I used to have headaches. Blinding, incapacitating, vice-gripping, put your life on hold for three days kind of headaches. I don’t have them anymore, but they used to be unbearable. For some reason, when I was in my Feldenkrais Training, my headaches got much worse before they got better. However, it’s interesting that eventually they went away completely. One of the worst headaches I’ve ever experienced was in the middle of my second Feldenkrais Training segment. I woke up with the familiar pain gripping my head, neck and shoulders. I couldn’t turn my head, and I wondered how I was going to drive to class that morning. I had stabbing pain deep in the middle of my thoracic spine, and I thought blood was going to shoot out of my eyes. Even my hair hurt. It was promising...

One of the most valuable things I have learned from my Feldenkrais Training is that what we tell ourselves really does matter. Our mind (our brain and our nervous system) is constantly listening and processing the information that it receives. What we tell ourselves is what we believe. What we believe is what we become. This became quite obvious during ballet class a few days ago when I listened to several of my ballet friends beat themselves down with negative self talk. Our teacher had just given us a challenging and complex combination. A group of dancers stood around discussing their limitations, their short comings, their injuries, the reasons why they wouldn’t be able to do the combination and what would happen when they tried. It was fascinating to see all of their dire predictions...

One of my favorite ballet teachers is quite the task mistress and really keeps us on our toes, so to speak. I just love her, and I love her classes. If your ballet technique doesn’t improve after studying with her, you might as well hang up your toe shoes and go home. She teaches a professional level class, and I have to work pretty hard just to keep up. This means thoroughly engaging my mind as well as my body, which brings me to the point of exhaustion at the end of an hour and a half, but it’s fun. I love challenging myself. I often write down my corrections in a small note pad I keep with me at all times. Some of the younger dancers have remarked what a good student I am when they see me scribbling madly in my book. I smile sweetly and thank them, but the truth is, I can’t...

Here it is, another New Year, and already our New Year resolution guilt may be weighing heavily upon us. It doesn’t help to see all of the signs at the local health clubs advertising “A New Year and a New You!” Gee, and I kind of liked the old one. Adding insult to injury are the endless commercials for weight loss programs neatly sandwiched in between all of the commercials for junk food in anticipation of the playoffs and the upcoming Super Bowl. It’s even more difficult to get motivated to stick to those New Year’s goals for fitness and weight loss with the cold, dreary weather. Those junk food commercials are looking like a good option. What’s a body to do? Before you give up, here’s a little bit of advice which is not only helpful but practical...

About two months ago I started using the brain building games from Lumosity. You may have heard of it. You know, “build a better brain based on the scientific principle of neuroplasticity, but it just feels like you’re playing games.” Well, as a Feldenkrais Practitioner, I’m all over this neuroplasticity, and I certainly do love to play, so I thought I’d give it a try. At first I was surprised at how easy it seemed and how much fun it was. I was especially surprised to discover how well I scored at mathematical equations. After all, I have a reputation for not being good at math. Another surprise was a game called “Familiar Faces”, where you have to recall the names of customers that visit your diner. You then have to match up the right food orders...

A few days ago I was cleaning my kitchen, when I mindlessly knocked a sugar bowl off of the window sill and into the sink. I watched in horror as if it were falling in slow motion, with me unable to stop it or catch it before it hit the sink and shattered. It was my mother’s sugar bowl, and it had sat on the exact same spot for the past three years. I felt the threat of tears coming on as I picked up the broken pieces and tried to fit them back together like pieces of a puzzle. I wondered if I could possibly repair it, and if the glue would hold.  At least the bowl was empty, so I didn’t have sugar all over my kitchen to clean up. Then I started to berate myself. How could I have been so careless? How could I have been so clumsy? Why had I been in such a hurry? But then, something...

It took me a long time to embrace modern technology. Three years ago, the only thing I could do on a computer was send and retrieve emails. And even that didn’t always go well. Until a few months ago, I didn’t even know what spam was. I always thought it was ham in a can. It never did appeal to me, so it made sense when people would use that word with a look of disdain on their face. I’ve come a long way, and I am proud to report that I am completely self taught. Which means that I have made a a lot of mistakes along the way. I have unknowingly breached online etiquette, unwittingly looked like a nit wit, and have often appeared downright ridiculous as well as unsophisticated. But, I learned a lot. Early in my timid exploration of this form of communication, I was invited...

     The Pilates Method is famous for developing long, lean muscular bodies while improving flexibility, posture and core strength. This remarkable method created by it’s founder, Joseph H. Pilates, helps you stretch, strengthen and re-shape your entire body. Pilates also helps you recover quickly from injuries and prevent future injuries. The six basic principles specific to Pilates incorporate the ability to pay close attention to yourself while you simultaneously activate your core muscles, elongate your spine and precisely moving through each exercise. Here’s a closer look at these principles.          Concentration     Concentration truly embodies the mind/body connection that is the key to Pilates and why it makes it so effective and powerful. In Pilates, we move slowly...

    The other day I decided to make a quick run to Target to pick up a few things that I really needed. I figured it wouldn’t take long, especially since I didn’t need much. I grabbed what I needed and stepped up to the checkout counter. There was only one customer ahead of me so I knew I would soon be out the door and on my way home.     Her basket was full of small items, and the cashier meticulously turned each one over in his hands a few times before he scanned it. This was going to take longer than I thought, but that’s okay. I have a lot of patience and I’m pretty good at entertaining myself. I played Ninja mind games, I played with shifting my weight, and I looked at a few magazines. Good grief, this was taking forever!     I was tired, my feet hurt, and I...