Re-Belted in White (a shinier shade)

I spent last week in Budapest retaking my White Belt, the first belt of the system we use in the Nia Technique to indicate the degree of depth into the practice. 
Having said that, I have moved with White Belts who have inspired me more than Brown Belts, so the degree of depth and understanding is very personal, however a formal gradation system exists.

Quite a few of my friends and students have asked me 'why do you take a training that you have already under your belt (pun intended)?' The answer is: to learn more, to go deeper, wider, to relax in my beginner's mind.
I have heard so many new things, my body has understood so many new things, my thinking mind has assimilated so many new things... Now I sense my White Belt is shining anew, and I am relaxed, alert, and waiting, doing my best to deliver inspiration and relaxation just like I have received.

What a gift, retaking a training and allowing my thinking mind not to get in the way. Thank you everyBody for making it a sensational week for me. 

Drinking in the wisdom

I only have one body, and I have made a conscious decision to love it.
The conscious love process began when my body was far from the expectations of shape and fitness levels that media tells us are desirable. I didn't know if I ever was going to be a size 12, but I did know that this body would be my lifetime companion, and I didn't want to spend that lifetime in judgement and disgust.

I am fortunate to have found the spark that ignited my fire, the Nia Technique. From the simplicity of stepping with my heel first, rolling my body weight off the whole plantar fascia and off my big toe, to the more complex patterns that keep my brain engaged and stimulated. If you have found your spark, keep it alive and honour your precious lifetime companion. If you haven't, there is no time like this moment to step into a movement practice suitable for every body, every age, that could literally change your life.

Here's to love and joy.

Get down, get down

When was the last time you went down to the floor? Just for the sheer pleasure of rolling around, empty minded, giving yourself a great myofascial massage.

I probably did that just this morning. 

You see, I'm a lucky one, I'm a Nia 5 Stages practitioner.

The Nia 5 Stages keep my body fit for purpose; to make love, make tea, to skip over puddles (lots of puddles in England), to run after the bus or train, or anything that needs running after.

To go after my dream of living fully and purposefully in a body that is allowing me to do just that. And, in my book, that's really hot.

If you want to experience what the 5 Stages can do for you, check out my classes at www.nianow.com/elisa-risquez or look for any Nia 5 Stages teacher near you.

It could be the beginning of a very beautiful, lasting friendship.

Good sensory IQ - practical applications during summertime

Ah, summer! Even more ahs when it's sunny AND warm. It was a good one.

It's still a little sunny in my part of the world, but I'm writing this wearing a jumper, long fleecy trousers, and socks. Still, I saw two mosquitoes yesterday, I guess they didn't get the memo - summer seems to be over.

Let this be a reminiscent post then, of all the fun and warmth of summer, and how a good sensory IQ can save you from a slippery situation or two.
Sensory IQ is simply the measurement of somatic intelligence, or awareness of the body. When I tune in and I mindfully register my body sensations, I am much less clumsy. I haven't tripped in ages (and I was tripping silver champion, not quite gold), and I haven't crashed into any piece of furniture for a while now, just to use a couple of examples.

This summer, I was in a very beautiful part of the world, and a mighty slippery one too. I saw a young woman lose her balance and fall down, landing on her coccyx. She was quite embarrassed and she didn't want to cry, but it looked very painful. Everywhere else there were people hanging onto other people's hands and arms for dear life, gingerly taking steps. I wasn't certainly breezing through it, but I plugged in to my sensation of centre of gravity and recovered from losing my balance again and again.
Eventually I reached a less slippery bit. I didn't fall, I didn't lose my balance badly. I can't quite express how much of an achievement this was for me.

Also, I went to an open air opera in a beautiful amphitheatre. We only reached the second act when, despite the balmy air, the skies opened with such fury that within 5 seconds people were running, screaming, and throughly soaked, me included. The stones steps were so slippery, I could see people struggling, unable to go down them unaided. Besides, we all were holding our soaked opera cushions, picnics, and drinks. Again I plugged in to the sensation of balance (I have practised cat stance a fair amount of times) and of spring loaded joints, power coming from underneath and behind.
I felt no pressure on the knees, or wobbliness in my ankles, despite the steepness and slipperiness.

