The Nia Technique Seven Cycle Approach, With Debbie Rosas.

What makes a great Nia Teacher is how they use language together with an arrangement of their words to create well formed cues for every hour of The Nia Technique experience in any Nia class. Nia Teachers develop their cueing when using The Nia Technique Seven Cycles. Each cycle is carefully crafted by every Nia Teacher with pleasure and joy for student movement.

“Focus + Intention” guides students to place their attention throughout class.

In Cycle 1, Nia Teachers set a Focus + Intent for students to prepare for class by choosing something for directing their attention and energy toward a desired outcome and what they want to achieve. Students also set a Focus + Intent for themselves in every hour of Nia to define what they want to achieve individually by working with the Focus + Intent of the class.

“Step In” prepares awareness and readiness for movement + music + magic.

In Cycle 2, Nia Teachers Step In by preparing a movement or gesture and inviting everyone to consciously leave behind distractions and become centered, grounded, and present in the moment as teachers repeat the focus and intent. This second cycle, Step In, is a physical action and starting point for every class. Teachers often use gestures like the Triangle Focus.

“Warm Up” awakens energy flow in thirteen body joints through ranges of motion.

In Cycle 3, Nia Teachers Warm Up with students to prepare the body for an increasing flow of energy, rising body heat, respiration, and heart rate with activation of the body’s thirteen main joints and integration of the whole body from toes to fingers, while moving through high, middle, and low planes in space. In this cycle, students become aware of their body sensation.

Nia Teachers also integrate three planes of spatial movement together with three levels of intensity. These are choices that physically and verbally provide numerous alternatives, which are described as “levels 1-2-or 3, as teachers always remind students to get to know their unique and individual way of breathing while integrating their movement with their breathing.

“Get Moving” aligns students with six sensations throughout their body.

In Cycle 4, Nia Teachers Get Moving with students to prepare to move more fully, dynamically, and energetically through space and time as they integrate six body sensations that include flexibility, agility, mobility, strength, stability, and stillness using music and choreography in addition to both voluntary and reflexive actions for developing whole body conditioning.

This cycle is designed to condition the heart and lungs to achieve whole body conditioning. Nia uses energy and speed varieties in this cardiovascular cycle. In this cycle, the body responds to varied speeds and intensities. Nia teachers demonstrate three levels of intensity throughout Nia classes, which includes, at times, moving up and down from the floor.

“Cool Down” prepares students to listen more to the voices of the body.

In Cycle 5, Nia Teachers Cool Down with students as they slow and decrease their physical exertion, breathing, and heart rate to take advantage of the body’s heat and pliability for moving slowly onto the floor. In this cycle, each student begins to stretch, re-center, and prepare to move on the floor as they listen even more intently to the voices of their bodies.

The movement in the cool down cycle includes much attention to the breath, lengthening, the opening and the closing of each unique and individual student’s body in their body’s own way with an awareness of balance and harmony in their whole being which is their body, mind, emotions, and spirit. In this, students learn the value of every body sensation.

“FLOORplay” allows students to stretch and open joints with greater ease.

In Cycle 6, Nia Teachers use FLOORplay to prepare students for experiencing gravity, space, and time with music, with both free and structured movement to enhance strength, flexibility, action, restoration, and relaxation. In this cycle teachers use the art of play with a “home move” and a “destination move,” to improve strength, flexibility, mobility, agility, and stability.

Teachers especially use the word “play” to guide this movement cycle. The moves are simple and chosen to address the needs of the body based on the focus + intent. The Nia Technique 52 moves and principles are also applied to FLOORplay for movement with and without the use of music. Kneepads are advised as they free the body to move in a more relaxed way.

Step Out awakens a sense and sensation of each student’s health and well-being.

In Cycle 7, Nia Teachers Step Out and lead students in the preparation of bringing everyone to the end of the class. Celebrating unique and individual self-healing and conditioning benefits, while re-centering the body, mind, emotions, and spirit to move out and into the next activity of the day is met with student’s experiencing a more relaxed and restored body + life.

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