The Elixir of Nia and Yoga

In a recent (May 2012) article in Shape magazine Nia was listed as one of the top Stress-Relieving Workouts. Nia, listed as the first of the seven mind-body stress-busting modalities, was described as: "a blend of martial arts, dance, and healing arts. Done barefoot, this workout features a flowing blend of movement that combines deep breathing exercises with moves like kicks and turns to keep your heart rate elevated, your mind relaxed, and your body moving." Right on!

Restorative Yoga was listed as the fifth stress-relieving workout. Each Tuesday morning and second Friday evening, my dear friend Liziah Woodruff and I co-teach a 75-minute Nia-Yoga class with the intent of facilitating full body health, vibrancy and relaxation. Liziah is a certified Viniyoga instructor. She describes Viniyoga as a gentle, strengthening, meditative style of yoga that is supportive and invites each individual to find their bodies way of doing a posture. It is beautifully compatible with Nia and quite similar to restorative yoga. In addition, Viniyoga focuses on connecting movement and breath, finding a rhythm that supports harmony and integration of body and mind. This is a highly adaptable form of yoga and is suitable to people of all skill levels and those who have physical limitations and injuries - just like Nia.

Our class tomorrow morning will focus on cultivating a tension-free mind and body. In the book "Health Through Yoga" author Mira Mehta says that the mind "is an instrument of knowledge, and as an instrument it processes and acts on the information it receives from the senses." I don't know about you but I spend a huge portion of my day in my mind and it can be exhausting. She goes on to say that when the senses become tired we may experience "fatigue, discomfort or worse." The author believes that yoga practice "relaxes and refreshes the senses and and helps the mind to unwind." For me, a practice as simple as returning to my breath is enough to soothe sensory overload.

Liziah and I believe that our combination of Nia and Yoga supports cultivating a tension-free body, mind, heart and spirit and reinvigorates and strengthens all of our senses. Both of us believe that movement is a powerful healing elixir for the mind, body, heart and spirit. Our class structure consists of 40 minutes of Nia practice followed by 25 minutes of Viniyoga. I get to be a student in the latter part of the class and can say that I leave each class feeling centered, relaxed, with a quiet mind and supple body and above all, reinvigorated and ready for the day ahead.

Join us any Tuesday morning from 9:15am-10:30am and/or Second Friday evening (7:30pm - 8:45pm) at The Dance Space in Greenwood. No previous yoga or Nia experience required. Wear comfortable clothes to move in, bare feet, water and a yoga mat.

Namaste.