Strong, Beautiful Legs Without Tedious, Repetitious Exercises?

Nia's answer for beautiful legs and tight buttocks? Leg Stances

Reprinted from an article by Debbie Rosas (Nia co-founder)

Stances are something that I learned from the martial arts that have become part of my movement practice and a part of Nia.

One of the things that changed my approach to movement and helped me create Nia was the idea that movement could be experienced in a whole new way. That maintaining ground contact, moving and stopping, resting with both feet on the ground or one foot on the ground, was a great way to balance out the more rhythmic jumping and jogging movements that I was used to at that time.

Stances are the answer to having beautiful, strong legs. Your legs include your feet, ankles, shin bones, thighs, the ball at the top of the thigh bone that fits into a socket, creating a hip joint. Together they create two beautiful pillars- legs that support us in getting up and down from the floor, running, walking, and dancing. Our legs create a foundation for the other parts of out body, our pelvis chest and head, to move up and out.

There are 6 Stances in the Nia 52 Moves. They are Closed, Open, A, Sumo, Cat, and Bow. All of the stances are meant to provide a stable, secure base for sinking - going lower to the ground, and pushing- rising up. The legs also provide a base for shifting our body weight from side to side; front to back.

Stances can help to strengthen and firm the legs and the buttocks. Moving through the stances helps to condition the core of the body as we shift on and off balance. Working with stances will help you sense dynamic power and grace in your body.

Debbie Rosas (Nia co-founder)