The words inhibition - to say no and direction - to give yourself orders comes early on in the process of taking lessons in the Alexander Technique.
What is it that need to be inhibited, stopped?
Those that I work with first notice that they must stop the already established patterns of movement when they "do what they always do" when they carry out an every day movement. The pause is necessary to find the time to notice what happened - actually.
The second step is trickier to get and involves your own thoughts about what "needs to be happening" in order to go from sitting to standing, for example. - Yes, but I have to xxx, yyy, this or that to be able to...
There is a pre concieved idea of the force needed to bring the body in motion. All such preconceptions need to be inhibited.
An additional level in which inhibition is necessary concernes distrust, selfdoubt in your own ability and what you reckon is possible.
The first, superficial level is easy to see and therefore to understand. I might for example show with my own body what is happening with my students and also show how it can be done in a different way.
Level two is slightly harder to reach. Most people I meet are active, enterprising and energetic people. They take responsibility for and initiates most of what happens in their lives. Vigorous efforts is a living for them! It is a journey in itself for them to realize that their own body can "give them what they want" if they'd only leave themselves alone.
Which almost seamlessly brings us into the last level - the confidence that what we have practised through the lessons and dealth with above really is an ability of their own.
To me it's really a magical moment when those I work with really realize that inhibition, to say no (how paradoxical it may sound) is the key ... and now I have no handy way to describe what I perceive ... allows them to be fully living in their lives. And we're not talking about a fluffypuffy life, many have been troubled by pain for years and will have to live with it for years to come but inhibition can help them live a fulfilling life together with the pain. For those who are free from pain, there might be other burdens that they have to carry with them in their lives.
The magic is that they feel they can live adequately and fully in their process, they know they have the ability to say no and, from there take a more desirable direction, for me it is a privilege to be present at the very moment they realise that all they need is to be found within themselves.
"When you look at fairy tales, it must strike you that one thing that nobody ever worries about at all is how the wish is going to be carried out."
Walter Carrington
Showing posts with label Alexander technique. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Alexander technique. Show all posts
Thursday, 10 May 2012
Thursday, 5 January 2012
A connected leg
To improve suppleness, it is important for riders to have some basic knowledge about their own anatomy, and in this post I thought to start with the legs.
In riding the rider's legs belongs to the horse's trunk. The legs should rest around it without squeezing, ready to support the aid from the hand and equally ready to send information about the horse's movement to the rider.
There are many who on a straight question as to where the hip joint is actually do not know the answer. To be able to improve our riding skills it is worth while to spend some time learning more about how our body works; where movement take place and what happens when we move. Let's take a closer look at how our legs are connected to our torso both bone wise and muscular. (Picture below comes from Wikipedia).
As you can see by the picture, there are several muscles in and around the pelvis attached to the femur. (There are 17 different muscles responsible for moving the femur in different directions, the other can be found here.)
The hip joint, like the shoulder joint, is a ball joint with the ability of movement in multiple directions (picture from healthpages.org).
A muscle that is relevant to the rider's ability to obtain a stable vertical seat is psoas major. Its origin is on the inside of the spine, lumbar vertebrae 1-5, and it attaches to the inside of the thigh bone. Psoas, among other muscles, are responsible for the flxing of the hip, that is to bend the torso towards the legs (the legs are fixed) or the legs towards the body (the trunk is fixed).
A shortened psoas muscle pulls the lower back forward and tilts the pelvis forward (increased lordosis). If the pelvis is tipping forward it means that the movement the head of the femour is impaired and that affects our ability to absorb the horse's movement.
A gentle stretch can help to overcome a shortened psoas muscle is the Alexander rest. During activity it can be helpful to think about letting your legs and torso "let go" of one another so that the legs can hang down from the torso and the trunk can have a direction straight upwards over the legs.
We may be content with less mobility than this three-year-old can produce but the potential is there...
"Riding turns 'I wish' to 'I can'."
Pam Brown
In riding the rider's legs belongs to the horse's trunk. The legs should rest around it without squeezing, ready to support the aid from the hand and equally ready to send information about the horse's movement to the rider.
There are many who on a straight question as to where the hip joint is actually do not know the answer. To be able to improve our riding skills it is worth while to spend some time learning more about how our body works; where movement take place and what happens when we move. Let's take a closer look at how our legs are connected to our torso both bone wise and muscular. (Picture below comes from Wikipedia).
As you can see by the picture, there are several muscles in and around the pelvis attached to the femur. (There are 17 different muscles responsible for moving the femur in different directions, the other can be found here.)
The hip joint, like the shoulder joint, is a ball joint with the ability of movement in multiple directions (picture from healthpages.org).
A muscle that is relevant to the rider's ability to obtain a stable vertical seat is psoas major. Its origin is on the inside of the spine, lumbar vertebrae 1-5, and it attaches to the inside of the thigh bone. Psoas, among other muscles, are responsible for the flxing of the hip, that is to bend the torso towards the legs (the legs are fixed) or the legs towards the body (the trunk is fixed).
A shortened psoas muscle pulls the lower back forward and tilts the pelvis forward (increased lordosis). If the pelvis is tipping forward it means that the movement the head of the femour is impaired and that affects our ability to absorb the horse's movement.
A gentle stretch can help to overcome a shortened psoas muscle is the Alexander rest. During activity it can be helpful to think about letting your legs and torso "let go" of one another so that the legs can hang down from the torso and the trunk can have a direction straight upwards over the legs.
We may be content with less mobility than this three-year-old can produce but the potential is there...
"Riding turns 'I wish' to 'I can'."
Pam Brown
Thursday, 10 November 2011
A mindful rest
FM Alexander insisted that man is a psycho-physical unity - body and mind is an undivideable entity. Anything that affects our mind will reflect itself in our body and vice versa. I have yet to meet the man who contradicts this, but every day I meet people who still have to embrace this truth in their own lives. Alexander also advised that we need to practice our response (reaction) to what is happening (stimuli) so that we try to avoid to be too hasty. To cultivate an inner peace that allows us retain our ability to make sensible decisions, both in terms of what we do and what we say.
The Alexander rest (or semi supine) is a fantastic tool to help yourself along the road to become a psycho-physical unity. The foundation is laid by giving yourself 15-20 minutes of Alexander rest as I described earlier (posted in August-October). Once you become familiar with your body and have let it benefit from the passive stretching that the semi supine gives, you've also got a feel for how it feels when your back is resting on the floor, a feeling that you can recall standing up. You have arrived to the point that your body can give its weight to the floor more quickly because it has learned to appreciate both the rest and safety of being carried by the floor.
At this point you can start using the Alexander rest as an arena to make perceptive assessments of your internal, mental, processes. I usually lie down and allow me to settle before I start to think through a "challenge" that I have before me. It can be anything; a meeting, a presentation, a training session with the horse, a busy day. When I do this review, I notice what happens in my body, is my breathing is affected, do I become tense somewhere, does my heart rate increase. If I notice that I get a reaction from my "mental stimuli" that I want to avoid I pause and consciously strive to let go of any unnecessary tension before I let my inner film continue to roll.
If I, in a real situation, notice that I get nervous or stressed with an increased tension I can "return to my previous work", if only for a millisecond, and it becomes quiet both in the body and mind.
This way of working with your psyche and your body and seek to pre-program desired connections in the nervous system is nowadays called mental training. Alexander Technique is a sophisticated form of mental training. It gives the body a relaxed relationship to gravity, it will help you become aware ot the direction you want to keep and when you meet challenges it helps you to find time for reconsideration in the feel of security that comes from knowing where you have your back.
"This inability to stay calm, this annoying desire to immediately take action, is one of humanity's most obvious defects."
