://www.joaniebrooks.me/
Nia Training Faculty, Nia White Belt Trainer, Nia 1st Degree Black Belt

Journey Dance Facilitator Nia 5 Stages of Healing Facilitator
Mindful Change Coach
Laughter Yoga Leader

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!

Sacred Geometry - Creating Shapes in Space!

"It is our tunnel vision and singular sense of identity that often limits our sense of our own possibilities - and yet it is the genius of humans to imagine being something we are not and thus to extend what we indeed are"  Jean Houston, The Possible Human

Hello Dancing Friends!
Whether I am aware or not, every shape I make with my body contributes to the world of symbols, patterns, numbers and shapes of creation.  Sacred Geometry...the energy that unifies all things and the organization of the Universe itself.  Take a moment right now, pause and sense the shape you have created.  Sense your shoulders, sense the direction of your toes, sense your head, sense your chest.  How does this shape feel?  What does your body tell you about your shape?  Does it bring your body pleasure, healing, pain?  Through the art of sensation I can sense my bones and notice what shape I have created in space, and also bring consciousness to how my shape contributes to the well being of my body.  So many times, I may move through life with my habits and not notice what I am creating in space.  Can you relate?  The gift of Nia and the art form of Modern Dance honors the sacred geometry of my body and invites me to be aware of every movement, and how every movement is sacred and has the potential to be purposeful and healing.  With 206 bones and 700+ muscles in my body, I have unlimited ways to birth and create movement.  With this comes transformation, healing and play that helps free my spirit. Exploration of movement ignites my imagination, and allows me to be an artist in motion, where my body is the paint and the space around me is my canvas.  Sacred, healing and contributing to Universal Art!!  Ha!  I love it. 

Let's play in space this week as we dance and honor the sacred geometry of our body.  Who knows what we will create!  See you on the dance floor!

Lot of Opportunities to create and dance!  My classes this week:

Monday, Thursday and Friday at 5:30 pm
Thursday morning at 6:45 am
and Saturday at 9:30 am all at The Synergy Studio

And join me Sunday Morning, May 25th at 10:00-11:15 for JourneyDance™, The Prayer Circle at The Synergy Studio.

You are the Prayer; your body, your movement, your breath. You are the Goddess; your passion, your emotions, your sensual heart. You are the Warrior; your power, your intentions, your life's journey.   The JourneyDance™ Prayer Circle  is a  community movement event of deep expression and celebration. We begin with inspirational story, then set our inner most intentions and spark our personal dreams.  We embark as moving prayers, holding sacred space for our community in a dance that builds from solo, to partner, to group and beyond.  We learn the power of witnessing and inspiration.  We learn the power of being seen in free expression.  We allow evocative music to invigorate our emotions and our dancing to unfold us into true appreciation and celebration of our praise-worthy Self. 

 We're gonna praise you like we should!   $15 or a punch on your studio card.

  

Love & Light,
Joanie Brooks,

Nia Training Faculty, Nia White Belt Trainer, Nia 1st Degree Black Belt

Journey Dance Facilitator Nia 5 Stages of Healing Facilitator
Mindful Change Coach
Laughter Yoga Leader

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!
 

Hands - Connecting and Supporting!!!

“Sometimes, reaching out and taking someone's hand is the beginning of a journey. At other times, it is allowing another to take yours.”
― Vera Nazarian, The Perpetual Calendar of Inspiration

Reaching out and sending you a big hug!  I've missed you and have just returned from an awesome 6 days of JourneyDance Facilitator training in Lenox, Massachusetts.  And I'm ready to dance with you!  I love expanding and connecting to fellow beings who love to dance and enrich their connection to their body and life, and I am honored to have met new connections and hands of support that will always be with me.  So this week we will play with our hands as we connect and support each other - giving and receiving. 

Our hands build, create, connect, nurture, support and heal. They provide warmth and tenderness, as well as protection, and have the power to silently say “stop,” or “stay away", "come towards me" or "go this way".   We can use our hands to direct energy to an area of our body that needs healing, for ourselves and others. How wonderful does it feel when a friend or loved one places their hand on your shoulder when you need reassurance or support; or a soft touch on your cheek that communicates you are loved?  Our hands have this special form of communication that does not require words. 

When we focus on our hands, we support the movement of our arms to come from their roots - the core of our body. Hand gestures that include movement of the fingers and wrists, help to engage the joints of the elbow, shoulder, and shoulder blades; and condition all the muscles in your arms.   Softening of the hands, soften our heart. Tense the hands and the tiger from within emerges. Shake the hands and the snake charmer sends tingling sensations throughout your entire body. When our hand gestures match what we feel inside, our body feels that the dance is authentic and real.

So reach out and connect with someone, embrace their support, and then give your loving support.  Place your hands on your heart and sense the connection inside and your own internal support.  He/she is there, softly placing hands on your back and whispering "Lean into me, I have your back.".  I cannot wait to dance with you!!!!

My classes this week:

Monday and Thursday at 5:30 pm

Wednesday Somatic Awakening at 6:45 am
Saturday at 9:30 am

and Sunday at 4:00 pm all at The Synergy Studio

Interested in the Nia White Belt Intensive? 

