Vitality ~ the feeling of aliveness, ‘vita’ means life; referring to feeling healthy, capable, & energetic.

“Ones conscious experience of possessing energy & aliveness.”

source of quote unknown

A question that I sometimes ask before a Nia class to everyone, including myself, is:

“On a scale of 1-5, what is your energy level right now?”

In essence, the question is asking us to inquire within, how much vitality is present at this moment. This is a simple practice in Nia, that supports the quality of our lives, on & off the dance/movement floor.

I’ve been getting in the habit of asking this when I wake up in the morning & throughout my day. As I close my eyes to feel into the current state of energy or vitality, I then have the power to choose how I move forward in levels of activity, the pace of moving through the day, or the need for more downtime.

When we learn to listen & honor where we’re at any given moment we’re living in a greater state of ease, grace & harmony.

This does take practice, because we’ve been conditioned to NOT listen inside, and to operate rather robotically, regardless of the state of our vitality ~ emotionally, mentally, physically or soulfully/spiritually. We’ve been taught to push through, be productive, and put ‘doing’ ahead of self-care.

Joy can be more present when we match our output of energy with the true moment to moment state of vitality, without judgment or force ourselves to show up differently.

It’s a simple inquiry, however, depending on the expression of our day to day lives, it may be heard to truly align with.

If my energy/vitality is a 2 or 3 when I awaken, rather than an energized 5, the question becomes “How can I best serve my highest well-being through this morning/day etc?”

The 2 or 3 range in class, encourages us to move with less intensity, more slowly, smaller ranges of motion. This enables us to honor The Body’s Way/Your Body’s Way when a lower level of vitality present. This actually supports to preserve or build vitality.

When we have a busy day, family, work, we can learn to practice how to be in motion with a 2-3 range on the dance floor, and then access that sensation in our daily life.

Example: Slow down, prioritize activity, let go of what is not necessary, less intensity of self-defeating thoughts/emotions, take moments to rest, breathe.

This happens through a new degree of conscious connection to our whole being experience, to our feeling sense, repatterning our responses/reactions of habitual pacing through life, & allows us to embody a new way of dancing through life.

When working working with clients in private sessions, this is intrinsic in what I call, Natural Time ~ Sacred Rhythm. And this simple practice of self-inquiry, is a lovely compliment.

We have the power to track what we need through connecting within, feeling into the sensations of our beingness, and cultivating new ways of living, so that we Flourish into our Wholeness!

I’ll be curious what you experience if you adopt this practice of honoring your vitality, moment to moment, day to day. You may find that your vitality grows … your energy, your wellness, your Joy!

Let me know!

Lotus Lindley Crafting a Life of Flourishing & Wholeness

art: Catrin Wentz-Stein