Walter Bagehot
The Alexander rest (or semi supine) is a fantastic tool to help yourself along the road to become a psycho-physical unity. The foundation is laid by giving yourself 15-20 minutes of Alexander rest as I described earlier (posted in August-October). Once you become familiar with your body and have let it benefit from the passive stretching that the semi supine gives, you've also got a feel for how it feels when your back is resting on the floor, a feeling that you can recall standing up. You have arrived to the point that your body can give its weight to the floor more quickly because it has learned to appreciate both the rest and safety of being carried by the floor.
At this point you can start using the Alexander rest as an arena to make perceptive assessments of your internal, mental, processes. I usually lie down and allow me to settle before I start to think through a "challenge" that I have before me. It can be anything; a meeting, a presentation, a training session with the horse, a busy day. When I do this review, I notice what happens in my body, is my breathing is affected, do I become tense somewhere, does my heart rate increase. If I notice that I get a reaction from my "mental stimuli" that I want to avoid I pause and consciously strive to let go of any unnecessary tension before I let my inner film continue to roll.
If I, in a real situation, notice that I get nervous or stressed with an increased tension I can "return to my previous work", if only for a millisecond, and it becomes quiet both in the body and mind.
This way of working with your psyche and your body and seek to pre-program desired connections in the nervous system is nowadays called mental training. Alexander Technique is a sophisticated form of mental training. It gives the body a relaxed relationship to gravity, it will help you become aware ot the direction you want to keep and when you meet challenges it helps you to find time for reconsideration in the feel of security that comes from knowing where you have your back.
"This inability to stay calm, this annoying desire to immediately take action, is one of humanity's most obvious defects."
Walter Bagehot
Thursday, 27 October 2011
Do the Twist
An personal abbreviation and interpretation of Dr. Tim Cacciatore research approach “Increased dynamic regulation of postural tone through Alexander Technique training.”
Having a good posture is really a question of standing upright with the head above the feet with a body in between. Surely the muscles that work to keep the head on top need to have some muscle tone (tension) in order to do the job, the question is how much do they need to hold for us to be stable but not stiff?
This research report was published in Human Movement Science (2010) and I make a brief summary of the same.
The brain regulate the degree of tension muscles need to have to be able to support the body in relationship to gravity. This long-lasting muscle activity is called postural muscle tone and is especially important around the body's longitudinal axis to prevent the spine from collapsing.
It is easy to take for granted that the postural muscle tone has been studied thoroughly and that it is scientifically explained. But it's not. This is mainly due to the fact that postural muscle tone is difficult to measure. It works in a quiet manner over a long time and involves many muscles and that makes it difficult to quantify.
Balance, on the other hand (how we place our mass over our feet), is an entirely different phenomenon that is much more studied and whose function is more understood. This is due to the frequent movements back and forth that occurs when we balance ourselves are easy to measure, in contrast to the continuous forces that respond to gravity.
In order to measure the postural tonus Cacciatore used our ability to rotate around our own axis (the spine). The spiral-like movement, referred to as the Twist, is not working as a support against gravity, any resistance in the twist would reflect an individual's muscular tension in response to gravity.
The measurements were taken at the neck, torso and hip. Measurements showed how muscle activity in each region integrated instead of measuring the activity of a single muscle.
Rigid people are 3-4 times as stiff as less rigid people. The difference in postural muscle tone may be due to two things 1) the degree of muscular tension 2) how the tension can be adjusted dynamically in relation to posture or work load. An individual with low levels of tension can either have a low tonus to begin with or adapt dynamically during the turn - by "letting go" (reduced activity) in the muscles that need to be extended and "take up the slack" (increased activity) in the muscle that is shortened. The results of the study gave was that the muscle activity was fixed with rigid people while the muscle tone were more dynamic in those who were less rigid.
The study showed that AT-teachers showed significantly less resistance to rotation than the control group, the average resistance in an AT teacher was half the size at all measurement points.
It is not yet possible to distinguish the amount due to the level of tension or due to the adaptability of tension but it is possible to measure how muscle tone adapts and measurements showed that the postural muscle tone in the AT teachers were more adaptive than in the control group.
In another study of people with back pain, the same method of measurement were used before and after a series of 20 AT lessons. The study showed less stiffness around hip and torso after the period of lessons.
Being able to stay upright relative to gravity without undue tension promotes mobility. This in turn promotes suppleness to us as riders. As I see it, you can now do a "self check" of your own muscle tone. Rotate slowly around your own axis (the spine) in both directions. Do you feel strain anywhere? Does your shoulders tilt in any direction? What about the contact between feet and floor? Does it affect your breathing?
"God must be fond of dancing, otherwise he would not have ensured that most objects in space revolves around itself and around something else."
Having a good posture is really a question of standing upright with the head above the feet with a body in between. Surely the muscles that work to keep the head on top need to have some muscle tone (tension) in order to do the job, the question is how much do they need to hold for us to be stable but not stiff?
This research report was published in Human Movement Science (2010) and I make a brief summary of the same.
The brain regulate the degree of tension muscles need to have to be able to support the body in relationship to gravity. This long-lasting muscle activity is called postural muscle tone and is especially important around the body's longitudinal axis to prevent the spine from collapsing.
It is easy to take for granted that the postural muscle tone has been studied thoroughly and that it is scientifically explained. But it's not. This is mainly due to the fact that postural muscle tone is difficult to measure. It works in a quiet manner over a long time and involves many muscles and that makes it difficult to quantify.
Balance, on the other hand (how we place our mass over our feet), is an entirely different phenomenon that is much more studied and whose function is more understood. This is due to the frequent movements back and forth that occurs when we balance ourselves are easy to measure, in contrast to the continuous forces that respond to gravity.
In order to measure the postural tonus Cacciatore used our ability to rotate around our own axis (the spine). The spiral-like movement, referred to as the Twist, is not working as a support against gravity, any resistance in the twist would reflect an individual's muscular tension in response to gravity.
The measurements were taken at the neck, torso and hip. Measurements showed how muscle activity in each region integrated instead of measuring the activity of a single muscle.
Rigid people are 3-4 times as stiff as less rigid people. The difference in postural muscle tone may be due to two things 1) the degree of muscular tension 2) how the tension can be adjusted dynamically in relation to posture or work load. An individual with low levels of tension can either have a low tonus to begin with or adapt dynamically during the turn - by "letting go" (reduced activity) in the muscles that need to be extended and "take up the slack" (increased activity) in the muscle that is shortened. The results of the study gave was that the muscle activity was fixed with rigid people while the muscle tone were more dynamic in those who were less rigid.
The study showed that AT-teachers showed significantly less resistance to rotation than the control group, the average resistance in an AT teacher was half the size at all measurement points.
It is not yet possible to distinguish the amount due to the level of tension or due to the adaptability of tension but it is possible to measure how muscle tone adapts and measurements showed that the postural muscle tone in the AT teachers were more adaptive than in the control group.
In another study of people with back pain, the same method of measurement were used before and after a series of 20 AT lessons. The study showed less stiffness around hip and torso after the period of lessons.
Being able to stay upright relative to gravity without undue tension promotes mobility. This in turn promotes suppleness to us as riders. As I see it, you can now do a "self check" of your own muscle tone. Rotate slowly around your own axis (the spine) in both directions. Do you feel strain anywhere? Does your shoulders tilt in any direction? What about the contact between feet and floor? Does it affect your breathing?
"God must be fond of dancing, otherwise he would not have ensured that most objects in space revolves around itself and around something else."
Thursday, 29 September 2011
Back part 3
Alexander Technique is a gentle technique, but its purpose is, nevertheless, to make life and movement easier. With another 10-day "rest" in the back, it's time to move.
The gentle stretching that the Alexander rest gives has a purpose to restore the back and help it to return to its natural length, our back correspond to the horse's top line and in riding we seek to lenghten the horse´s top line.
How do you know that your back has regained its natural length? The check is done through movements.
