Finding a movement/fitness practice is hard for all. It is especially more difficult for those suffering from an injury or neurological disease. Traditional exercise does not always address how to create a fitness practice when the body is not well. How the mind influences the body can determine better function for most.
Traditional exercise has an emphasis on the loading of muscles, repetitions and sweat. This is important in the end result of good healthy fitness. The process for finding fitness should be different when the body is not well.
A lot of classes and fitness are too fast and/or too much exertion for the person who does not feel well. Sometimes the body will go to the muscles that are already overworked when the load/exertion is too much. For instance, abdominal and bridging exercises are important in back care. Many complain of back pain in these kinds of exercises. What is happening here?
The brain is giving the wrong feedback to the body.
Instead of initiating the movement from the abdominals in the crunch,
the brain goes to the back muscles to start the work. How do you make change?
You retrain how the mind thinks about movement. This is a practice in itself. These techniques are used by athletes, dancers and gymnasts.
Essential tools are:
Breath Imagery
Better understanding of functional anatomy
Cueing
Mental rehearsals
Relaxation techniques
We are going to look at how to train the abdominals and the legs using new tools. Breath is your road to deeper concentration, relaxation and core support. For further in depth practice see my podcast on breath. One can also used breath as imagery to assist in change. When you blow up a balloon, it swells up into a moldable shape. When you allow a balloon to let out the air out, the balloon releases back to its original shape.
Focus your breath to an area of tightness in your body.
Imagine the breath expanding that area like a balloon with the inhale.
As that area expands, feel how the muscles lengthen, widen and release.
On the exhale, imagine the muscles falling softer towards the ground.
Breath can be a great tool when the body is fatigued or in pain.
Let’s say you are in a class and you have reached a place of fatigued.
Instead of leaving class, go back as the class workout to the breath. Only join back into the class when you feel well.
ANATOMICAL IMAGERY
Understanding how the body works can really help one find new connections and a preventive measure from re-injury. We are going to look at the Bartenieff Fundamental, the thigh lift. This is a underlying concept how the thighbone moves in the hip socket. It is essential for a movements of the legs such as walking and level changes such as getting up from a chair.
When someone comes in with a back injury,
I look at how they do a thigh lift.
When the thighbone is not gliding well in the hip socket,
the pelvis will unleveled to lift the leg.
This repetitive motion can lead to more discomfort in the back, hips and legs.
Here(see above podcast) is the thighbone placed into the hip socket. Notice how it is a deep round socket for the head of the femur bone. When the leg is lifted, there is an opposition of movement of the two distal points of the femur bone; one where the knee is and the other, the femur head in the hip socket. In the thigh lift, the head of the femur will glide in the opposite direction of the knee. The higher the knee is lifted, the head of the femur will roll and glide lower in the socket towards the sitz bones.
Image the bone gliding down in the hip socket as you do the thigh lift.
Feel how the back lengthens with the bone gliding well in the hip socket.
When you understand how the body is designed, you will have better movement. As Eric Franklin says “Embodied anatomy improves function”. When the thigh lift is done correctly, the correct muscles will be invited to work. The Bartenieff Fundamental, the thigh lift is the underlying concept in all abdominal work and movements of the legs.
(See my podcast on Pilates Basics: Enhancing the core)
Mental Rehearsal
This is a technique used by musicians, dancers and athletes. You review the movement in your head like it is a film. You image the movement with complete success, expression and enjoyment. We are going to look at the Bartenieff Fundamental, the pelvic shift forward. This can be a great exercise to get the legs stronger and stabilized the spine. Sometimes when the legs are weak, the back wants to overcompensate. This can be painful for many.
Visualize yourself doing a pelvic shift forward.
Press down on your feet feeling equal pressure on the inside and outside lane of the feet.
Feel the hamstrings engaged against your thighbone
Using your leg muscles rise the pelvis forward towards your feet.
Your relaxed spine rises up in one piece.
Your back is relaxed and the legs are doing the work
Imagine your legs are like an elevator that carries the load of the spine up and down.
Slowly descend your spine down with your spine in neutral. Your spine should come down in one piece.
Practice this a few times and then try to do a real Pelvic technique.
Mental rehearsal is great to use when you are fatigued or in pain. Research has shown through biofeedback that muscles are charged even with mental rehearsal.
Relaxation techniques
Sometimes to get to the correct muscles usage, one needs to release the overcompensating muscles. Stretching can be positive for some; for others over-stretching can put a muscle in spasm. Constructive rest position is a practice of lying on your back to release unnecessary tension in your body.
Lie on your back
Have your legs bent with your feet on the floor or on a stool/chair. A belt can help keep the legs together. This can help diminish tension.
Observe how your spine feels on the floor.
What areas of the spine lay well on the floor?
