Shine

12/31/2024

Dance your way into 2025! Our 16th Annual Nee Year’s Day Nia will be led by Heather Burns, Lizzie Gulick & Maria Whitley. Join the dance, find your footing for this New Year and lift your heart!!! No experience needed and all bodies are welcome!!! We hope you step in with us!

12/25/2024

‘Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house…
May there be peace on earth and in our hearts and minds.

12/19/2024

Dear friends,

I regret to inform you that our upcoming Nia holistic movement session has been cancelled due to COVID. 💔

Nia is all about connecting with your body through joyful movement, and self-healing practices to help you feel your best. While we won’t be able to gather this time, we hope you’ll still find ways to move, breathe, and nurture yourself today.

11/21/2024

I’ve harvested lots of herbs from my garden in the last few weeks. Some folks like to waste time… but I like to pick thyme! A great activity for these dark early evenings. What do you do to waste time/pick thyme? 😜✨🌿 ✨

11/14/2024

Sometimes, the places we visit find us just when we need them. I took a walk at Saturday and ended up at the Stones, and my time there was just what my soul needed. Here’s me standing in front of my favorite. “cosmograms” carved into the limestone “lithopuncture needles” - created to heal the earth, and in that moment, to heal my spirit.

11/12/2024

Times ahead feel uncertain and heavy with so many emotions, as I, like you hope for a brighter, kinder world. Take some time to reflect and be with your emotions, feel and show up in your own way.
This photo captures a labyrinth I walked in Arizona this past summer, a space where I could just be. Labyrinths are a great place for walking meditations to be, learn, and acknowledge whatever comes up. Louisville has some beautiful labyrinths where you can find this peace, too. 🌀
Find one near you at the World-Wide Labyrinth Map: http://labyrinthlocator.org 🌏
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11/05/2024

Today is Election Day. I hope everyone has a plan to vote if you have not already! Here’s some info from our heroes at to help you know your rights. If you are feeling stressed, remember to breathe and slightly lengthen your exhale. Count 4 as you inhale through your nose and count 6 or 8 as you exhale. I’m also teaching a DeStress class tonight and if you get my weekly email, there’s a gift in there for you! May democracy prevail.

11/04/2024

This Saturday, I’ll be back at Saturdays with Spirit offering Mini MELT treatments for your connective tissue and your nervous system. Come out to the beautiful Foxhollow Farm and create a morning of self-healing. Check out all the beautiful offerings available and fill your day with spirit!!!

Maria Whitley, holistic movement educator and founder of Shine.

Maria, a Reiki Master, 2nd Degree Black Belt in the Nia Technique and a Level 5 MELT Method Instructor, is devoted to helping people feel at home and happy in their bodies through somatic movement. She’ll be offering MELT MiniSessions with specialty tools (Soft Foam Roller or Therapy Balls). Each session will Reconnect you to your center of gravity, Rebalance your nervous system, Rehydrate your connective tissue and Release stuck stress. You’ll step off the mat feeling grounded yet light, able to move with more ease and ready to shine. Exchange: $30 | 25 minutes.

10/31/2024

🎃 Louisville’s Halloween spirit is unmatched! I love how this city embraces every chance to dress up and celebrate. Did you know it all began with Samhain (pronounced “sow-wen”)? This Celtic pagan holiday, celebrated from sunset on October 31st to sunset on November 1st, marked the end of summer and the harvest.

In ancient Celtic belief, the veil between the living and the dead was thin during Samhain, allowing spirits to pass through. (And fun fact: I even played the spouse of a Wiccan in my spring play!) So here’s to celebrating Halloween with a bit of history and a lot of spirit! 🍂👻

10/01/2024

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09/21/2024

Today’s Rebalance & Reset:: Equinox Edition! was beautiful! Thanks to 8 beauties who gathered and played together today!!!

09/17/2024

Join me on Facebook Live this Friday, Sept 20 at 3pm as I give a talk in the amazing WO Network. I’ll be sharing strategies of self-care for wellness providers to avoid overwhelm and burnout. Although this series of masterclasses is designed for wellness entrepreneurs, anyone who leads a team or is in service to others can benefit, so please join us. Join the group here! https://www.facebook.com/share/g/ZVXP7aBKNr9evqLH/?mibextid=K35XfP

08/27/2024

🌈 Recapitulating on this summer. I have seen SEVEN RAINBOWS this summer! (Hard to believe when we are longing for rain right now in Louisville!) This first rainbow of the summer sent us off to Solid Sound where RAINBOWS ARE LEGEND!

Teaching Nia at Solid Sound was magic and I’m so grateful to share a practice that brings people together in movement and music.

Grateful for these moments of inspiration and the chance to share them with such an amazing community. Let’s keep shining through life together!