Lie down on the floor with your head on the books and knees bent. Lighten your toes slightly from the surface and let one leg slide, on the heel, to stretch the leg. Pay attention to what happens in the rest of the body; does the head's contact with books change, is the lower back lifted, is it starting to tighten across the hip joint, is the breathing affected?
If you notice a change somewhere in the body, pause, inhibit, wait until tensions have released or make a decision. If there are big changes - bring the heel back towards your bum, back/torso and legs need more time to find their proper relationship.
If you can let go of the tensions, let the leg stretch and flex with the foot, ie move the feet in the ankle so the toes are pointing towards the ceiling. At first, it's good to straighten one leg at a time, observe yourself and notice what happens both in the diagonal and the lateral side of your body.
To bring the leg back to the starting position, without being tempted to lift it and thereby tighten the abdominal muscles, I recommend the following: let the leg fall out from the hip, the foot is "rolling" on the heel when the leg turns outward. Place your attention on the heel and let it slide up and in towards your bum, it'll bend the knee. At a certain point it will be natural to turn around the femur in the hip joint so that the knee is turned up toward the ceiling. If this move creates any tension, pause and inhibit before continuing.
When the leg can be straightened out and the rest of the body is left undisturbed, try to straighten both legs simultaneously. When you can lie without books under your head, with your arms at your side without the shoulder blades being pulled at and lifted, when your legs can rest stretched without the torso and lower back being affected then you have regained your natural length in the back.
A word about pain. Alexander rest can be a painful experience if there is huge muscular troubles in the body. There are different types of pain, some is superficial and it's ok to stay as long as the pain is bearable.
But there is pain that is structural and in those cases you should lie down just as long as you are pain free! If it starts to get sore, stop! To get the Alexander rest to work, the situation has to be comfortable and safe. If you get in pain after only 2 minutes, stop. Next time you can lay down for 3 and so on. Respect pain signals and the minutes of relaxation will increase. I know this from experience.
This should maybe have been a part of the first posting...but better late than never. To end the rest and to come up on your feet I want you to roll over to one side. And pause. Then you can decide to come up on all four for a while or come up to a sitting position before you get up on your feet. Avoid doing movements similar to sit ups.
Now that you have 20 Alexander rests in your back, you can at any time, standing or sitting, evoke the feeling of the floor behind your back. That will help you to become aware of what goes on in your body at that moment, if your back/topline is shortened this helps the muscles in the front of the body to let go of the back - you'll spring upwards and backwards, become tall and strong at a fraction of a second.
Congratulations! You are now your best friend!
"If you do not take care of your body, where will you live?"
Peggy Ayala
►
The gentle stretching that the Alexander rest gives has a purpose to restore the back and help it to return to its natural length, our back correspond to the horse's top line and in riding we seek to lenghten the horse´s top line.
How do you know that your back has regained its natural length? The check is done through movements.
Lie down on the floor with your head on the books and knees bent. Lighten your toes slightly from the surface and let one leg slide, on the heel, to stretch the leg. Pay attention to what happens in the rest of the body; does the head's contact with books change, is the lower back lifted, is it starting to tighten across the hip joint, is the breathing affected?
If you notice a change somewhere in the body, pause, inhibit, wait until tensions have released or make a decision. If there are big changes - bring the heel back towards your bum, back/torso and legs need more time to find their proper relationship.
If you can let go of the tensions, let the leg stretch and flex with the foot, ie move the feet in the ankle so the toes are pointing towards the ceiling. At first, it's good to straighten one leg at a time, observe yourself and notice what happens both in the diagonal and the lateral side of your body.
To bring the leg back to the starting position, without being tempted to lift it and thereby tighten the abdominal muscles, I recommend the following: let the leg fall out from the hip, the foot is "rolling" on the heel when the leg turns outward. Place your attention on the heel and let it slide up and in towards your bum, it'll bend the knee. At a certain point it will be natural to turn around the femur in the hip joint so that the knee is turned up toward the ceiling. If this move creates any tension, pause and inhibit before continuing.
When the leg can be straightened out and the rest of the body is left undisturbed, try to straighten both legs simultaneously. When you can lie without books under your head, with your arms at your side without the shoulder blades being pulled at and lifted, when your legs can rest stretched without the torso and lower back being affected then you have regained your natural length in the back.
A word about pain. Alexander rest can be a painful experience if there is huge muscular troubles in the body. There are different types of pain, some is superficial and it's ok to stay as long as the pain is bearable.
But there is pain that is structural and in those cases you should lie down just as long as you are pain free! If it starts to get sore, stop! To get the Alexander rest to work, the situation has to be comfortable and safe. If you get in pain after only 2 minutes, stop. Next time you can lay down for 3 and so on. Respect pain signals and the minutes of relaxation will increase. I know this from experience.
This should maybe have been a part of the first posting...but better late than never. To end the rest and to come up on your feet I want you to roll over to one side. And pause. Then you can decide to come up on all four for a while or come up to a sitting position before you get up on your feet. Avoid doing movements similar to sit ups.
Now that you have 20 Alexander rests in your back, you can at any time, standing or sitting, evoke the feeling of the floor behind your back. That will help you to become aware of what goes on in your body at that moment, if your back/topline is shortened this helps the muscles in the front of the body to let go of the back - you'll spring upwards and backwards, become tall and strong at a fraction of a second.
Congratulations! You are now your best friend!
"If you do not take care of your body, where will you live?"
Peggy Ayala
►
Wednesday, 31 August 2011
A rest to stretch
Something that is significant for the Alexander Technique is that there are virtually no drills. If you want to do somethingfor yourself with an Alexander technique approach I warmly recommend this procedure, laying in semi-supine or the Alexander rest.
The purpose is to give you the opportunity to observe what is happening in your body and give your muscles a chance to ease. An important prerequisite of this work with yourself is that you are observing without evaluating.
This is a short note on semi-supine.
This position is certainly familiar to many already. My dad told me that during the harvest when he was a child, grandfather rolled up his shirt into a hard roll and had a lay down on the meadow (like the picture) with the roll under his head, waiting for Grandma to come with the coffee basket.
This position offers the body a posibility to good rest, it gives the disks in the spine a chance to rehydrate and thus swell up again and it can - if you rest consciously - teach you where you accumulate unnecessary muscular tension and also contribute to an active ease (not to mix with relaxation which is something completely different!).
What you need is a warm rug or mat to lie on and a couple of paperback books to put under your head.
The way you choose to get to the floor may be different but once you are laying on the floor there are some things to pay attention to.
1, allow yourself to settle, take a few breaths - do not adjust anything
2, note how you perceive the weight through the back of the head on the books, how the contact between the floor and scapula, sacrum and feet feel.
3, be aware that your knees have a direction towards the ceiling. (If your legs feel unstable or trembling, it is better that you let your knees fall against one another than to try to hold them in place).
4, the hands can rest of the stomach, chest or iliac crest.
5, keep you eyes open - keep looking.
What happens without you having to "do anything" is that the muscles on the front of the body such as chest muscles, abdominal muscles, hip flexor muscles will become more supple and therefor make it possible for the back to come into a closer contact with the surface.
A strained hip flexor muscle pulls the lower back against the femur and contributes to an increased lordosis and a restricted movement of the hip joint. It affects your ability to smooth sitting trot or gallop. Shortened chest muscles pulls on the shoulders (rounded shoulders), and this in turn limits the movement of the shoulder joint and affect the quality of your hands.
If you give yourself 15-20 minutes of semi-supine five days a week your muscles will have got a regular dose of mild "gravity based" stretching and the bending muscles at the front of the body have let go of the back muscles and you end up being straigther.
Once you have been laing for some days in a row, you will be able to evoke the feeling of how your back rests on the floor while sitting on a chair at the desk. The kinesthetic memory is precious, you'll be able discover how the the shoulders are brought forwards to the keyboard when you're working for example, and you will be able to "release them back" again just by knowing which direction the releas has to go.
