Nina Lah investigates a Nia, the latest ‘body and mind’ fitness practice to hit Oulu. It’s supposed to ‘improve your self esteem’ and ‘improve your fitness.’ But does it really work?

“Nia is a body-mind-spirit fitness and lifestyle practice,” says the official website. “Through expressive movement—The Body’s Way—Nia empowers people to achieve physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well-being.”

I was intrigued and especially so when I discovered that this esoteric practice, that “makes your heart beat fast” had found its way to Oulu.

Nia dance was developed in 1983 by Carlos and Debbie Rosas, both successful fitness instructors. At a time when fitness instructors firmly believed in the ‘no pain, no gain’ approach, they started to develop a more holistic approach to a getting in shape. Soon after that Nia was born. Nia is a mixture of nine movement forms coming from martial, dance and healing arts. It is done barefoot to music and it is supposed to be safe for any fitness level.

According to the official Nia web site, there are many benefits to gain from doing this modern type of dance. It reduces stress, improves muscle tone, improves digestion and concentration and gives you more energy. It also improves your self-esteem, ‘increases vitality’ and ‘releases emotions.’

I wouldn’t be me if I did not go and try it myself. So I did. Twice! The two groups I joined were very different in age and fitness level. The first time I tried Nia, it was a few years ago with a female school group. One of my classmates, Laura, volunteered to show us ‘the way of Nia.’

At the beginning Laura told us something about herself and Nia. I do not remember the details but what I remember is her passion in her eyes and body while talking about it. That memory came alive again the other day when I had the chance to experience Nia again . . . this time in Oulu. This time the teacher, Eila Tikkala, was different but at the same time I felt that strong passion for Nia. Eila seemed to be bursting with life joy and energy. She spoke very emotionally about Nia and said that Nia is her whole life. I think I have never seen someone so passionate about something. It was quite strange since I am not used to it.

The two lessons were very different in difficulty level and after the first one I was totally exhausted. Naturally, I expected something similar from the second experience but it was slower and less intensive but had another important message: Love yourself and your body. Every move, every step was about finding the natural way of moving for your body. After the class, I felt positive energy in the room and I’m usually sceptical of such ‘spiritual’ things. I certainly felt full of energy.

And I wasn’t alone in enjoying Oulu’s Nia Class. One of the participants in the latest Nia class liked it because, “You can dance without worrying about looking a twit - you don't have to think of your own moves, and you know that all your pals are doing the same steps too so they won't laugh. All the fun of the nightclub with none of the late nights..”

Another participant liked Nia because she could put as much or as little effort into the movements as she wanted. The third one liked the combination of free dancing just with your own created movements and certain repeating steps, which all participants make at the same time.

According to the official Nia web page, there are four levels of Nia Training: White, Blue, Brown and Black Belt. Basically everyone can try to become a Nia dance teacher. First you have to complete an intensive training and after that you are eligible to purchase Nia Teacher License Package which gives you the licence to teach Nia.

All nice and good and I am sure you are already very excited about doing this, right? Well, as you could probably guess, this is not free so let’s get to the prices. There are quite a few Nia dance teacher all around Finland, a few also in Oulu. There are lessons in Nuku that are open for everyone and a one time visit costs from 5 to 8 euros depending on the teacher and the discounts (for students, elderly and unemployed). If you decide this is really your thing it is reasonable to buy a package of five or ten tickets which makes the costs a lot lower. One lesson lasts for one and a half hours. ¨

For the real enthusiasts there will be a Nia white training in Mariehamn from 09.06.07 - 15.06.07 and it will be held in English. The whole course costs 350 USD plus 950 euros.

Compared to the annual fees for a private psychiatrist and a gym card, it is not that bad . . .  assuming it really works.