Workout of the Week

Alchemy of Movement, 2436 30th St., Boulder, 303-449-4410, www.alchemyofmovement.com

Instructor: Katherine McIntosh, of Lyons, took her first modern dance class in college and fell in love with dance. While studying Spanish literature in Ecuador for 2½ years, she learned more about dance, including salsa. Back in the states, she was trained in NIA in 2002. She taught volunteer classes in Spanish at a center for people with low incomes before teaching at Alchemy of Movement. She also taught "Trance Dance," a style of dance done while wearing a blindfold. McIntosh also studied dance movement therapy at Naropa University in Boulder and spent seven years studying neo-shamanic work.

What is the workout? Sacred Sol is a class focused around "soul evolution" and connection with yourself internally, initiated from the outside through movement, music, breath, dancing and physical self-expression. The class uses elements of "authentic movement," Trance Dance, NIA, free dance and meditation.

As McIntosh says, "Shake things up, open to the divine and re-awaken the pieces of your soul that create your authentic self."

Who does it? Class was five women, still small because it started one month ago -- and, let's face it, is early in the morning.

When: 7:30 a.m.-8:45 a.m.Thursdays. That early time is intentional, because it's still somewhat of a dream space for most people, McIntosh says. She says she likes to "not separate night from day, to combine the elements of our dreams into reality."

Level: Any level. No dance background needed.

Format: Class begins with 10 to 15 minutes "internal space," silent time for participants to focus on the intention, or theme, of the class until their bodies feel "called to move." The intention of this class was listening. Then, participants move to the feet for free dancing and eventually more choreographed NIA-style dancing.

I usually feel too uptight and self-conscious for free dancing, but in this class I felt completely comfortable and open. I think this is partially because of the time (I did still feel a little dreamy) and because of the way we started slowly. I didn't feel like I was thrown into a class with a bunch of better dancers than me. Because everyone seemed so connected to themselves, it didn't feel judgmental.

Class ends with a guided meditation on the floor.

Equipment: Nothing.

What to wear: Comfortable clothes and preferably no shoes. People have 270-plus nerve endings on the bottom of our feet, and by dancing barefoot, we massage these nerves, cells and our related organs by making contact with the Earth, according to McIntosh.

Muscles worked: This class is designed as an internal journey with full-body movement. It is not physically strenuous, although I did sweat, get my blood circulating and feel stretched out. I've noticed I sometimes get more sore from lower impact classes because I use muscles that usually get overlooked.

McIntosh says the movements and format are designed to take you inside and help re-pattern your body, mind and spirit on a cellular level. According to McIntosh, every second, 10,000 of our cells die, and at that same second, 10,000 new cells are born. If we train our bodies to do something different than we're used to, we can reprogram the neuropathways of those new cells. In other words, every single second we have 10,000 new chances for new patterns and transformation.

"I really believe that Sacred Sol enhances your spirit, your soul and really helps you realign your body in the way that your spirit wants by reprogramming ourselves, by challenging you to breathe and being slightly uncomfortable, in terms of emotions," McIntosh says.

One new move: The intention of this class is to rattle your brain, body and cells to create a higher vibration. Then, at the end, there is no stretching. You drop to the floor and enter a meditative state.

"It's an internal journey you can't get through stretching or someone else telling you what you need to do. It's a personal internal space. For me, it helps me connect to the Divine," McIntosh says.

What's different: I think this class is sort of moving meditation. This is different than meditating in physical stillness because it often allows a person to move more quickly into the clear mental space. It's difficult to continue worrying and thinking when you are moving, especially if you are emotionally and consciously invested in that movement. Your body helps take over and quiet your mind. When I finally reached the stillness at the end of class, I found I had few thoughts and moved almost instantly into meditation.

What I loved: The teacher. She is magnetic.

What I didn't like: Nothing. This is the only time in the history of workouts of the week when I will say it was worth it waking up at 6 a.m. after going to bed at 2 a.m.

Inspiration for class: McIntosh was teaching NIA but didn't feel like she was expressing everything she wanted to express in the class. She created Sacred Sol based on the concept that through darkness, we find light. She wanted a class that brought participants inside to "listen to our shadows," and bring light to that.

How I felt after the class: Connected, listening, breathing, receptive, ready.

How I felt later: Refreshed and clear-headed. I felt physically relaxed all day.

-- Reported by Aimee Heckel.

Know of any interesting workouts? Tell us about them so we can check them out: heckela@dailycamera.com or 303-473-1359.