What you learn about yourself when you refine your body image will affect your everyday life on many levels. Start your journey today, visit yourself through the Alexander rest.
”Clear thinkers try to find the causes, while the average look for escapes from effects.” ~~~ Barbara Anna Brennan
The purpose is to give you the opportunity to observe what is happening in your body and give your muscles a chance to ease. An important prerequisite of this work with yourself is that you are observing without evaluating.
This is a short note on semi-supine.
This position is certainly familiar to many already. My dad told me that during the harvest when he was a child, grandfather rolled up his shirt into a hard roll and had a lay down on the meadow (like the picture) with the roll under his head, waiting for Grandma to come with the coffee basket.
This position offers the body a posibility to good rest, it gives the disks in the spine a chance to rehydrate and thus swell up again and it can - if you rest consciously - teach you where you accumulate unnecessary muscular tension and also contribute to an active ease (not to mix with relaxation which is something completely different!).
What you need is a warm rug or mat to lie on and a couple of paperback books to put under your head.
The way you choose to get to the floor may be different but once you are laying on the floor there are some things to pay attention to.
1, allow yourself to settle, take a few breaths - do not adjust anything
2, note how you perceive the weight through the back of the head on the books, how the contact between the floor and scapula, sacrum and feet feel.
3, be aware that your knees have a direction towards the ceiling. (If your legs feel unstable or trembling, it is better that you let your knees fall against one another than to try to hold them in place).
4, the hands can rest of the stomach, chest or iliac crest.
5, keep you eyes open - keep looking.
What happens without you having to "do anything" is that the muscles on the front of the body such as chest muscles, abdominal muscles, hip flexor muscles will become more supple and therefor make it possible for the back to come into a closer contact with the surface.
A strained hip flexor muscle pulls the lower back against the femur and contributes to an increased lordosis and a restricted movement of the hip joint. It affects your ability to smooth sitting trot or gallop. Shortened chest muscles pulls on the shoulders (rounded shoulders), and this in turn limits the movement of the shoulder joint and affect the quality of your hands.
If you give yourself 15-20 minutes of semi-supine five days a week your muscles will have got a regular dose of mild "gravity based" stretching and the bending muscles at the front of the body have let go of the back muscles and you end up being straigther.
Once you have been laing for some days in a row, you will be able to evoke the feeling of how your back rests on the floor while sitting on a chair at the desk. The kinesthetic memory is precious, you'll be able discover how the the shoulders are brought forwards to the keyboard when you're working for example, and you will be able to "release them back" again just by knowing which direction the releas has to go.
What you learn about yourself when you refine your body image will affect your everyday life on many levels. Start your journey today, visit yourself through the Alexander rest.
”Clear thinkers try to find the causes, while the average look for escapes from effects.” ~~~ Barbara Anna Brennan
Thursday, 18 August 2011
To stand tall
Take a look at the picture below, notice the directions of the arrows
and then pay attention to yourself, right at this very moment.
What direction does the arrows have in you?
Our spine is made up of 33 vertebrae, at the top of the spine we carry our head, like a ball on a weight-lifters bar, and at the bottom the sacrum and pelvis represents the next ball.
The spine is not straight and stiff as a weight-lifters bar, it curves its way smoothly between the head and pelvis. Some vertebrae have a greater mobility between each other than others. The biggest movement we have in the neck and lower back - that's why it is a common location for slipped discs. Vertebrae in the thoracic part of the spine is more fixed by the ribs and sternum. The sacral vertebrae are completely fused.
The Alexander Technique aims to help you reach your full height, as in the left body. Not by forcing you to stand upright with strained muscles (the military way with the sucked in belly and pulled up, extended chest) but in such a way that the head is allowed to be carried on top of the spine and the pelvis may act as a counterweight at the other end of the spine. Between these "spheres" (the head and pelvis) muscles are stretched. Just as a lead-line works when you hang a weight at the lower end of it, but a lead-line without anchor at the top is collapsing on the floor, just as the right body does in the picture.
Alexander Technique helps you find the way to let the head and the pelvis be each others counterweights. When the lift of the head allows the pelvis to hang freely they provide the muscle that keeps your back upright with proper muscular tonus/tension. You are thereby able to stand tall without having to hold and stretch the muscles to acchieve it.
“People do not decide their futures, they decide their habits and their habits decide their futures.” - FM Alexander
and then pay attention to yourself, right at this very moment.
What direction does the arrows have in you?
Our spine is made up of 33 vertebrae, at the top of the spine we carry our head, like a ball on a weight-lifters bar, and at the bottom the sacrum and pelvis represents the next ball.
The spine is not straight and stiff as a weight-lifters bar, it curves its way smoothly between the head and pelvis. Some vertebrae have a greater mobility between each other than others. The biggest movement we have in the neck and lower back - that's why it is a common location for slipped discs. Vertebrae in the thoracic part of the spine is more fixed by the ribs and sternum. The sacral vertebrae are completely fused.
The Alexander Technique aims to help you reach your full height, as in the left body. Not by forcing you to stand upright with strained muscles (the military way with the sucked in belly and pulled up, extended chest) but in such a way that the head is allowed to be carried on top of the spine and the pelvis may act as a counterweight at the other end of the spine. Between these "spheres" (the head and pelvis) muscles are stretched. Just as a lead-line works when you hang a weight at the lower end of it, but a lead-line without anchor at the top is collapsing on the floor, just as the right body does in the picture.
Alexander Technique helps you find the way to let the head and the pelvis be each others counterweights. When the lift of the head allows the pelvis to hang freely they provide the muscle that keeps your back upright with proper muscular tonus/tension. You are thereby able to stand tall without having to hold and stretch the muscles to acchieve it.
“People do not decide their futures, they decide their habits and their habits decide their futures.” - FM Alexander
Wednesday, 2 March 2011
Games educate
Being a student is to take part in teaching during lessons when a teacher teaches and conveys the knowledge she or he possesses to the student.
A good lesson is a lesson that contains a good proportion of knowledge conveyed in a playful manner. The playful manner is anything but recless drivel, it has a purpose, a goal and that is to raise students to become future teachers - that is how knowledge is passed on.
During my training as an Alexander teacher we had a session each afternoon called games. During the game session we played with the body, we experimented with movements, explored the muscle spirals found in the body through well-designed games for example. These games might just as well have be called exercises, I know. But the interesting thing is that the words game and exercise provokes totally different associations within us.
Play is free, unrestrained, and curious - exercise often causes us to search for right and wrong. When I have students, I encourage them to play. Since it may be long time between lessons it is important that those who come to me dares to play on their own, to explore and experiment with what we have done during the lesson together.
It is their own play that really educates them, it provides them with opportunities to analyse if one attempt went better or worse than the other. And since the games in AT often are things we do several times each day; sitting, standing, walking among other things, it can be used to educate us as often as we want.
Playing games is liberating and brings us closer to a laughter than exercises, play is refreshing - exercises can get a taste of must/should/would or bad conscience. When we play, we can allow ourselves to be focused on perception rather than perfection. We become confident in what we really can and what we have left to play with. Play is fundamental for life-long learning.
A good lesson is a lesson that contains a good proportion of knowledge conveyed in a playful manner. The playful manner is anything but recless drivel, it has a purpose, a goal and that is to raise students to become future teachers - that is how knowledge is passed on.
During my training as an Alexander teacher we had a session each afternoon called games. During the game session we played with the body, we experimented with movements, explored the muscle spirals found in the body through well-designed games for example. These games might just as well have be called exercises, I know. But the interesting thing is that the words game and exercise provokes totally different associations within us.
Play is free, unrestrained, and curious - exercise often causes us to search for right and wrong. When I have students, I encourage them to play. Since it may be long time between lessons it is important that those who come to me dares to play on their own, to explore and experiment with what we have done during the lesson together.
