Ann Boon Inspiration

07/10/2025

Nia is on at Clem Jones Centre Carina every Thursday morning from 9.15am in Studio One. A whole hour to yourself 💓 Move to beautiful music 🎶 Simple fun moves from dance & martial arts 👊 Holistic conditioning * Body-Mind connection ✨ Balance ⚖️ Playfulness * Strength 💪 Joy 🌟 Cone early to get a park & remember to bring a towel. Beginners welcome 🙏 Studio One Clem Jones Centre 56 Zahel St Carina

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DPhQPjTkx65/?igsh=MTBwbWVxM2Noc2tkYg==

30/09/2025

Nia is ON! Thursdays 9.15am Clem Jones Centre 📍 Studio One, Clem Jones Centre, 56 Zahel Street, Carina
💸 Active Moves Pricing:
• Casual $15
• 10-visit pass $110
• 20-visit pass $180
Some benefits ….
• A whole hour for self-care
• Move to beautiful music
• Fun
• Depth
• Groundedness
• Simple steps - fabulous sounds
• Build body-mind connection
• Cultivate balance
• Holistic conditioning
• Community
• Finding the positives in life
• Connection
• Playfulness
• Be part of something bigger than yourself
• Blow away the cobwebs
• Centre yourself
• Find perspective
• Leave distractions behind
• Time to breathe and be yourself
• Feel uplifted and refreshed
• Improve posture and strength
• Practice presence
• Incredible value
So much more ...

18/09/2025

Fascinating read about nervous system regulation.

While physical systems like the musculoskeletal, endocrine, immune, and circulatory systems play crucial roles in performance and recovery, they all operate under the influence and regulation of the nervous system. Hence, gaining insights into the nervous system – particularly the Central Nervous ...

16/09/2025

We are back ON this week! Nia at Clem Jones Centre Thursday 9.15am in Studio One, 56 Zahel St, Carina.

Come early to get a park & bring your towel 💓

28/08/2025

A Little Holiday Pause

I’ll be away in Fiji for the first two weeks of September 🌴 – there will be no Nia at Clem Jones on Thursday 4 & 11 September. In its place CJs will offer a low impact Zumba Gold class at 9.15am.

Nia Classes resume on Thursday 18 September.

While I’m away, why not:

Put on your favourite music and dance around the house!

Practice balance in simple ways: stand on one leg while brushing your teeth or while out and about at the shops, slow down and notice your breath, walk barefoot outside.

Re-visit the feeling you take from class – confidence, calm, joy – and let it ripple into your week.

26/08/2025

This week at Nia we return to one of my favourite Nia routines: Beyond. Its focus is Balance. “Beyond” is designed to challenge you - yes - and in doing so strengthen your body-mind connection, improve functionality and alignment, create new pathways in the brain and refresh & renew your ability to move with ease. Plus the music is fabulous to dance to - I really love it!
✨ Everyone is welcome to join the joy of Nia at Clem Jones – whether you’re brand new or returning, this class is for you. Bring your friends and bring a towel as well!
This Thursday 9.15am–10.15am
📍 Studio One, Clem Jones Centre, 56 Zahel Street, Carina
💸 Active Moves Pricing:
• Casual $15
• 10-visit pass $110
• 20-visit pass $180

This week we return to one of my favourite Nia routines: Beyond. Its focus is Balance. Balance isn’t just about standing on one leg (though we have fun with that). We'll be cultivating balance in all the realms ; 

20/08/2025

Nia was originally an acronym for Non-Impact-Aerobics. As Nia developed, its creators realised it was SO MUCH MORE than simply that. It's a practice full of nuance and complexitiy. In an attempt to describe it they rebranded it as "Neuro-Integrative-Action" as a way to describe how it brings mind-body connections to the forefront with its use of awareness alongside the moves.

Breaking it down
Neuro → relating to the nervous system (brain, spinal cord, nerves, sensory pathways).

Integrative → bringing different elements together into a whole, harmonising rather than isolating.

Action → movement, expression, doing, embodying.

In Practice
Every Nia class asks you not just to move muscles, but to sense, feel, imagine, and express → this recruits multiple parts of the brain.

The repetition of simple patterns stimulates neuroplasticity (new movement patterns build new connections in your brain creating new neural pathways).
Alternating between structure (choreography, steps) and freedom (via unchoreographed free-spirited movement or freedance) mirrors how the nervous system thrives on both stability and adaptability.
In Nia we intentionally build sensory awareness by repeatedly bringing the student/practitioner's attention to the feeling or sensation of the movement as a way of developing present moment awareness and nourishing the nervous system
In Nia we consciously integrate body-mind-emotions and spirit. We also flavour and energise the movements with chemistry from the martial arts -Tai Chi, Aikido, TaeKwonDo, dance arts - Jazz, Modern and Duncan Dance and healing arts - Yoga, Feldenkrais and Alexander Technique.

More info ; https://mailchi.mp/a250a1a6b6b4/finding-flow-and-neuroplasticity

20/08/2025

RULE #1 : BE YOURSELF

This week at Nia: We’ll be dancing Aya — expect freedance, fluidity, rhythm, and plenty of chances to feel your own flow.
It's impossible to “get it wrong” when you’re being yourself !!

RULE #2 : HAVE FUN!
Nia is ON🕘 Every Thursday 9.15am–10.15am
📍 Studio One, Clem Jones Centre, 56 Zahel Street, Carina
💸 Active Moves Pricing:
• Casual $15
• 10-visit pass $110
• 20-visit pass $180

More info ; https://mailchi.mp/a250a1a6b6b4/finding-flow-and-neuroplasticity

19/08/2025

Last week we danced Flow for the first time — a Nia routine whose focus is moving the major 13 joints of the body and enhancing fluidity. It stretched us all with new steps and patterns. It worked our brain as much as our body with new-to-me movement patterns that require lots of coordination.

