I love to dance.
I believe this is a well-established fact. For anyone tuning in late, just know that I will pretty much dance anywhere, any time with almost any other Body, for any reason (do I really need a reason?!?), in the presence of music or silence.
When I was embryonic in my practice, one of my challenges was to resist the temptation to attach to the music. In other words, to resist being drawn into whether or not I "like" the music.
Background: when I was teaching conventional fitness (step, hi/lo, kick boxing, boxing, Pilates, water, etc) I changed music constantly. I was often bored and the music I chose was directly related to my moods.
The music is a rich tapestry of sounds that are interwoven into the entire experience that is Nia.
In the beginning some music made me cringe, I would sense the drop in my energy level and the impeccability level of my practice would also drop. Or, I had little connection with the music (please read "connect" to mean "like") but the choreography would compensate. Energy level a bit higher, still an incomplete practice with a lagging sense of impeccability.
I have never been bored teaching Nia but I have had my restless moments. Moments in which I wanted to jump into another routine before I'd finished even learning the one I was teaching.
(Btw, I do not wait for perfection or complete knowledge before I begin to teach a routine. I learn the "bones" or the framework - 2-3 moves per song and the rest of my process continues as I teach.)
The Onion.
A few years ago on the teacher's forum there was a discussion about teaching routines for weeks at a time. I couldn't imagine. The same routine, as designed. So I did it. My process looked something like this:
Watch then dance with the dvd multiple times (yes, 5 to 7 times is about right). Listen to the music every chance I get. Note the choreography. I will usually teach a routine before I bar it. Not impeccable I realize.
I share the routine with my students. As I guide my students I step more deeply into experiencing the connection between the music and the choreography.
If I've been sharing a routine for a while (a month or longer) I probably haven't danced with the dvd since I spread my wings.
I go back to the dvd. There's always a move I didn't completely embody, or a cue that changes the dynamic of a move or the sensation of the move. Each time I approach a routine, no matter how many times I've taught it, if I am present, I will see, sense, imagine, realize, manifest or understand something new. If I check out and get into my habits, playing the dvd "in the background", then I am less likely to be inspired.
What I find fascinating is when I come to a move or a combination that my body "doesn't understand".
That could be mean the timing is a change from my natural rhythm. It could be that the move is a challenge to my nervous system. It could be that my body needs more time to learn and embody the transition between moves than it needs to learn and embody the rest of the choreography. If my body has not worked through the challenge and my execution and cueing is not smooth or comfortable when I feel ready to share the rest of the routine, I replace the song. Not permanently. I have discovered that if I replace the song for the class but continue to gently move through the choreography in my practice, eventually my body will learn and embody.
What does Shrek and The Onion have to do with my Nia Practice?
Seriously?!?!?
LAYERS!!!!!!!!!!!!
Lots and Lots of LAYERS!
:)
And that's just the tip of the iceberg, er, onion...
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