It is their own play that really educates them, it provides them with opportunities to analyse if one attempt went better or worse than the other. And since the games in AT often are things we do several times each day; sitting, standing, walking among other things, it can be used to educate us as often as we want.
Playing games is liberating and brings us closer to a laughter than exercises, play is refreshing - exercises can get a taste of must/should/would or bad conscience. When we play, we can allow ourselves to be focused on perception rather than perfection. We become confident in what we really can and what we have left to play with. Play is fundamental for life-long learning.
Thursday, 17 February 2011
The Classical Rider and the Alexander Technique
In the Alexander Technique, there are three concepts that are intimately connected with one another. It is the concepts of use - function – structure. In this triad there is both a mutually dependent and effect.
Each part of the triad may be the subject of an initial impact, which in turn brings changes (or adaptations!) in the other two.
Our structure influence both the way we function and our ability to use ourselves. A congenital disability will affect both function and use, for example.
It may also be that the way we use ourself have an impact on our structure and function. If we have a job with a lot of lifting (need not be heavy!) and we fail to maintain the width of the chest it may over time lead to us having rounded shoulders. In that case both our structure and function (breathing) is affected.
A disease can cause disturbance in our function, which naturally spills over to how we can use ourselves and our structure. A minor impact may be a fracture - a more comprehensive can be a stroke.
The same conditions apply to the horse. Even if the horse is allowed to just be a horse external events can lead to adjustments between these factors. Strictly speaking a rider is only an external influence on the horse. Our influence can be said to be extensive. We provide the horse with its living-space (paddocks, stables), feeding, training, exercise, welfare and health. And it is we who decide what the horse will do for and with us.
In everything we do with our horses we affect its own use, function and structure.
The horse has no goals of his own with the training, we are the ones setting the goals. It is therefore our responsibility to educate ourselves and the horse to reach those goals with as little negative impact on the horse's own use, function and structure (I'll use u-f-s from here on).
The training aims to strenghten the horse so that it can cope with what we desire. In Alexander Technique therminology we should focus on the means-where-by - to ensure that the way we choose to reach our goal ables the horse to reach that goal "intact" or, in other words, with as little impact on its u-f-s as possible.
Either the horse can carry out what the rider demands - or it can not. If it fails to meet the demands it's the rider that has to analyse what is happening. Checking if there has been any change in the horses u-f-s and either reduce his/her own ambitions or correct the choosen way of training. The rider may never consider the use of ”material doping” and with severe bitting, draw reins or coarse riding techniques force the horse. That kind of behaviour is refered to as end gaining, we put our own personal goals up front and it leads to a big impact on the horse u-f-s.
When we as a rider set our goals we must prepare ourselves for the task. We would need to train our own balance and body control, reduce muscular tension and address the distortions in our own bodies.
We would need to train both a lightness and swiftness of communication between our brain and body. It is this ability within ourselves that creates conditions for a light communication with the horse and a training that makes both horses and riders calm and satisfied with the work.
Alexander Technique is a training that contribute to the schooling of a rider in such a way that the rider becomes the rider that the horse both deserves and needs to fulfill our dreams, while still maintaining u-f-s. The horse has no ambitions of his own in regard to training but he will enjoy the work you initiate if you train dressage without your horse occasionally.
Each part of the triad may be the subject of an initial impact, which in turn brings changes (or adaptations!) in the other two.
Our structure influence both the way we function and our ability to use ourselves. A congenital disability will affect both function and use, for example.
It may also be that the way we use ourself have an impact on our structure and function. If we have a job with a lot of lifting (need not be heavy!) and we fail to maintain the width of the chest it may over time lead to us having rounded shoulders. In that case both our structure and function (breathing) is affected.
A disease can cause disturbance in our function, which naturally spills over to how we can use ourselves and our structure. A minor impact may be a fracture - a more comprehensive can be a stroke.
The same conditions apply to the horse. Even if the horse is allowed to just be a horse external events can lead to adjustments between these factors. Strictly speaking a rider is only an external influence on the horse. Our influence can be said to be extensive. We provide the horse with its living-space (paddocks, stables), feeding, training, exercise, welfare and health. And it is we who decide what the horse will do for and with us.
In everything we do with our horses we affect its own use, function and structure.
The horse has no goals of his own with the training, we are the ones setting the goals. It is therefore our responsibility to educate ourselves and the horse to reach those goals with as little negative impact on the horse's own use, function and structure (I'll use u-f-s from here on).
The training aims to strenghten the horse so that it can cope with what we desire. In Alexander Technique therminology we should focus on the means-where-by - to ensure that the way we choose to reach our goal ables the horse to reach that goal "intact" or, in other words, with as little impact on its u-f-s as possible.
Either the horse can carry out what the rider demands - or it can not. If it fails to meet the demands it's the rider that has to analyse what is happening. Checking if there has been any change in the horses u-f-s and either reduce his/her own ambitions or correct the choosen way of training. The rider may never consider the use of ”material doping” and with severe bitting, draw reins or coarse riding techniques force the horse. That kind of behaviour is refered to as end gaining, we put our own personal goals up front and it leads to a big impact on the horse u-f-s.
When we as a rider set our goals we must prepare ourselves for the task. We would need to train our own balance and body control, reduce muscular tension and address the distortions in our own bodies.
We would need to train both a lightness and swiftness of communication between our brain and body. It is this ability within ourselves that creates conditions for a light communication with the horse and a training that makes both horses and riders calm and satisfied with the work.
Alexander Technique is a training that contribute to the schooling of a rider in such a way that the rider becomes the rider that the horse both deserves and needs to fulfill our dreams, while still maintaining u-f-s. The horse has no ambitions of his own in regard to training but he will enjoy the work you initiate if you train dressage without your horse occasionally.
Wednesday, 2 February 2011
Flow – the absence of fear?
Athletes talk about flow and how to achieve it. To be in the flow is desireable since it gives a feeling of enhanced presens in both the moment and movement.
In the Alexander Technique we make references to something we call the startle pattern or fear reflex which is an involuntary movement in the body caused by something that either scare or surprise us.
The reaction is similar to the one you would experience if you took a shower and the water turns out to be cold as ice. You'd pull your head down and raise your shoulders at the same time, bring your arms to your side, gasp and hold your breath for a split second. Your entire body thightens and your thought process is blocked.
This fear reaction is often seen in riders, it can be triggered by almost anything. Anxiety for what the horse might do, the hight of a fence, speed of gate, fear of failing as a rider - simply anything that frightens us. In that moment of tension we are unable to move, think and act. We are incapacitated for a split second and that brings us away from the moment and movement. When the tension releases we find ourselves in a situation we have to deal with. We have become followers instead of leaders.
When I became a mother Sean Scary and Fanny Fear entered my life and also my life with horses. I've had to work with the effect fear had on me. In my case it took a while just to grasp that I was actually scared. I had to acknowledge my fear to be able to get conscious control over the thought mechanisms that created anxiety in me and that was through the use of inhibition and direction.
With our new horse fear was a fact again, the knowledge I had in horsemanship was not enough to handle her forceful and vigourous gestures. Ed's visit in August was an absolute must in order to give me knowledge and confidence to overcome my fear and to continue to work our young horse.
So now, when I find myself capable of handling the rope halter and lead rope without having to look at it, when I've become better at positioning my body in regard to her body, when my feet are moving instead of being paralysed by fear we are making progress.
I've gone from reacting to her behaviour (read: follow her whims) to make her follow my descisions. She still argues but since I'm no longer afraid I can sense her reactions before they take place. I'm in the moment and movement - I'm in a flow!
~~~~~~~~
and then a mail was passed forward from an AT collegue of mine
--- But the articles from this blog (The quest for Equipoise) of two Swedish ladies are just brilliant. It's all about Classical horse riding and Alexander Technique (AT). And I think they have a lot to do with what we do at KaizenTao from a different perspective, especially what Thong has been teaching us the "magic" works.