This week, we’ll move to an older routine called Aya, which to me feels far more fluid. There’s plenty of freedance in it 💓hope you're reading this Steffi 💓 as well as Nia’s signature blend of simple steps repeated, rhythm, playfulness and musicality. It’s a great chance to listen to the music and trust your body to take you where it will, to flow in a different way and to let go.

Nia was originally an acronym for Non-Impact-Aerobics. As Nia developed, its creators realised it was SO MUCH MORE than simply that. It's a practice full of nuance and complexitiy. In an attempt to describe it they rebranded it as "Neuro-Integrative-Action" as a way to describe how it brings mind-body connections to the forefront with its use of awareness alongside the moves.
Nia is ON🕘 Every Thursday 9.15am–10.15am
📍 Studio One, Clem Jones Centre, 56 Zahel Street, Carina
💸 Active Moves Pricing:
• Casual $15
• 10-visit pass $110
• 20-visit pass $180

Breaking it down Neuro → relating to the nervous system (brain, spinal cord, nerves, sensory pathways). Integrative → bringing different elements together into a whole, harmonising rather than isolating. Action → movement, expression, doing, embodying.

12/08/2025

Have you ever left a Nia class feeling lighter, happier, and more you — like a fog has lifted and your insides are smiling? That’s not a coincidence. That’s endorphins at work.

💫 What are endorphins?
Endorphins are chemicals our bodies release during exercise, laughter, dancing, and even when we eat something delicious or enjoy a moment of connection. They’re part of our natural inner pharmacy — helping reduce pain, relieve stress, and boost pleasure.
💫 Why do we have them?
They evolved as a way to help us keep going during times of challenge — but we don’t need to run a marathon to get their benefits. Rhythmic movement, music, connection, play — all of these can spark endorphin release.
💫 Why they feel so good
Endorphins help shift us out of “survival mode” and into a place of calm, ease, and joy. They can elevate our mood, increase our energy, and help us feel more like ourselves again. They're like an inner reset button — no prescription needed.
💫 How to cultivate them?
Move your body to music (hello, Nia!)
Laugh, hug, dance, stretch
Enjoy dark chocolate or spicy food
Get outside in the sunshine
Do something kind for someone else
Engage in something that brings you pleasure
🌀Nia is a beautiful way to cultivate endorphins — it weaves together joyful movement, expressive music, and community connection. We’re not just “working out,” we’re waking up the body’s natural feel-good chemistry.

Come and move with us - every Thursday at Clem Jones Centre 9.15am Studio One

31/07/2025

Beyond Fitness – Nia’s Holistic Invitation ... Yes! Nia improves balance, agility, mobility, strength, flexibility, and cardio fitness. But it also gives you something extra – that sparkle that’s harder to pin down;

* The joyful freedom of moving like you did when you were a kid, just for the sheer delight of it
* The confidence that comes when your body starts feeling stronger, more agile, more at ease
* The connection to self and others that arises when you feel safe to show up just as you are

Nia meets you in your wholeness. It encourages you to listen inwardly and honour the sensations of your body – but also invites expression, creativity, emotion, even stillness.

It welcomes your uniqueness to take centre stage.

In every class, you’ll find space to be yourself – and to rediscover parts that may have gone quiet.

🕘 Every Thursday 9.15am–10.15am
📍 Studio One, Clem Jones Centre, 56 Zahel Street, Carina

💸 Active Moves Pricing:
• Casual $15
• 10-visit pass $110
• 20-visit pass $180

Come early to get a park and remember to bring a towel.

25/05/2025

Shimmy, Shake, Squat & Smile with Me! Nine Nia & HeartFIT classes this week : Two Ways I Love to Move 💃💪🤸‍♀️❣️
I don’t know about you, but I’ve got a full dance card for the next fortnight – and I’d love you to join me. 💃 On Thursdays, you’ll find me teaching Nia at Clem Jones, as usual from 9.15am in Studio One 💪 This week and next, I’m also jumping in to teach eight weekly HeartFIT classes around Brisbane while Bruce – HeartFIT’s founder – takes a well-earned break.
✨ Why I Love Both – and Why You Might Too
Though Nia and HeartFIT have very different flavours, I find they complement each other beautifully. They both foster strength, mobility, flexibility, agility, stability, balance, coordination, healthy ageing, and more - while celebrating all the people who come along.
🌀 What They Share
Both Nia and HeartFIT:
• Improve balance, mobility and coordination
• Offer a rich vocabulary of movement
• Build confidence and vitality at every age
But the energy is different – Nia feels like a moving meditation, where you’re swept into rhythm and sensation. HeartFIT brings the focus and fire of traditional fitness, with moves shaped by the beat and the use of bands and weights. Together, they offer a rounded way to stay strong, supple and joyfully alive. They both have great communities. Plus... they’re fun!
This Week’s Line-Up: HeartFIT + Nia with Ann

🌟 Monday – HF @ Cannon Hill + Mt Gravatt
🌟 Tuesday – HF @ New Farm
🌟 Wednesday – HF @ Sandgate
🌟 Thursday – Nia @ at Clem Jones Carina
🌟 Friday – HF @ Clayfield + Underwood

🌱 HeartFIT is also happening at Cleveland, Balmoral, Ascot, Sunnybank and more. There are 22 HeartFIT classes offered across Brisbane weekly. Your first class is free, and class passes are interchangeable.

More info here ;