Drier times before the deluge

Such is the great gift of a good sensory IQ. I didn't have much of it before I tried out a Nia class. If you already found it through yoga, Pilates, gym classes, Alexander Technique, then congratulations!
Do you want to see what the Nia Technique has to add to your existing knowledge? Then try a class, it's fantastic.
If, like mine, your sensory IQ has a lot of potential for expansion, please work on it with whatever discipline fills you with joy.
It will help you in any situation, and not just for summer ;)

My heart went boom

This Friday I shared the joy of Nia with a beautiful group of yoginis and yogis. From my body, mind, and spirit to their bodies, their minds, and their shining spirits. For me, there isn't anything like the feeling of community that gels a group of Nia dancers, and all that sweaty, healthy laughter. 

I loved having the opportunity of sharing one of the big passions in my life with a big group of people, sensing their uniqueness at the very same time. 
Truly this path is a gift, and making dolphin noises is pretty great, too.

Running a Level 1 self-diagnostic, Data style

I do like love a good Star Trek reference, what can I do?

Earlier on this week during my Tuesday class, my body came up with this completely new movement, and it felt so rich that I gave myself plenty of time to explore it and connect it with my feelings and emotions, and my creative source. Not just the body, you see? In the Nia Technique we honour our minds and spirits, what makes us unique and gives us our own fairy dust to sprinkle throughout life.

I identified this new movement as being connected to an hour long practice of FreeDance, which revealed plenty of details and little treasured in the music. Now, FreeDance is serious business. I haven't yet experienced anything so complete and full of new movement-pattern creation, self-healing, joy, deep conditioning, attention to detail, and a long etc. as this beloved Principle 4 of the Nia Technique's White Belt.

During this hour, some pain came from doing a certain movement, and instead of thinking 'oh I will not do this again, pain is something to run away from' I stayed curious and I used my Principle 10 (X-ray Anatomy) to find out where this pain came from. And of course I found out, using my X-ray eyes :). Now I know how to tweak the movement and use my feet better to avoid this pain.
Nia can't hurt me. If I hurt myself doing anything, then I have hurt myself, and if I am clever enough I will take the opportunity to explore and fix the source of discomfort.

Every day I love living in this body more and more; not because is perfect and pain free, but because thanks to discomfort and awkwardness it allows me to increase my sensory IQ, to know myself better, to feel more pleasure. This is my somatic pension for when I get joyfully older.
Who wouldn't want such a thing?

I'm telling you man, do the White Belt, it's awesome!

Sharing is caring :)

I'm back, and ready. And full of admiration for the teachers, the mentors, those who lead us on any journey which entails self-exploration and any kind of development. There is no holding of hands and singing songs together; what there is is a raising of the bar, a blowing off the roof, a strong push towards our own personal excellence and mastery.

Now that I came back wiser, more flexible, more compassionate, now is when I can deliver the holding of the hands and the singing of songs together with my students. The fun we have, the smiles, the seeing the potential in each one of them. The teacher has to show the way, it has to show the infinite possibilities for reaching up and down, it also has to show the way to laying down and listening to the breath.
The Green is a good 'un. Time to share its power now.

Green

I'm flying to the Åland Islands tomorrow, the islands of peace, looking for magic dust.

The green belt is, as I see it to be, all about mastering the craft of teaching. 
It is now the time to learn how to get all the juice out of my teaching, to be able to deliver the best classes I can possible teach, to bring as many people as I can reach back into their bodies (and many other beautiful side effects, unique to each person). Only they can do that, granted, but a good teacher should be able to show the way.

Luckily for me I had plenty of good teachers in my life, and my spirit and my body are calling me to be impeccable and compassionate with my teaching too. 
Green, let's go.

Whaaat?

You know when you read or hear something, and you know it to be true but can't explain how or why you know? 
The first time I read this paragraph I was sitting in the sun, waiting for my morning bus to take me to work. And I started laughing, a big belly, shoulder-shaking laughter. For three reasons; a) what I just read was beautiful b) I found it to be true c) it's so apparently annoyingly contradictory that it's funny. Big funny business, Zen is. Gong!

