Jason Alan Griffin :: The Blog

 Beautiful Day ...is a collaborative project, over two years in the making and involving dozens of Nia teachers. It was originally a project called Natural Time. After scrapping the project multiple times, I finally ended up with something I liked, and named it Beautiful Day after the song by Laid Back and Anders Trentmøller that appears in the routine.  Nancy Hammett (Nia Brown Belt, Milford CT) was largely responsible for helping me put the playlist together. Mark Frossard (Nia Black Belt, Santa Fe NM) choreographed the warm up song "Dissolving Time" by H.U.V.A. Network and Debbie Rosas (co-founder of Nia, Portland, OR) contributed largely to the rest by creating a routine called Sanjana which I adapted to fit the music for the majority of the routine. Musically there is a fun theme of adaptation as well, as three of the songs took older songs and reworked them significantly. Deodato took Richard Strauss' "Also Sprach Zarathustra" (well known as the theme to 2...

Play Yourself Fit with Jag get outside channel your inner child have a fun adventure in nature gain strength, balance & flexibility improve self-confidence and creativity enjoy interacting with all that Volunteer Park has to offer flexible schedule to fit your life Jag says, "I use a variety of practices and creative imagery to guide you through a fun 'play date in the park'. Incorporating natural human movements like climbing, throwing, jumping, crawling, balancing, dancing, rolling, laughing and more, this is the kind of session you will look forward to: relaxing and energizing; restorative and explorative."    Each session is different and inspired by and expertly tailored to your personal needs, desires and abilities. We can incorporate things you like to do, too, like yoga, swimming, running, stretching, meditation or other activities.  Gain practical fitness for real life while getting fresh air and sunshine.   Privates or groups of 2 - $400 / 8 sessions Gr...

Nia with Jag is back!   Let's get together for live, in-person Nia.  Following the guidelines of phase 3 of re-opening, we are thrilled to be able to offer Nia classes of up to 10 people at Balance Studio for an experimental four-week trial period.  DATES: Sundays, May 23, 30 & June 6, 13 TIME: 10am-11am PLACE: Balance Studio                418 N 35th St.  (Fremont) HERE'S HOW IT WORKS Class size is strictly limited to 10. Masks are required at all times. Full COVID-19 protocols are in effect. Walk-in attendance is possible*, but pre-registration is strongly suggested. To register, email jagfit@hotmail.com or text 917-334-3111.  Payment is accepted via Venmo or ApplePay to reserve a spot. You can also use a credit card to purchase one class at a time by visiting the PayPal link below. You do not need a PayPal account to use it.  Due to the fees they charge me, the rate is $1 extra per class to use ...

The idea behind my Human Movement program is that consistency of movement is the most important aspect. Intensity isn’t as necessary as regularity. Skills are not required to get benefits from daily movements. Twice every day, I set aside at least ten minutes to move my body. Over the years I’ve embarked on many structured fitness or movement practice programs and have discovered that no matter what movements I’m practicing, I see results after I’ve been practicing consistently for several weeks. The problem is that I get bored of repetition or if I’m learning new skills, I progress to a certain point and then plateau and lose my motivation. My solution is non structured daily recess time. I usually put music on for my sessions, and sometimes I dance to the music. But every time I practice Human Movement I am doing what my body wants. Some days I have a lot of energy and do a longer, more vigorous session, and other days I need gentle nurturing or healing and move accordingly tha...

Jag’s Body Shop is a laboratory and a healthy playground for movement. The purpose is to enjoy being in a body and to explore our human potential. A very important aspect of Jag’s Body Shop is called Human Movement.  Not structured or protocol driven, it is movement done for fun and pleasure and can also be used to facilitate loosening, stretching and strengthening, improve balance, flow, and energy and develop graceful coordination by learning and practicing simple skills. It uses little to no equipment and is meant to be practiced anywhere at any time that’s convenient. Jag has been practicing this technique since he created it out of necessity following a bad shoulder injury in 2008. And starting May 2020, he is making it possible for you to practice Human Movement with Jag online. Human Movement begins by putting on music (if desired) and just starting to gently explore whatever movement you feel inspired to do that day. It is important that you pay attention to how each mo...

The Spirit Bird routine was created by JAG with the spirit of collaboration. As JAG describes it, "I feel like I gave this routine a few sparks in the community and created the space for this routine to manifest itself. A strong 'bird' motif showed up as I created the playlist and then the concept of 'flight' in our movement naturally followed." Spirit Bird is an empowering and freeing routine focused on the Ground in order to give our bodies Flight. The focus of the routine is on The Sensation of Grounded, which is an awareness of the relationship between the foot and the earth. The intent is to use the power of the Ground to find Mobility, Strength Agility, Flexibility and Stability. It is a lovely opportunity to explore the Three Planes of Movement and a great chance to use awareness of your Levels One, Two and Three to find a relaxed powerful flight. Flight can be described as feeling heavy on the outside but light on the inside. Or magnetically attach...

Saturday - Sunday, April 27 - 28 "Men of Nia", classes and playshops @ Soma Ranch 10176 Pooles Rd. Montgomery, TX _____________________________________________________________ Wednesday, May 8 10:30 am "Blue Earth" Nia routine @ Health Within 8226 196th Ave. NE Redmond, WA ___________________________________________________ Thursday, May 16 9:00 am "Blue Earth" Nia routine @ Embody Movement Studio 115 S Tower Ave Centralia, WA _____________________________________________________ Saturday, May 18 10:00 am "Blue Earth" Nia routine @ Just Move Studio 35859 Hwy 58 Pleasant Hill, OR ______________________________________________________ Monday, May 20 10:00 am "Blue Earth" Nia routine @ Shine Collective 578 Searls Ave Nevada City, CA ______________________________________________________ Thursday, May 23 10:00 am "Blue Earth" Nia routine @ Ace Dance Academy 1825 Mt Diablo Blvd Walnut Cree...