You'll find jewels every where. Thanks for your post of a skeleton photo from that blog site a while back. That led me to the discovery of this treasure place.
Mitchell Wu
As you can imagine my smile reached all the way to the ears! Thanks for your support Mitchell!
In the Alexander Technique we make references to something we call the startle pattern or fear reflex which is an involuntary movement in the body caused by something that either scare or surprise us.
The reaction is similar to the one you would experience if you took a shower and the water turns out to be cold as ice. You'd pull your head down and raise your shoulders at the same time, bring your arms to your side, gasp and hold your breath for a split second. Your entire body thightens and your thought process is blocked.
This fear reaction is often seen in riders, it can be triggered by almost anything. Anxiety for what the horse might do, the hight of a fence, speed of gate, fear of failing as a rider - simply anything that frightens us. In that moment of tension we are unable to move, think and act. We are incapacitated for a split second and that brings us away from the moment and movement. When the tension releases we find ourselves in a situation we have to deal with. We have become followers instead of leaders.
When I became a mother Sean Scary and Fanny Fear entered my life and also my life with horses. I've had to work with the effect fear had on me. In my case it took a while just to grasp that I was actually scared. I had to acknowledge my fear to be able to get conscious control over the thought mechanisms that created anxiety in me and that was through the use of inhibition and direction.
With our new horse fear was a fact again, the knowledge I had in horsemanship was not enough to handle her forceful and vigourous gestures. Ed's visit in August was an absolute must in order to give me knowledge and confidence to overcome my fear and to continue to work our young horse.
So now, when I find myself capable of handling the rope halter and lead rope without having to look at it, when I've become better at positioning my body in regard to her body, when my feet are moving instead of being paralysed by fear we are making progress.
I've gone from reacting to her behaviour (read: follow her whims) to make her follow my descisions. She still argues but since I'm no longer afraid I can sense her reactions before they take place. I'm in the moment and movement - I'm in a flow!
~~~~~~~~
and then a mail was passed forward from an AT collegue of mine
--- But the articles from this blog (The quest for Equipoise) of two Swedish ladies are just brilliant. It's all about Classical horse riding and Alexander Technique (AT). And I think they have a lot to do with what we do at KaizenTao from a different perspective, especially what Thong has been teaching us the "magic" works.
You'll find jewels every where. Thanks for your post of a skeleton photo from that blog site a while back. That led me to the discovery of this treasure place.
Mitchell Wu
As you can imagine my smile reached all the way to the ears! Thanks for your support Mitchell!
Thursday, 25 November 2010
It's all in the head.
There are several connections between classical riding and the Alexander Technique. One of these is the head, both from a psychological but also physical / mechanical perspective.
The hand is the primary aid in classical riding, “because the horses head comes first” according to de la Gueriniérè or as an Alexander teacher would say - "the head leads and the body follows." It can be described purely mechanical / physical, the head of both horse and man weighs its courageous kilos. In a full-size horse approximately 30 kg and 4-6 kg in humans.
To give you an idea of what the weight of your head really feels like I suggest you fill a bag with about 4.5 kg. Then take the bag and let it hang from the hand alongside your body. Notice how you perceive the weight. Then lift your arm with the bag straight out in front of you. How do you percieve the weight now? Notice what's happening in your body when you stretch out your arm. Does your body need to compensate for the weight in any way? How did you feel your balance was affected?
If we let the head fall in front of the body's center of gravity (I call It a vulture’s neck) the muscles of the neck, shoulders, back and calves make up for the weight shift that occurs in our body, otherwise the law of gravity will do its job and we fall over.
A horse can be compared to a table with four legs with a weight of 30 kilo attached on the far end of a stick that is nailed to the table-body. If the stick is raised, the weight of 30 kg is shifted towards the rear end of the table and if it is lowered it brings the weight on to the front end of the table. So by shifting the weight of its head a horse can get ready to make a roll back by lifting its head or stay heavy on the front legs (and be less moveable) while grazing.
One facet of the psychological gemstone in humans is our thoughts and ideas. Every move we make has its origin in the brain. Either we are aware of the nerve impulse or we are not – the latter it is often called reflex. When we learn to ride (or anything else for that matter), we are egaged in creating and establishing new nerve connections that will manifest themselves in the body as motion. At the beginning of learning our movements are many times both briska and jerky. That is because we are busy analysing what’s going on, what we are doing and how well we manage to meet the assignement.
After a while, we have streghtened the neural pathway enough so that we can begin to rely on a reflex like response. We begin to develop our skills. We begin to "ride every step", we are starting to detect if the position of the horse is correct before we even start the specific movement and if need be we can provide help accordingly and adjust the position.
If the horse is thinking or not I leave unsaid, what I do know is that a horse needs to involve the brain at the beginning of its learning process and build the neural pathways that will facilitate its body to perform what we ask of it - and they certainly get tired of the work . Good training helps both rider and horse to quicken the time of response and it helps to establish a reflex like response to clear questions (from both ends of the rein!).
So there are no specific equestrian bodies, the important thing is the riders head! Equestrian tact and feeling is positioned in the head, both in how you carry it physically and how you use the inside in your approach to learning and indeed how you view the fact of beeing right and wrong in that process.
The hand is the primary aid in classical riding, “because the horses head comes first” according to de la Gueriniérè or as an Alexander teacher would say - "the head leads and the body follows." It can be described purely mechanical / physical, the head of both horse and man weighs its courageous kilos. In a full-size horse approximately 30 kg and 4-6 kg in humans.
To give you an idea of what the weight of your head really feels like I suggest you fill a bag with about 4.5 kg. Then take the bag and let it hang from the hand alongside your body. Notice how you perceive the weight. Then lift your arm with the bag straight out in front of you. How do you percieve the weight now? Notice what's happening in your body when you stretch out your arm. Does your body need to compensate for the weight in any way? How did you feel your balance was affected?
If we let the head fall in front of the body's center of gravity (I call It a vulture’s neck) the muscles of the neck, shoulders, back and calves make up for the weight shift that occurs in our body, otherwise the law of gravity will do its job and we fall over.
A horse can be compared to a table with four legs with a weight of 30 kilo attached on the far end of a stick that is nailed to the table-body. If the stick is raised, the weight of 30 kg is shifted towards the rear end of the table and if it is lowered it brings the weight on to the front end of the table. So by shifting the weight of its head a horse can get ready to make a roll back by lifting its head or stay heavy on the front legs (and be less moveable) while grazing.
One facet of the psychological gemstone in humans is our thoughts and ideas. Every move we make has its origin in the brain. Either we are aware of the nerve impulse or we are not – the latter it is often called reflex. When we learn to ride (or anything else for that matter), we are egaged in creating and establishing new nerve connections that will manifest themselves in the body as motion. At the beginning of learning our movements are many times both briska and jerky. That is because we are busy analysing what’s going on, what we are doing and how well we manage to meet the assignement.
After a while, we have streghtened the neural pathway enough so that we can begin to rely on a reflex like response. We begin to develop our skills. We begin to "ride every step", we are starting to detect if the position of the horse is correct before we even start the specific movement and if need be we can provide help accordingly and adjust the position.
If the horse is thinking or not I leave unsaid, what I do know is that a horse needs to involve the brain at the beginning of its learning process and build the neural pathways that will facilitate its body to perform what we ask of it - and they certainly get tired of the work . Good training helps both rider and horse to quicken the time of response and it helps to establish a reflex like response to clear questions (from both ends of the rein!).
So there are no specific equestrian bodies, the important thing is the riders head! Equestrian tact and feeling is positioned in the head, both in how you carry it physically and how you use the inside in your approach to learning and indeed how you view the fact of beeing right and wrong in that process.
Wednesday, 10 November 2010
The shortest way to yes can be no.
