Happy feet!: Nia takes the work out of workout

WASHINGTON (Map, News) - Klutzes hoof it with dancers, jocks kick it with couch potatoes, therapists bliss out with wonks — welcome to Nia, an equal-opportunity mind-body fitness craze. Instructors and attendees alike claim it boosts mood, energy and health — regardless of size, age or athletic ability. Evidence abounds: Professional dancers and reformed couch potatoes rock the same floor space.

“It’s virtually ‘klutz-proof,’ ” says Randi Cohen Coblenz, who leads Nia classes in the metro D.C., San Francisco and San Jose areas. She customizes classes to participants, and likes watching confidence replace self-consciousness as bodies move.

So what’s nia?

Blending high-energy music, a medley of dance moves and stretching, Nia offers a free-form alternative to “no pain, no gain” aerobics, rigidly choreographed routines and structured yoga positions. Expect the unexpected; instructors improvise as the spirit moves them — and their audience.

Judy Portnoy, a regular, is motivated by the music, “mighty-mindful moves” and Coblenz’s sense of humor.

While freedom of expression rings, instructors are certified in a belt system (Coblenz is a blue). Nia — an acronym for “non-impact aerobics” and Swahili for “with purpose” — was created by fitness gurus Carlos and Debbie Rosas in the ’80s on the principle “Through movement we find health.” 

‘Move’ is the mantra

Nia, Coblenz explains, combines “the essences of healing arts with martial arts and dance.”

During the free-spirited routines, participants are told to tune in to the sensations in parts of the body.

For some, Nia’s a budget-friendly health makeover.  Coblenz found Nia when seeking a way to recuperate faster from hip surgery. Suzannah Weiss credits Nia with losing 40 pounds and finding a new career; the former schoolteacher now leads Nia-phytes in the District, the Lake Tahoe area and Massachuetts.

A national movement

Travelers can drop into Nia classes burgeoning in the U.S. and overseas — in locations from yoga studios to museums to a firehouse in Arlington, Va.

But the variety of venues is outnumbered by the myriad muscle-and-mood-enhancing moves.  Think “nirvana” and “immunity” as a pair of happy feet.

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