Learn the Base Nia Moves

Six-Week Series Starting 
Sunday, October 2nd
Dancing from the Base of your Body - Happy feet, healthy knees, and strong legs
A foundational six-week series for new and experienced students

When: Sundays 10/2, 10/9, 10/16, 10/23, 10/30 and 11/6.
Time: 10:30am - 11:30am
Where: Delilah's Belly Dance Studio in Fremont
Address: 4128 Fremont Ave N, Seattle, WA, 98103
There is plenty of free parking in the area and this studio is beautiful and intimate - the perfect space for learning!

Class series: $65
Optional educational package – an additional $60 for an educational package that includes the Nia Technique book, a class DVD, and a music CD.
Class series and educational package - Purchase both the 6-week class series and educational package for $100.

To register: email jennifer@everybodyloveyourbody.com

"Feel more balance, power, coordination and grace in your whole body."

About the series
This six-week series is for both new and experienced Nia students. The focus of this foundational Nia series is on Principle 6 of the Nia white belt: The Base of the Body.
The base of the body is your foundation, where all movement begins. It includes your two feet, two ankles, two sets of shinbones, two knees, two thighbones and two hip joints.

What you will learn
In this series, you will learn all 27 base moves we use in Nia: 8 foot techniques, 9 steps, 6 stances and 4 kicks. There are a total of 52 official Nia moves so after this series you will only need to learn 25 more!

In each 60-minute session we will break down each movement in three phases: learn the move, move the move and energize the move. At the end of the series, expect to have a mastery of the 27 base moves that will deepen your experience of Nia. Each session will include useful educational handouts and practice assignments you can easily do at home.

Overview of each Session:
Session 1 on October 2:
The Feet, the Joy of Movement, and Principle 6 - Base of the Body. Introducing the 6 Stances used in a classic Nia class.

Session 2 on October 9:
A review of the 6 Stances and introducing the 8 foot techniques. Introduction of Principle 7 - Three Planes of Movement and Three Intensity Levels.

Session 3 on October 16:
A review of the 6 Stances, 8 foot techniques and Introducing the 9 steps. Introduction of Principle 5 – Awareness: Paying Attention to Body Sensations.

Session 4 on October 23:
A review of foot techniques, steps, and stances. Introducing the 4 Kicks. Introduction of Principle 10 - X-ray Anatomy.

Session 5 on October 30:
Review of all 27 base moves. Energizing the moves. Introduction of Principle 2 – Natural Time and The Movement Forms.

Session 6 on November 6:
Putting it all together, Dancing Through Life and Graduation! Let’s Dance!

If you come to all six sessions you will receive a graduation present. It’s a secret gift bag.

New to Nia?
Nia is a dynamic fitness and lifestyle practice combining movement and philosophies from the Martial Arts, Dance Arts, and Healing Arts to bring the body, mind, emotions and spirit to wellness. Through blending both choreography and freeform movement into 60-minute aerobic fitness odysseys, Nia emphasizes not only physical conditioning, but also creativity, community, self-discovery, and individual expression. This six-week series is a great introduction to Nia!

I hope that you will join me. Please contact me at jennifer@everybodyloveyourbody.com with any questions.

To register: email jennifer@everybodyloveyourbody.com.

Voice of the Feet

The focus of tonight's class is the feet. The intent is to connect with the feet as a stable base and our foundation.

Nia Handout on the Feet

Voice of the Feet 

I am the voice of your feet. I am the hands that touch the earth.By design, there are two of me. One of me supports your left side, and one supports your right side. Each of me has 26 bones and 25 joints.

I let you know where you are through sensation coming from over 7,000 nerve endings in each of my soles.

My function is to provide you with a foundation, a trampolinelike base with arches that run horizontally and longitudinally.

I function best when your ankle joint is free and involved.

What keeps me healthy is being allowed to be naked and free to naturally settle into a relaxed, more elongated and expanded design. If I am confined, I get cranky and lock up.

I never work alone, but always with my partner, the ankle joint.

I provide stability and support from my inner arch, which is made up of the big toe and the next two toes. My arches give you a springboard.

My toes, designed to lengthen and spread, need space and freedom. At the back of me is my largest bone, the calcaneus, and the part known as the heel. Together with my second largest bone, the talus, and the smaller bones, the navicular, cuneiform, metatarsals, and my inner arches, I provide flexibility, power, and stability.

I make it possible for you to receive energy from the earth and to be touched as you walk, run, skip, hop, play sports, dance and live in your world. Visualize me as a magic carpet, one you ride on and are elegantly supported by from underneath.

I look forward to dancing with you tonight 6pm at Fresh Fitness and Dance in Wallingford.

Hands that Touch the Earth

The focus for tonight's Gentle Nia and Nia 5 Stages class is our feet. In Nia, the feet are referred to as "the hands that touch the Earth". Our feet are our direction connection to the Earth and where both balance and movement in our whole body begins. Each foot has 26 bones, 3 arches, 11 muscles, and 7,000 nerve endings that communicate to us through sensation. That's a whole lot of exploration.

Join me tonight for a fanciful foot journeying class from 5pm - 6pm at the Civetta Dance Space in Greenwood.

Base of the Body

The focus of this morning’s class and afternoon playshop is the base of the body.

The base of the body includes our feet, ankles, shinbones, knees, thighbones and hip joints.

All movement begins in the base of the body. Balance and the flow of energy initiate in your foot and ankle, which rely on the cooperation of the moving muscles and balancing mate muscles. Because most leg, knee, ankle, foot and hip problems are mechanical, you can often reclaim stability and proper functioning simply by consciously guiding your movements. Understanding how your feet and legs are designed to support you and using them in accord with this design – in accord with The Body’s Way – allows you to self-heal and return to comfort and ease. When all your base structures function appropriately, the result is balance, power, coordination and grace in your whole body

In Nia, we achieve proper functioning in the base through focused and continued practice of all the base moves, with the intent to establish a firm, sturdy and flexible foundation that supports the whole body in moving up and down from the ground, and maintaining a dynamic upright posture in both motion and in stillness. The base moves include (among others) the heel lead, cross behind, cross front, traveling in directions, lateral traveling, cha-cha-cha, kicks, stances and turns.

Here is an educational handout on working with the feet as the foundation of the body:
The Feet - Your Foundation (PDF)

Join me today in exploring the base and the body. Nia class at 11am at Fresh Fitness and Dance in Wallingford and Nia 5 Stages 120-minute Playshop at 1:30pm at the Civetta Dance Space in Greenwood.