If I compare Alexander Technique (AT) with learning to play the guitar it’s easy to learn some common chords and then you can happily play the accompaniment at a party or a bonfire at the beach. If you want to deepen your knowledge and improve your technique, you’ll find that there is something to learn from this day on and all of a sudden playing guitar has become a way of life.
The same goes for AT. There is a basic level that in many ways is about the mundane and physical. How you sit, stand and walk, a technique for improving posture. As we sit, stand and walk a great deal during a normal day that knowledge is useful for everyday health and wellbeing.
If you decide to go ahead with AT, you can explore what is needed to move and how much tension that is really necessary to make the moves. Then there is an equally interesting aspect of how different stimuli (sensory input) affects the body physically without it showing outwards. How is the level of stress affecting tension in the body? Nervousness? Fear? The sight of the one that you like or hate? AT helps you discover how your body reacts to different stimuli and it can open up for a chance to choose what to do with these initial reactions.
On both these levels you train your perception and inhibition and direction are your tools in learning. As the nervous system is equipped with the ability to automate processes, it is sometimes necessary to actively say no (inhibit) to make room for an active yes (direction).
There are studies showing that the nervous system is prepared to get into action about 10 seconds before we ourselves become aware of what we intend to do. 10 seconds ... in neuroscience that is one (if not two!) eternities.
It is of great importance to realise that even if the nervous system and thus the body "is ready to do what we’ve always done”, there is a moment, a few milliseconds, where we are offered the opportunity to actually say no to whatever the nervous system have prepared itself (and us ) for. The opening allows us to choose a new way of acting, a way that better lead us to where we want to go, a reaction that brings us closer to our goal.
If we refrain from or miss our chance to say no (inhibit) the stone is put in motion, and like a band of crackers nerve impulse after nerve impulse is fired until the automatic reaction is completed. During that journey we have few if any means to stop the process.
Imagine a man who has a habit of betting on the racetrack. He comes to the junction at Solvalla. If he takes advantage of the opening to actively say no to the reaction his nervous system offers as he drives past the junction, he’ll come home with all his money. If he misses the moment and makes the turn, he will go all the way and bet on horses til his wallet is empty.
What do you need to prevent from happening to make way for the things you want to happen?
The same goes for AT. There is a basic level that in many ways is about the mundane and physical. How you sit, stand and walk, a technique for improving posture. As we sit, stand and walk a great deal during a normal day that knowledge is useful for everyday health and wellbeing.
If you decide to go ahead with AT, you can explore what is needed to move and how much tension that is really necessary to make the moves. Then there is an equally interesting aspect of how different stimuli (sensory input) affects the body physically without it showing outwards. How is the level of stress affecting tension in the body? Nervousness? Fear? The sight of the one that you like or hate? AT helps you discover how your body reacts to different stimuli and it can open up for a chance to choose what to do with these initial reactions.
On both these levels you train your perception and inhibition and direction are your tools in learning. As the nervous system is equipped with the ability to automate processes, it is sometimes necessary to actively say no (inhibit) to make room for an active yes (direction).
There are studies showing that the nervous system is prepared to get into action about 10 seconds before we ourselves become aware of what we intend to do. 10 seconds ... in neuroscience that is one (if not two!) eternities.
It is of great importance to realise that even if the nervous system and thus the body "is ready to do what we’ve always done”, there is a moment, a few milliseconds, where we are offered the opportunity to actually say no to whatever the nervous system have prepared itself (and us ) for. The opening allows us to choose a new way of acting, a way that better lead us to where we want to go, a reaction that brings us closer to our goal.
If we refrain from or miss our chance to say no (inhibit) the stone is put in motion, and like a band of crackers nerve impulse after nerve impulse is fired until the automatic reaction is completed. During that journey we have few if any means to stop the process.
Imagine a man who has a habit of betting on the racetrack. He comes to the junction at Solvalla. If he takes advantage of the opening to actively say no to the reaction his nervous system offers as he drives past the junction, he’ll come home with all his money. If he misses the moment and makes the turn, he will go all the way and bet on horses til his wallet is empty.
What do you need to prevent from happening to make way for the things you want to happen?
Thursday, 14 October 2010
Alexander Technique - a matter of learning
The Alexander Technique is an over 100 year old method with roots in one man's quest to overcome his own voice problems. FM Alexander himself was reciter and actor which in turn lead to that the first students were found among actors and later on among other culturally involved people.
From that startingpoint the technique has spread and is now available as a way to refine the use of the self in running, swimming, horse riding, golf, rowing, tennis, martial arts, rehabilitation, pregnancy, childbirth yes, in almost every area where the ability to use the body in a better way can mean a lot to both performance, experience and health.
When I got my first "Alexander Experience" in 1997 I was hooked. Hooked, because I knew that even if I was offered this great experience in my body now I could "own the road" to the experience itself, if only I could learn more about how to enter that road.
It is the fact that “the road becomes yours” that distinguishes the Alexander Technique from so many other body awareness methods. It is also therefor the thechnique is not a technique for everyone. It requires your commitment. You need to devote time to your development by doing your homework. You may have to opt out of some of the things you do today to get where you want tomorrow, I had to put riding on the shelf for two years and then return to it as a re-ginner for example.
Alexander Technique is no quick fix, it is a process (under your control) based on your ability, needs and desires. As a teacher, I can initiate, provide feedback and serve as your guide and give you reference for your work.
A lesson in Alexander Technique can be both pleasant and a challenge, it can vary from one hour to two minutes (it was all Lena coped with in the beginning because she had her history of back problems). Since it is a process, it is you as a student that determines how fast it will proceed. The tools you have available is to visit yourself, that is to check what is going on in your body and your mind in a specific moment (Visit yourself right now: what is going on in you?), inhibition (the transformative word" no ") and direction.
At first lessons cover everyday activities like walking, sitting and standing. The genius of these "exercises" is that all you do is a possible training opportunity for you as an Alexander Student. You do not need to devote one hour a week for training, the opportunity is there all the time your’e awake!
When training is possible as often as you just remember, the better you become at reading what is happening inside of you before, during and after an everyday activity, and therefore the more refined your perception will become. You will eventually be able to determine what you need to adjust before coming into play in order to get what you want to be doing done in a better way.
That ability is so important for us as riders. It allows us to ride the horse in the present, taking in information and adjust the next step. Among the athletes it is called flow. For a tennis player, flow could mean that he percieves that the ball is moving in slow motion on its journey from the opponent's racket against his own and that he has time to make the necessary adjustments he needs to hit the ball as he wants to. Flow is a form of mindfulness in activity that makes you feel that you have control of the boat or the horse, which we probably can assume it is in your case, no matter pace.
For me, the Alexander Technique led to increased self-awareness. I know where I am in myself, where the sign of stress comes first, how stupid I get when I learn new things, how I can rest in the middle of chaos, what to do if I need to let my thoughts free and I can enjoy the beauty around me (skyes, views, flowers) even if I'm on my way to something else, and usually in a hurry.
The Alexander Technique bares recemblance to several currently popular approaches; mindfulness, coaching and body awareness among others. FM Alexander stressed that man was a psycho-physical unity and that body and mind was an inseparable whole.
He also stressed that it really was not important to reflect on which muscles are doing what since the quality of the movement is dependet on their ability to interact with each other. A collaboration which in turn is depending on how well the head is carried on top of the spine.
As a summary, the Alexander Technique teaches how the mind-muscle-skeleton can work for you and with you in the best possible way under the influence of gravity. Alexander Technique takes a fraction of a second to understand and a lifetime to master, said Marjorie Barstow, one of the grand old ladies of the technique, and I can just nod my head and return to my chamber to continue my studies.
From that startingpoint the technique has spread and is now available as a way to refine the use of the self in running, swimming, horse riding, golf, rowing, tennis, martial arts, rehabilitation, pregnancy, childbirth yes, in almost every area where the ability to use the body in a better way can mean a lot to both performance, experience and health.
