Posture

February 20, 2012 By

How do you feel when you are not standing or sitting as straight as you would like? What do you do to straighten yourself? What does it mean to have a good posture?

A lot of people feel that good posture is a reflection of how straight they are sitting or standing.

Moshe Feldenkrais taught us to think instead of posture as being dynamic, and reflecting how your body rests, arranges itself, and moves from one position to another, minute by minute throughout the day. The ideal is to feel comfortable and not compressed, in all positions.

Try this short sequence to explore how to reduce the slump and feel your spine lengthen to its natural length to help you feel taller and more open.

  • Stand on the floor, feet about hip width apart, knees softly bent.
  • Lengthen your left arm toward the ceiling as if someone was pulling you upward through your arm. Then release it. Look at your hand as you reach it toward the ceiling.
  • Repeat a few times, noticing:
    • How your head moves in response to the lengthening of your arm
    • How the reaching arm connects with your ribs on the left
    • How you are breathing as you lift and release your arm
    • What you notice happening along the left side of your back and at your waist
    • What you sense in your feet and heels
  • Stop and pause for a few moments.
  • Lengthen your right arm to the ceiling, paying attention to the various connections on this side.
  • Stand and notice how tall and open you feel now and how your feet connect with the floor.

 

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Increase sensitivity in your hands and fingers

February 7, 2012 By

We use our hands a lot during the day, especially our fingers for typing and texting and as a result more and more people are experiencing tension and pain in their wrists and fingers. Take a few minutes several times a day to move away from your computer or smart phone.

In Feldenkrais practice we strive  to sense all parts of our body, sometimes in its entirety and sometimes as components. We explore the effects of freedom of movement or of strain in one area on the rest of our self. If we overwork our fingers and hands, the rest of our body, and mind, will be less able to sense, move, act and think.

Try these small sequences to increase the sensitivity in your hands:

  • Sit comfortably on a chair, your feet uncrossed and on the floor.  Place your hands gently in your lap. Close your eyes.
  • Notice your breath and feel how your body responds to each inhalation and exhalation. Shift your attention from your breathing to your right hand and then back to your breathing. Then pay attention to your left hand. What do you notice about each hand and fingers and wrists? What else comes to your attention?
  • Keep your eyes closed and gently and loosely interlace your fingers, feeling the connection between the fingers of both your hands.
  • Slowly and easily slide your fingers closer together, letting each finger slide along its companion on the other hand. Feel the side of each finger. Then draw the hands apart but keep them loosely interlaced. Repeat sliding your fingers together and apart. What do you notice about each hand including the fingers, palms, and knuckles?
  • What does the rest of your body feel like when you move your hands together and apart?
  • Slowly release the hands and rest them on your lap for a few moments.
  • Then interlace them the other way – e.g. if your right thumb was closest to your body switch to have your left thumb closer. Repeat the slow sliding of the hands together and apart.Increase sensitivity in your hands and fingers
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Change Your Age

January 23, 2012 By

How old we feel is often dictated more by our movement habits and our ability to move with ease than by our chronological age. We can unlearn many of these restrictive habits and create new ones to help our bodies and minds feel younger, stronger and more agile and flexible.

Here is a sample movement sequence from the Change Your Age program, based on the pioneering work of Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais, founder of the Feldenkrais Method of Movement Education.

  • Stand behind and to the left of a chair with your right hand holding onto the back of the chair.
  • Bend your right knee only enough to lift your right heel off the floor and then return it. Repeat a few times, keep your left leg stable.
  • Then lift the ball of your foot and feel the weight shifting to your right heel. Continue to breathe easily as you do these movements.
  • Rock back and forth from the heel of your right foot to the ball of your foot. Do not press on the chair. You might feel your right hip moving forward and backward slightly.
  • Walk around the room for a moment and notice any differences in your legs and feet.
  • Return to the chair and stand to the right of the chair with your left hand holding the back of the chair. Repeat the movements with your left foot.
  • Stand away from the chair. What do you notice about your standing balance?
  • Walk around for a few moments. What do you sense about how you are walking now compared to earlier?

 

We are holding a Change Your Age workshop on Saturday January 28. Click here to read more about this workshop.This workshop is suitable for people of all ages and abilities. No specialized equipment or clothing is required.

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Keep Moving

January 10, 2012 By

Almost every day we read articles extolling the virtues of a non sedentary lifestyle.

There is now recognition that children who exercise do better in school and are healthier, no matter what form of exercise they do.

It has long been known that prolonged sitting increases strain on the back and leads to muscle tension in the neck and shoulders. Another article confirms that sitting for long periods is not good for us and can even shorten our lives.

So get moving.

