Month: June 2011

Strong arms, soft shoulders.

Here is a wonderful exploration for finding the connection of your arms through your shoulders and spine. 1) Sit on the floor with your knees bent out to the sides and the soles of your feet facing (but not touching) each other. You may need to place a folded towel under your sit bones for comfort. Place your hands on the floor behind your pelvis and lean into your arms and hands. Play with the placement of your hands. Do you prefer your fingers pointing away from yourself? Towards yourself? Somewhere in between? Take a few minutes and very slowly explore where your arms and hands can be so you feel your arms can easily support you. Stop. Take your hands away from the floor and rest. 2) Return to sitting with your knees bent, soles of the feet facing each other and place your hands behind...

Continue reading

It’s time….for the pelvic clock.

    Many of us have an unclear sense of awareness of our pelvis. As a result, we often don’t understand how to move from our strong foundation, our true base of support, our pelvis. Try this brief excerpt from a classic Feldenkrais Awareness Through Movement(R) lesson. It will help you learn how to sense your pelvis, loosen your hip joints and free your low back. As always, move very slowly, thoughtfully, and pay close attention to the quality of your movement.     1) Lie on the floor on your back with your knees bent and your feet comfortably apart. You may need to place a folded towel (not a pillow) under your head for comfort.    Imagine the face of a clock lying on top of your pelvis, with 6 o’clock at your pubic bone and 12 o’clock at your belly button. Slowly and...

Continue reading

Expand your world with spinal flexibility.

    Many of us think of our spinal flexibility in terms of our ability to bend forward, backward, and sideways. What about rotation? Not only does rotation allow us to turn and look behind ourselves, but it plays an important role in healthy spine mechanics. Spinal rotation is also important for survival; we need to be able to turn to see who or what is behind us, to pull into traffic, to merge on a ski slope, etc. Unfortunately, we often don’t include rotation into our movement patterns. We also may have heard that “twisting” the spine is a bad thing and can cause injury. There is a difference between “twisting” and the gentle rotation that is necessary for a healthy spine. Here is a nice little exercise to open up the spine in healthy rotation.     1) Stand...

Continue reading

Don’t worry….be happy!

    I recently found myself engaged in a conversation where I was suddenly and unexpectedly asked to name 3 things that made me happy.     This question was presented to me after I had just completed a 3 day Advanced Feldenkrais Training with Russell Delman, a highly respected Feldenkrais Trainer who presented his work “The Embodied Life”TM. His work incorporates deep personal introspection along with gentle self inquiry. Oooo, what perfect timing! I took the question very seriously and slowly began to consider my response, giving it the thoughtful consideration it deserved, accepting the question on a deep philosophical level. After all, what is happiness? What does it mean, “to be happy”? Does it come from an external source, or from somewhere deep within ourselves?     My...

Continue reading

The sounds of silence….

    Do you ever feel overwhelmed, exhausted, frustrated, unable to concentrate, anxious and/or upset for “no apparent reason”? The chances are your brain may just be overstimulated from the never ending onslaught of information it recieves from TV, radio, cell phones, computers, texts, work, traffic, family responsibilites and just plain life in general.     Give yourself a true rest by turning off all of the electronic devices, and find a quiet place where you can be alone even just for a few minutes. I believe that sitting outdoors is the most restorative. Sit quietly for a few minutes and notice how your sit bones contact your sitting surface. Slowly  move your attention to your breathing….not to change it or “fix” it, or worry about if you are doing it the...

Continue reading