There is still room!!!  Our next training in San Antonio is a split weekend that starts at 3:00 pm on Thursday, June 5 and goes through Sunday June 8. The next weekend is June 13, 14 and 15 (Friday, Saturday and Sunday). This is a PERFECT opportunity to take the Nia White Belt w/out having to take a full week from work. 

Love & Light,
Joanie Brooks,

Nia Training Faculty, Nia White Belt Trainer, Nia 1st Degree Black Belt

Nia 5 Stages of Healing Facilitator, Journey Dance Guide, Mindful Change Coach and Laughter Yoga Leader

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!

Dancing Through Life!

“Dance is the hidden language of the soul” - Martha Graham

​Good morning fellow dancers!

This week we celebrate National Dance week!  EveryBody is a dancer and EveryBody is meant to dance.  I know this...watch a baby/young child when they hear music.  They autoMagically start to dance and move with the rhythm.  Rhythm is a part of our body and our life...our unique heart beat, our unique breath, the rhythm of the sun, the moon and the stars.  Everywhere!!

Nia invites us to always be a dancer no matter what we are doing.  It is called Dancing Through Life...where every day movements feel like a dance.  When I'm unloading dishes out of the dishwasher, it is a dance of folding and unfolding my bones as I release down to pick up a dish and then reach up to store it on the shelf above.    As I walk through the grocery store it is a dance of flexibility as I reach for what I desire on the top shelf.  I'm may even get to act as if I wearing high heels!  HA!  When I hug my loved ones, it is a dance of touch and embrace as I rock side to side.  AHHH - I love that dance!

Take the opportunity to connect to your dance no matter if you are on the dance floor or moving through your day.    Notice how it can change the energy and sensation of what you are doing when you make it a dance.  Who knows someone may want to join in with you!

Let's dance this week:

Monday (Today!!) at Noon and 5:30 pm

Wednesday at 6:45 am for Somatic Awakening

Thursday at 5:30 pm

Saturday at 9:30 am

all at The Synergy Studio.

​

​
June white belt.  Come join us!!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTJAkspWdY0

Love & Light
​

Joanie Brooks,
http://www.joaniebrooks.me/
Nia Training Faculty, Nia White Belt Trainer, Nia 1st Degree Black Belt


Nia 5 Stages of Healing Facilitator, Journey Dance Guide, Mindful Change Coach and Laughter Yoga Leader

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!

Grace, Gratitude, Love!!

"Forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet, and the winds long to play with your hair."  Kahlil Gibran

Spring is underway and our Earth is blooming with beautiful colors...it is truly a time of new beginnings, growth, and abundance!  My husband and I, along with our dog Rocket, went on a ride Friday through the beautiful Texas hill country and everything is bursting with life, vitality and beauty.  Thank you Mother Earth!!  

This week we honor and give gratitude to our Earth, the source of our stability, our roots, our life support system.  Mother Earth is sacred and dedicated to you, and each day we have the opportunity to sense this dedication as we step onto our earth with grace, gratitude and love.  Grace, gratitude and love has the power to manifest throughout our body, and is represented through our actions and words.  When we approach our body, our earth and our life as universal gifts, and we share this with others in our unique way (our actions and words), we are teachers and healers to the world; we are Sacred Athletes.  Image a world where everyBody is a Sacred Athlete...unlimited possibilities!

Close your eyes for a moment, connect to earth through your feet, inhale deeply and as you exhale, create the deep sound of  "UUUUU...". Sense Mother Earth kissing the soles of your feet. Relax, smell the moment and then sound a "Thank You." 

Join me in Grace, Gratitude and Love of Earth and U.  Many opportunities to share your uniqueness and rocking music awaits your dance!! 

My classes this week...all at The Synergy Studio except where noted: 

Monday 5:30 pm Nia

Tuesday 6:45 am Nia

Wednesday 6:45 am...Somatic Awakening - experience a unique dance of earth!!

Thursday 8:30 am Nia (at Gold's Gym Rodgers Ranch)

Thursday 5:30 pm Nia

Saturday 9:30 am Nia

Sunday 10:00 am JourneyDance...a dance of Beginnings!

Sunday 4:00 pm Nia

Interested in the Nia White Belt Intensive? 

Our next training in San Antonio is a split weekend that starts at 3:00 pm on Thursday, June 5 and goes through Sunday June 8. The next weekend is June 13, 14 and 15 (Friday, Saturday and Sunday). This is a PERFECT opportunity to take the Nia White Belt w/out having to take a full week from work. 

7 days dedicated to you, your body and your life.  You go deep into each one of the 13 principles of the Nia White Belt where you create a loving relationship with yourself and your body.  In this intensive you learn tools for managing stress, enhancing your relationships,  and creating a work/life balance. I invite you to explore techniques using your body, voice, intent, mind, emotions and unique spirit to master getting into and living in your body.  Empower yourself, open up to your potential and step into your greatness!

Love & Light,
Joanie Brooks,
Nia Training Faculty, Nia White Belt Trainer, Nia 1st Degree Black Belt

Nia 5 Stages of Healing Facilitator, Journey Dance Guide, Mindful Change Coach and Laughter Yoga Leader

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!