"The way is to climb, the way is to lie still..."

I climb up two short flights of stairs and I'm in the dojo.

My way these days is to lie still, to close my eyes inhaling the slightly musty scent off the tatami mats and to be RAW. 

Setting my music player on shuffle, I try and create a state of "no inner dialogue" by being in a Relaxed body, Alert mind, and Waiting spirit.

Now, the shuffle setting is a hoot because sometimes I listen to favourites like Nina Simone's Sinnerman, Fleet Foxes' Your Protector, or The Pixies' Levitate Me and other times tunes less conducive to RAW will come up such as Aphex Twin's 4 or Pink Floyd's Careful With That Axe, Eugene.

Still, if the suspension of judgement and inner dialogue were easy, there would be no point in the practice. So I practice, and I observe in mild and amused despair how much inner dialogue comes up, how many little stories about likes and dislikes I tell myself, and just how much daydreaming I get lost into.

Nia's practice of RAW is difficult for me, and it also does me good.

I recently read Bruce Lee's take on RAW:

'Do not be tense, just be ready, not thinking but not dreaming, not being set but being flexible. It is being "wholly" and quietly alive, aware and alert, ready for whatever may come'.

Sounds good to me.

Celebrating what it is

I am excited about things, and people, and tea.
This morning, after the shower, I looked at my body for more than 2 minutes. I have adventures coming up in June, and hopefully July. Maybe I wanted to check if my body would be up to it; I am going to be demanding strength, and stamina, and smoothness and attractiveness. So I looked.

And this is what I found. My hair is definitely showing silver, I found a few sparkling strands, very close to each other, where I had none only a few weeks ago. My skin is also changing and becoming drier and more sensitive. I can't get away with not moisturising everyday. And the stretch marks! They tell my story of gaining weight, and losing it, gaining weight away, and losing it again...
I am getting visibly older. 
As I stood there in front of the mirror I though 'it's good that is so' and then, 'well, even if it isn't good, it's still happening'. I saw my body as it was right then, in that moment, and there was no judgement, and it wasn't good or bad, it just was.

And then, as I brushed my teeth, I sensed the joy of moving my elbow up and down, and my wrist nice and loose. The precision instruments that are my fingers, holding the toothbrush. My mouth sensing the plastic fibres, and tasting the minty toothpaste, and the cleansing friction on my teeth and then it came. The gratefulness.
I'm older, and stronger, and younger, and more fragile, and aware, and alive. My body is good stuff, and it's mine. I'm alive, hot damn!

What's new?

Some things are not for us, some other things are. 

I've always preferred the slightly imperfect, the not-so-new, the time eroded. And that's like me; slightly time eroded, not so new, and most definitely imperfect. And that's fine. 
So I will be kinder with my practice, all my practices. Kind but not indulgent, and practice that_______ (side kick, front block, heel lead, relevé...) again, and again. But not mechanically and wanting to have them over and done with, there won't be a target number to be reached. Instead, I will purposefully and joyfully learn the technique, so I can fly with it later.

I miss having a big adventure, sometimes I miss (the other acceptation of the word) smaller learning opportunities and I mistake them for frustrations or disappointments.

For me it's not the having started young, but the choosing being older. And I chose purpose and joy. Again and again.

Monk laundry

My favourite colour

After all this time, still sitting pretty

Learning on the road,  I was never happier to wake up early

Don't work it, baby

New Year resolutions, anyone? I only have one (which is double); to be in my body, as mindfully and joyfully as possible and to pay more attention to my second brain.

What do I mean?

When information enters the body, a system vital to the successful operation of the body, called the enteric nervous system, kicks in.

The gut, the enteric nervous system, the second brain, plays a key role in getting us to pay attention and is designed to function even without input from the spinal cord and brain. The second brain also produces an immense amount of chemical compounds, including every type of neurotransmitter found in the cranial brain. 

In other words, both brain and gut can be used to help in making choices and decisions. Learn to listen to this second brain and you can live life as someone not only with a thinking mind, but also with a thinking body, and who doesn't like a good thinking body?

So, I've resolved to stop working it so much and to start listening. Let's see what happens...

