Nia Tribe Time

Last night I had an incredibly wonderful experience, and I want to share it with you all! I went to Village Yoga in Modesto to attend a NiaYoga I'd seen a flier for a couple weeks back. Nia used to stand for "Non-Impact Aerobics," but then the two who developed the technique realized what it was doing for the brain/body connection of those doing it. It now stands for "Neuromuscular Integrative Action" because it engages both hemispheres of the brain, and causes them to cross-over left/right and right/left within the body. Pretty impressive!

Nia combines martial arts, modern dance and yoga into choreographed routines/dances, all set to music. It makes you sweat, it makes you stretch, it makes you tap into your breath, it makes you draw the love into yourself, grunt like the karate kid, and express the heck out of yourself. I've only been to one class, and I am totally, completely hooked!

The class was one hour long, and the setting, Village Yoga, was so divine! The studio is beautiful, spacious, and as one of the five other women who showed up for the class said, "It's the perfect, sacred space to come and dance without judgment." There were a couple moments of free flow, one full song of free flow (with some prompts from our goddess of a teacher, Edie, of emotions to dance/express), and the rest of the class was following the choreography. But one of the great things about Nia, is how flexible it is. There's no pressure to stick to the moves, and we were highly encouraged to interpret the moves as we felt them -- make them true to ourselves and our soul song.

For me, dance is one of my truest, rawest, most-preferred forms of expression. Something comes out of me while I'm dancing that doesn't at any other time, and the meditative experience I have while dancing, really, really dancing, cannot be rivaled by anything else. Even my yoga practice pales in comparison to dancing in how connected I am to my breath, my body, and each movement. So to be in a place that combines dance -- spiritual, tribal, salsa, free-flowing, modern, and martial AKA just about all my faves (less hip-hop) -- a little bit of yoga, and is presented as, "You're now here, together, to dance with you Nia tribe sisters," was perfection.

After Symbiosis, I felt fully like the goddess that I am. I was soaring, felt so true to myself, and was on such an amazing high. It lasted for a while, but with the stresses of the last couple weeks, as well as the realization my bank account isn't as high as it should be at this point in my time home/before departure, it's safe to say my glow has been dimmed a bit. Nia was just what I needed to step back into my light, embrace myself as I should, and return to valuing myself as the wonderful woman that I am! So grateful!

If dance is your thing and you like to break a sweat tribe style, I highly, highly recommend finding a NiaYoga class near you! It will help you dance through your emotions, and take your soul to new places!

I'm so grateful to be feeling this way, and to have had this experience. I was feeling pretty down and out, especially in regards to myself, and that is just not any way to live! Now I'm ready to take on Halloween with new energy and love for myself! Woo! Cannot wait to paint my face, put on my onesie, and go reunite with some friends!

I hope you all have an amazing Halloween, stay safe, costume-out, and embrace your inner characters! Let your freak flag fly, proud and high! Love you so much beautiful Earth Fam! MUAAAH!

{{ Throwback to H.ween 2013! Epic proportions biking through Sevilla like this! Too bad I didn't have a GoPro then to film responses. hehe }}

Blessings, Love, Light & Wonder

-Allie-Sun <3