Nia X-Ray Anatomy: A 3-Step Process
Posted: Jul 8, 10:01 AMX-Ray Anatomy: A 3-Step Process
By Debbie Rosas and Carlos Rosas
X-Ray Anatomy is a Nia tool to help practitioners find more comfort in their bodies, both inside and outside of class. The practice of X-Ray Anatomy while Dancing Through Life involves becoming aware of your bones, noticing how they relate to your body sensations, then consciously rearranging them in order to seek more comfort.
Step 1: Witness
Witness the alignment of your bones, both in stillness and in movement. Imagine you have X-Ray goggles that allow you to see your bones clearly through your skin, muscles and connective tissue. Without judging or interfering, simply observe your bones. Notice the bones that are horizontal, the bones that are vertical and the bones that are rotational. Practice this technique of witnessing, using your “X-Ray vision”, with and without a mirror. For example, as you are reading this article, what does the placement of your forearm bones look like? Your upper arm bones? Your spine? Your shin bones?
Step 2: Sense
Become aware of your body sensations as they relate to the placement of your bones. For example, right now, what do you sense along the muscles of your spine? Do they feel uncomfortable or comfortable? How about the muscles along all sides of your neck? Your shoulders?
Step 3: Adjust
Based on what you sense in Step 2, seek more comfort by adjusting the arrangement of your bones in any areas that are not feeling comfortable. For example, if the right side of your neck is feeling uncomfortable, you may choose to tweak the placement of your skull, clavicles (collar bones), scapulae (shoulder blades), and/or humerus (upper arm bone), until you find an alignment that feels more pleasurable. Remember, the Nia way is to say “No” to discomfort and “Yes” to creating more pleasure in your body and in your life.
Throughout the day, you can use the following mantra to remind yourself of the power of X-Ray Anatomy. Say to your body, “I love you, you are my partner. Thank you for helping me to witness what I do. Thank you for providing me sensation-based cues. Thank you for helping me find more comfort through adjusting the arrangement of my bones.”
The above steps are only a small slice of the practical wisdom of Nia White Belt Principle #10 (X-Ray Anatomy). To learn more about X-Ray Anatomy, join us in a Nia White Belt Intensive!