  • Change positions often.
  • If your job requires you to sit at a desk or computer, set a timer and get up at least every 20 minutes.
  • Stand up, feel your feet firmly on the floor, unlock your knees and take a couple of breaths.
  • Keeping your feet in place turn your upper body to look to the left. Feel your right shoulder moving forward and the right side of your pelvis moving forward. Let your neck be free. Breathe easily. Return to the middle and repeat, turning to the right.
  • Take a few steps – first walk forward and then backward. Walking backward challenges your brain to work differently which will introduces new movement patterns to your body.
  • Get a drink of water and then return to work.
  • Take these 2 minute breaks every 20 minutes.
  • And encourage your children to move and to be active.

As Moshe Feldenkrais famously said: “Movement is life. Life is a process. Improve the quality of the process and you improve the quality of life itself.”

The Feldenkrais Method® is a unique form of movement education. We learn to do gentle and easy movement sequences that help change the way we move. The Feldenkrais Method is for anyone who wants to reconnect with their natural abilities to move, think and feel.

Feldenkrais Awareness Through Movement® classes we learn how to pay attention to how we move so we can do what we love doing with greater ease and comfort. If you are in Vancouver, check out our on line schedule and consider joining us.

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Walking stairs saves time and is healthier

January 3, 2012 By

Feeling like a slug after all the holiday eating and drinking?

Rather than making one big resolution to get into shape think about starting small and slow.

You could begin by deciding to walk up stairs rather than taking the elevator especially for 3 flights or less. A recent study suggests that it can take as much as double the time to reach your destination when you wait for and take an elevator instead of walking the stairs.

But how you walk up the stairs is important in order to protect your back and reduce stress on your knees and hip joints.

  • Put one foot on the stair in front of you and pay attention to what you do as you bring the back leg to join the front one. Did you pull yourself up with the front leg or did you push yourself forward with the back leg?
  • Start again at the bottom of a staircase. Put one foot on the stair in front of you. Pay attention to the back leg behind you. As soon as you start to lift the front leg to climb the stair think about peeling the back heel off the floor. Feel the back foot rolling from the heel to the ball and then to the toes. Lift it to join the upper foot on the stair. When the upper foot is supporting you on the stair begin to peel it off to go up onto the next stair.
  • This is a propelling motion of the back leg pushing you forward rather than the front leg pulling you up.
  • After you are able to feel the propelling motion, try a few stairs without thinking of the back foot and notice if there is a difference in how you climb the stairs. Feel the difference between the pulling and pushing motions. Which feels easier?
  • Then walk up the stairs at your normal speed, thinking of the back leg.

Winter Feldenkrais Awareness Through Movement® classes begin Tuesday January 10, 2012. Check out our schedule for more information.

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Listen and learn

December 13, 2011 By

A lot of people speak and write about the importance of listening for good communication. It is important to remember that listening is not the same as hearing, which we do primarily with our ears.

We can learn a lot about someone when we take the time to really listen. And even more importantly we can learn a lot about ourselves when we stop to listen.

Active listening implies that while the other person is talking we don’t talk over them or become distracted by thinking about what our immediate response will be. We stay focused on the person, on her words and body language and facial expressions, which can tell as much as, or more, than the words she is saying.  We look at her in the eye and try to imagine the feelings and thoughts behind her words.

We can also earn a lot about ourselves when we stop to listen.  As you go about your day, can you hear the tapes being played in your head rushing you from one thing to another or encouraging you to do several things at once? Do you listen to yourself as you walk up the one or two flights of stairs and wonder why you are not breathing as easily or why your knee or hip is sore? Or why sitting in your desk chair causes lower back pain and neck tension? Do you listen to your body while exercising and the cues that tell you to change how you are doing an exercise or stop doing it if you feel pain?

In our practice of the Feldenkrais Method® of movement education we learn how to listen to ourselves as we move around in the world. We use movement as the basis of awareness. We pay attention to how we move, what parts of our body we are inviting to participate in each movement sequence, how much effort we use, whether we are breathing easily and if we are clenching our jaws.

Consider how you listen to yourself. We invite you to explore how listening effects your movements and ultimately all that you do.

We have three avenues for you to continue your learning: weekly Awareness Through Movement® classes, weekend special workshops, or private Functional Integration® session.

Please contact us today to find out more.

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Fidgeting is good for you

December 6, 2011 By

Fidgeting can help us function better

A recent article  in The Globe and Mail confirms what many of us already knew, that moving is good for our brains as well as our bodies. Fidgeting and doodling helps you to be more attentive and enhances memory and overall brain functioning. Our bodies were designed for movement! When you fidget you repeat a few small movements which helps to keep your body loose and your brain awake.

