My movement roots are in modern dance, and moving to music is something I always remember bringing me a sense of inner calm, freedom and joy. I stepped away from dance for a period of time as a young adult whilst embarking upon worldly adventures as crew on super yachts. However, dance found me again at a time in my life when I needed it most; after a personal tragedy that blindsided me in 2006.
I've always been somebody who feels better for doing exercise, so it was no surprise to me that I'd feel better doing this thing called Nia. What I didn't expect however was the quality of the "feeling better". I was familiar with the adrenalin rush of physical exercise having been a competitive swimmer, enjoying dance and scuba diving, and playing tennis and netball, but this was different and I was curious to discover why. Nia had all the hallmarks of a quality group fitness class but it reached way beyond the physical. I was astounded that, with Nia, I could begin to self-heal grief and trauma through a conscious Joy-based movement class underpinned by sustainable principles. My curiosity to experience and understand the Nia difference lead me to complete the White Belt training with creators Debbie Rosas and Carlos AyaRosas at Nia HQ in Portland, Oregon in 2007. Now 20 years on and I've completed the subsequent trainings of Green, Blue, Brown and Black Belts. My classes are also influenced by my time teaching the Centergy group fitness programme from City Fitness clubs around Wellington, Lower Hutt and Hawkes Bay. Centergy is a yoga / pilates blended programme. I have since stepped away from direct association with the Nia brand, but continue to offer Nia-inspired holistic dance fitness classes in my local Lower Hutt community.
┃ "Conscious dance movement is personal growth, it moves me to my edges, those places of (generally slight) discomfort that say to me; keep going, you're at an edge, this is where growth occurs. Dancing in My Body's Way is movement meditation, it's about how I choose to live and be in this world in a sensory body. It's about relating and relationships, about how I choose to communicate with myself and with others. It's about energy and the use of it to bring forth my best self. Most recently I've discovered it's about unlimited creativity. Above all, I love that mindful dance movement is practical and accessible to everybody. And the seed of all this is subtly wrapped up in a 1 hr group fitness class."
Holistic dance fitness classes offer me the opportunity to keep my body, mind, emotion, spirit moving toward optimum health, whilst the continued embodiment practise that underlies what I share on the dance floor offers me a path to self-actualisation and self-healing via rooted principles that sit alongside daily life.
As the saying goes; "a journey begins with a single step". I invite you to step in...
I've always been somebody who feels better for doing exercise, so it was no surprise to me that I'd feel better doing this thing called Nia. What I didn't expect however was the quality of the "feeling better". I was familiar with the adrenalin rush of physical exercise having been a competitive swimmer, enjoying dance and scuba diving, and playing tennis and netball, but this was different and I was curious to discover why. Nia had all the hallmarks of a quality group fitness class but it reached way beyond the physical. I was astounded that, with Nia, I could begin to self-heal grief and trauma through a conscious Joy-based movement class underpinned by sustainable principles. My curiosity to experience and understand the Nia difference lead me to complete the White Belt training with creators Debbie Rosas and Carlos AyaRosas at Nia HQ in Portland, Oregon in 2007. Now 20 years on and I've completed the subsequent trainings of Green, Blue, Brown and Black Belts. My classes are also influenced by my time teaching the Centergy group fitness programme from City Fitness clubs around Wellington, Lower Hutt and Hawkes Bay. Centergy is a yoga / pilates blended programme. I have since stepped away from direct association with the Nia brand, but continue to offer Nia-inspired holistic dance fitness classes in my local Lower Hutt community.
┃ "Conscious dance movement is personal growth, it moves me to my edges, those places of (generally slight) discomfort that say to me; keep going, you're at an edge, this is where growth occurs. Dancing in My Body's Way is movement meditation, it's about how I choose to live and be in this world in a sensory body. It's about relating and relationships, about how I choose to communicate with myself and with others. It's about energy and the use of it to bring forth my best self. Most recently I've discovered it's about unlimited creativity. Above all, I love that mindful dance movement is practical and accessible to everybody. And the seed of all this is subtly wrapped up in a 1 hr group fitness class."
Holistic dance fitness classes offer me the opportunity to keep my body, mind, emotion, spirit moving toward optimum health, whilst the continued embodiment practise that underlies what I share on the dance floor offers me a path to self-actualisation and self-healing via rooted principles that sit alongside daily life.
As the saying goes; "a journey begins with a single step". I invite you to step in...