When I got my first "Alexander Experience" in 1997 I was hooked. Hooked, because I knew that even if I was offered this great experience in my body now I could "own the road" to the experience itself, if only I could learn more about how to enter that road.
It is the fact that “the road becomes yours” that distinguishes the Alexander Technique from so many other body awareness methods. It is also therefor the thechnique is not a technique for everyone. It requires your commitment. You need to devote time to your development by doing your homework. You may have to opt out of some of the things you do today to get where you want tomorrow, I had to put riding on the shelf for two years and then return to it as a re-ginner for example.
Alexander Technique is no quick fix, it is a process (under your control) based on your ability, needs and desires. As a teacher, I can initiate, provide feedback and serve as your guide and give you reference for your work.
A lesson in Alexander Technique can be both pleasant and a challenge, it can vary from one hour to two minutes (it was all Lena coped with in the beginning because she had her history of back problems). Since it is a process, it is you as a student that determines how fast it will proceed. The tools you have available is to visit yourself, that is to check what is going on in your body and your mind in a specific moment (Visit yourself right now: what is going on in you?), inhibition (the transformative word" no ") and direction.
At first lessons cover everyday activities like walking, sitting and standing. The genius of these "exercises" is that all you do is a possible training opportunity for you as an Alexander Student. You do not need to devote one hour a week for training, the opportunity is there all the time your’e awake!
When training is possible as often as you just remember, the better you become at reading what is happening inside of you before, during and after an everyday activity, and therefore the more refined your perception will become. You will eventually be able to determine what you need to adjust before coming into play in order to get what you want to be doing done in a better way.
That ability is so important for us as riders. It allows us to ride the horse in the present, taking in information and adjust the next step. Among the athletes it is called flow. For a tennis player, flow could mean that he percieves that the ball is moving in slow motion on its journey from the opponent's racket against his own and that he has time to make the necessary adjustments he needs to hit the ball as he wants to. Flow is a form of mindfulness in activity that makes you feel that you have control of the boat or the horse, which we probably can assume it is in your case, no matter pace.
For me, the Alexander Technique led to increased self-awareness. I know where I am in myself, where the sign of stress comes first, how stupid I get when I learn new things, how I can rest in the middle of chaos, what to do if I need to let my thoughts free and I can enjoy the beauty around me (skyes, views, flowers) even if I'm on my way to something else, and usually in a hurry.
The Alexander Technique bares recemblance to several currently popular approaches; mindfulness, coaching and body awareness among others. FM Alexander stressed that man was a psycho-physical unity and that body and mind was an inseparable whole.
He also stressed that it really was not important to reflect on which muscles are doing what since the quality of the movement is dependet on their ability to interact with each other. A collaboration which in turn is depending on how well the head is carried on top of the spine.
As a summary, the Alexander Technique teaches how the mind-muscle-skeleton can work for you and with you in the best possible way under the influence of gravity. Alexander Technique takes a fraction of a second to understand and a lifetime to master, said Marjorie Barstow, one of the grand old ladies of the technique, and I can just nod my head and return to my chamber to continue my studies.
Tuesday, 21 September 2010
Side reins for riders – NOT a good idea
Most of us have understood that a good seat is worth striving for. Most of us also dream of having perfect and light communication with our horses. There are different ways to train the seat and develop communication. Some are good and some not so good. According to me the following falls in the latter category: a rubber band that is advertised to "help the rider to keep the shoulders, arms and back in the correct position when riding". (The page only in Swedish but I bet you get the picture.)
If you think about trying this one out my advice is – forget about it.
I see this stuff as side reins for the rider. The only good thing I can say about it is that humans are reduced to objects just like the horse. How does that make you feel? Side reins for horses, or these so called ”aids”, guarantee neither a correct seat nor better communication. The key to developing a balanced seat and light communication lies in your own posture and in the technique you use when you communicate with your horse.
Any flaws in your seat and/or communication will not be resolved because you force your body into a certain position, quite the contrary. Perfect posture and a balanced seat on horseback have their origin in how well you can allow your skeleton to be aligned correctly so that your postural muscles are free to do their job efficiently. Any imposed straight jacket on the surface will just interfere and hamper these tasks.
Do you want to improve your posture? Take a lesson in the Alexander technique!
Do you want to improve your riding technique and your communication with your horse? Take a lesson in classical equitation!
If you think about trying this one out my advice is – forget about it.
I see this stuff as side reins for the rider. The only good thing I can say about it is that humans are reduced to objects just like the horse. How does that make you feel? Side reins for horses, or these so called ”aids”, guarantee neither a correct seat nor better communication. The key to developing a balanced seat and light communication lies in your own posture and in the technique you use when you communicate with your horse.
Any flaws in your seat and/or communication will not be resolved because you force your body into a certain position, quite the contrary. Perfect posture and a balanced seat on horseback have their origin in how well you can allow your skeleton to be aligned correctly so that your postural muscles are free to do their job efficiently. Any imposed straight jacket on the surface will just interfere and hamper these tasks.
Do you want to improve your posture? Take a lesson in the Alexander technique!
Do you want to improve your riding technique and your communication with your horse? Take a lesson in classical equitation!
Tuesday, 14 September 2010
Changing reflection to proaction
Since I have been busy sitting on stands this week I've had plenty of time to think about life, learning and coincidences.
In everyday life we often talk about thought and action, in that order - that thought precedes action. And then there is the concept of reflection, that usually comes after a performed action. Quite frequently the reflection is coloured by remorse.
Many of us are caught in the chain of action-reaction and reflection. We react to something with an action, which we on reflection later on, regret. The Alexander Technique is striving to change that pattern to a thought-proaction pattern instead. That is to say that we have thought through what we want to do and how we would do it before we take action (means where by).
To assist us in the process, we have the ability to say no (inhibition) and to give directions. Reflections is still present but instead of being coloured with remorse, self-loathing, devaluation of ourselves, we change it to the observation, analysis and ideas of improvement.
It is thought that gives us a plan for our action, reflection allows us to evaluate the outcome. This in turn leads to experience, it sharpens our intuition and suddenly we are in the viewer's (and even our own!) eyes "skilled".
What is required of you if you want to switch from a reactive pattern of behavior to proactive? Well, it requires curiosity, the courage to be be- or reginner, preparedness to practice and it is also beneficial to have easy access to a good laughter.
The answer to Ed's question is that two out of hundred horse owners have a functioning leadership in relation to their horse. Are you one of those two? I'm working towards that in "my group of one hundred" we shall be three ...
In everyday life we often talk about thought and action, in that order - that thought precedes action. And then there is the concept of reflection, that usually comes after a performed action. Quite frequently the reflection is coloured by remorse.
Many of us are caught in the chain of action-reaction and reflection. We react to something with an action, which we on reflection later on, regret. The Alexander Technique is striving to change that pattern to a thought-proaction pattern instead. That is to say that we have thought through what we want to do and how we would do it before we take action (means where by).
To assist us in the process, we have the ability to say no (inhibition) and to give directions. Reflections is still present but instead of being coloured with remorse, self-loathing, devaluation of ourselves, we change it to the observation, analysis and ideas of improvement.
It is thought that gives us a plan for our action, reflection allows us to evaluate the outcome. This in turn leads to experience, it sharpens our intuition and suddenly we are in the viewer's (and even our own!) eyes "skilled".
What is required of you if you want to switch from a reactive pattern of behavior to proactive? Well, it requires curiosity, the courage to be be- or reginner, preparedness to practice and it is also beneficial to have easy access to a good laughter.
The answer to Ed's question is that two out of hundred horse owners have a functioning leadership in relation to their horse. Are you one of those two? I'm working towards that in "my group of one hundred" we shall be three ...
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