  • You can “fidget” or move frequently while sitting at work, at a performance or lecture, in your car and in an airplane.
  • Gently rock your pelvis forward and backward. This will help reduce lower back tension and keeps your pelvis moving. Inhale and let your lower belly expand and feel your lower back arch as your rock your pelvis forward. As you exhale roll your pelvis backward and feel your back and whole spine rounding. Repeat several times.
  • You can also fidget while standing – in a checkout line, at a performance, in a waiting room or while waiting for someone at a street corner. Stand with your feet slightly apart, with the front of your feet a little further apart than your heels (e.g. your feet are not parallel), let your hands hang comfortably.
  • Do some gentle small knee bends – bending your knees slightly and then straightening them again but without locking them.
  • When you bend your knees notice how your pelvis and tail bone move downward in the direction of the floor.
  • As you come upright inhale and feel your trunk and chest expand to the sides. Your chest and breastbone lift, your neck lengthens and your gaze lifts upward. Repeat several times.

We have two more weeks of Awareness Through Movement® classes this year. Drop in and try a class if you haven’t already.

December offer: First class free to all new students who mention they saw this newsletter.  Offer good until January 31, 2012.

Details of our winter term are now on our website.

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Turning your head with comfort

November 30, 2011 By

A human being’s head turns around the vertical spine. A freely moving head, connected to smooth eye movements, can soften the muscle tone in the rest of our body and impacts how we can do everyday activities such as sitting, running, walking, playing a musical instrument, etc.

With this short movement sequence you can explore how the connection of your eyes and head can change how you turn.

  • Sit forward on a chair with your feet resting on the floor shoulder width apart. Move your back so it is not resting on the back of the chair.
  • Close your eyes. Turn your upper body to the left and return. Repeat twice. At the third turn stop where you feel that the movement is no longer smooth and easy.  Notice where you stopped and then return to sitting facing forward. Pause for a moment.
  • Keep your upper body facing forward, close your eyes, and turn only your eyes and head to the left a few times. How does your neck feel as you make these movements? What do you notice through the length of your spine? How are you breathing? Are your eyes going ahead of your head or are your eyes and head moving to the left together – check this out a few times with your eyes open.
  • After you repeat a few times stop, come back to the centre and rest for a few moments.  Repeat the movement of turning your upper body – your head, shoulders and trunk – to the left and notice where you can easily move to now. More importantly notice how you are breathing, how your trunk and ribs move and how your neck and head feel.
  • Now, focus your eyes on something in front of you and keep them there while turning your head and upper body to the left. You will likely notice that your turning range is greatly reduced. Repeat a few times. Pause for a moment.
  • Finally, close your eyes. Repeat the first movement of turning your upper body, head and eyes to the left and notice where that is now. Compare it to what you noticed and how you moved at the beginning.
  • Take a moment to rest in sitting before getting up and resuming your day. You can do this exploration any time during the day for a quick neck and shoulder release.

During our weekly Awareness Through Movement® classes we explore this powerful relationship between our head and eyes, as well as others, and also learn how to organize the rest of our body, and mind, for easy movements. Drop in and join us.

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Happy Feet Quiz

November 22, 2011 By

This weekend we ran another successful workshop, Happy Feet, our last scheduled for 2011.

We reviewed the basic structure of our feet to better understand how the foot’s structure and function influences how we stand, sit, walk, dance, ski and do many other activities. We did several Awareness Through Movement® lessons to increase awareness of the whole foot as well as of the individual toes. We explored the connections and relationships between the soles and heels with the ankle, leg, knee, hip joint, pelvis, neck and head. We also did a movement exploration focused on balance and discovered how important our feet are in helping maintain balance.

Participants received a learning quiz about the feet. The complete quiz and answers are on our website and can be accessed through this link.

In the meantime, here are a couple of teaser questions:

What has greater grasping power – the infant’s or adult’s foot?
How much pressure per square inch does the spike of a high heeled shoe exert with each step taken?

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Dynamic Sitting

November 8, 2011 By

Welcome back to our regular and popular Boost Your Well-Being movement tips. We took a hiatus while our new website was being designed and built.  The tips are now being sent out via newsletter and adapted here. For a copy of the newsletter click here.

This tip brings back a favourite, how to sit comfortably and effortlessly. This past weekend we ran a successful workshop, Sitting With Ease, where we explored several movement sequences to help re think the idea that sitting is a static position. Instead we explored sitting as a dynamic activity which makes it easier to sit  without being fixed, constrained or restricted and without overworking our muscles. With support through the feet and pelvis and balance in the pelvic sitting bones we can move freely, bend down, and shift weight easily.

Here is a checklist for dynamic sitting:

  • If you are sitting on an adjustable ergonomic chair, lower the height so that your feet can rest on the floor. Adjust the lumbar control so that the lower back is slightly arched.
  • If you are sitting on a regular chair, sit on the front part of the chair without leaning on the back of the chair.
  • If your back is resting on the chair’s back, support your lower back with the contoured seat back or a lumbar roll.
  • Balance your weight evenly on both pelvic sitting bones.
  • Let go of unnecessary muscular effort and tension in your body.
  • Place both feet hip width apart and uncrossed on the floor.
  • Breathe freely and easily.
  • Get up frequently even if for a brief moment, at least every 15 minutes.

 

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