Take your own measure

My measure wants to get bigger, it wants more movement, more challenge; it wants to get out of its comfort zone.
Fine.
First, we start with a second class a week, putting myself out there in front of people I don't know, sharing my authentic movement with them.
On Tuesday I have a new class, let's get a new measure then.

Late walk in the bluebell woods

Today, I finally went to the bluebell woods. I didn't need to see them to know they were there. Their scent like sprinkled sugar on warm bread, the taste of crushed green and pollen, damp earth underfoot and the buzzing of tiny insects...

Smell, touch,hearing, taste... and a feast for the sight. I do love bluebells.

Walking down the bluebell path

Tree, and bluebells, and dappled light

Close up

Blue and green should always be seen

Bark + bare feet

Time to go home

There is beauty...

... in the slightly menacing heart of a flower, brimful of pollen and darkness.

... in the way stamens and pistil fuse together, exposed and laden with stickiness.

... in delicate colours, pink and grey blue made strong by the cluster. Edible, juicy, like a crown.

Developing tree pollen allergy days before going to Kew Gardens can't be called good timing. I still had an incredibly beautiful day, surrounded by flowering trees, and colours green, purple, yellow, blue, pink, white. Birdsong.
There was a flowering plum tree under which laying down for a rest was a gift.
Much beauty and much joy, and my body behaved remarkably well.

The good teachers

Almost 20 years ago I had a literature teacher that was in love with words. So obvious was her love for sentences, metaphors, alliterations, ellipses... that she managed to passed it on to us, to so many teenagers, so many school years.

This weekend many of those students got together and delivered a surprise poetic recital in her honour with music, theatre, and, of course, poetry.

I couldn't be there (physically) but I thought up a way of sending myself over to my small village in Spain, with my other fellow students of a few years ago. 

So I went out to the nearest field, donned my best Isadora Duncan dress and picked up one of my favourite poetry books (that I discovered thanks to Mercedes, my teacher), and got my picture taken, which was shown at the end of a collage/ presentation at the end of the recital.

The good teachers give you medicine, tools, magic wands. They are human and fallible, but their inspiration is divine.

When I need some cheering up, I put on my best pirate accent and I recite to myself some stanzas from the Canción del pirata.

“Sail on, my swift one! nothing fear;

    Nor calm, nor storm, nor foeman's force,

Shall make thee yield in thy career

    Or turn thee from thy course.

Despite the English cruisers fleet

    We have full twenty prizes made;

And see their flags beneath my feet

    A hundred nations laid.

My treasure is my gallant bark,

    My only God is liberty;

My law is might, the wind my mark,

    My country is the sea.

Excerpt from the Canción of the Pirate, by José de Espronceda

Wise bodies, wise words

Today I wanted to reconnect to that first principle of Nia, the very basis of all movement: the Joy of Movement. Yeah, like that, with big capital letters, why not.
I only chose movements that helped me plug in to that transmitter between my own personal joy and the Joy. Sounds like an obscure koan?
It's actually quite simple; there are some times when I'm truly listening and sensing, when my own personal enjoyment becomes something deeper and I can just catch a glimpse of my own joy being part of a bigger Joy.
Softly, quietly, it doesn't happen as a huge explosion of colours or sounds, or a big aha! moment. It's like running my hands along the gnarly trunk of an olive tree and sensing the sap underneath. I can't see it, but there it is, running under all that knotted bark, imbuing the tree with life.
And such is the Joy I connect to sometimes, not necessarily visible but always there for me, waiting, inexhaustible.

And then, the gift of some very wise words from a friend. Connect with the Joy not only when dancing, "imagine doing something that you really love all the time", she said. Yes, I can imagine that, I'll dance to that.

Home is where the sweaty people are

My blood family live in another country but I have another family here, my sweat family.
When we dance in a circle, every time we create community, when we all share the joy of our own authentic movement... I sense belonging, and it's so beautiful.
And it goes beyond the dance, their kindness always surprises me, and it's such a pleasure to share conversations, hugs, impressions. 
My sweet, sweat family.

Jam!

Community in a circle

Delicious dancers, and some big flares...

Such a lovely space! So lucky

When are we doing it again?