How is tension in your body affects how you lie on the floor?
Use breath and image of the balloon to create new releases in your spine.
Special pilates group sessions Movements Afoot would love to set up special classes for special needs. We would love to bring pilates movement to people who would love a Pilates class designed at the pace and needs of their present health. Please give us a call if you and your organization would like to set this up.
Possible Special Pilates classes:
MS
Arthritis
Back care
Fibromylia
Chronic fatigue
Parkinson’s
Other resources Somatic/body therapies:
Alexander technique
Bartenieff Fundamentals
BodyMind centering
Feldendrais
Franklin Method
Hanna Somatics
Pilates
Restorative yoga
For further information about constructive rest:
Andre Bernard
Eric Franklin
Restorative yoga
Another great book about release techniques Paul Escosque Pain-Free
I have had the great fortune to have studied with teachers that have made anatomy exciting and how to apply it to my movement. By understanding the body not only intellectually, embodied anatomy has deepened my concentration and improved my function.
Especially with my teachers Amy Matthews and last weekends workshops with Eric Franklin and Morton Dithmer, this approach has improved my own teaching and my own connections. I love how this work centers my mind. A lot of meditation has you try to clear your mind of all thoughts. A great practice…but advanced. By putting my attention to a particular part of my body changes my concentration.
Eric Franklin’s workshop on the psoas last weekend was amazing. I have been having a lot of problems with my right psoas. This workshops released my psoas and back in such an amazing way.
Amy Matthews teaches at Movements Afoot an amazing yoga class bringing in embodied anatomy. Her background is in Laban/Bartenieff, BodyMind Centering and yoga. She teaches usually Wednesdays at 1:30 PM. Do check the online schedule since Amy is travelling a lot with her teaching.
Eric Franklin will be back June 28.
Relax your Jaw, Align your Spine.
A Franklin-Method ® Workshop with Eric Franklin & Morten Dithmer
June 28 10 AM -1 PM $110
More muscles are attached to the human jaw (mandible) than any other bone in the body. Through these myriad connections the tension and positioning of the jaw influences our alignment, flexibility, stress level and muscular tension. An aligned and relaxed jaw increases the efficiency of our posture and movement in exercise as well as in all our daily activities.
The temperomandibular (TMJ) joint, which connects the jaw to the skull is the most commonly used joint in the body. Talking, eating and gesturing and emotional states all relate to the jaw. Coordinating the movement of the TMJ greatly benefits our overall ease of movement.
In this Workshop we will use experiential anatomy and imagery to balance the TMJ it the jaw muscles of tension. These processes commonly alleviate or even eliminate disorders related to the jaw, such as ear ringing, grinding of the teeth, tension and migraine headaches. Dancers and athletes benefit by improved technique, Pilates teachers and others with exercise expertise benefit by refining their teaching skills and increasing the benefits gained from their training. Lay people are able to eliminate headaches, teeth grinding and muscular tension in the jaw and neck.
Learn how to:
Release tension in the jaw and neck
Experienced the balanced function of the TMJ
Align your spine in a new ways.
Reduce stress and increase your energy
Feet for Life: Organizing our Dynamic Base
With Eric Franklin & Morten Dithmer June 28 2:30 -5:30 PM $110
Our feet carry us throughout our life-yet most of us are unaware of the amazing design that makes this possible. A myriad of bones, joints and muscles interacting in complex fashion allow the foot to propel us forward, adapt to terrain, and serve as a foundation and sensory organ. This course will elucidate the function of the foot in an experiential manner, allowing us to improve the agility and well being of our feet in all situations, including walking, running, jumping and dancing. In dance as in life the strength and agility of the feet are key. Without strong and well-aligned feet good posture cannot be attained and safe jumping is all but impossible.
Gain insight into the functional anatomy of the foot.
Learn imagery exercises for creating strong, flexible and agile feet.
Practice Theraband exercises to strengthen the muscles of the foot and ankle.
Learn imagery and self-touch exercises to improve the efficiency of the bones, tendons, muscles and joints for walking and jumping.
My “lowers” issue is morphing into a psoas issue.
I DEFINITELY feel stronger in my lowers, my pelvic floor especially.
But I have a “numb” zone where I should be firing my psoas.
Right between the top of my pubic bone – in the “bikini” zone of
my lowers, I just can’t feel it. Occasionally, I have a moment of
“got it”then it’s gone. BUT, I can then pick it up from my
belly button to my ribcage.
I do wonder if it has something to do with the trauma of pregnancy and childbirth (another colleauge who has 2 children feels the same as I do in this area). No matter “why”, now I want to find it and feel it. I’m thinking a lot of pelvic clock, especially on the arc, to try to focus on it. What would you suggest as a prescription?” Student
Since the iliopsoas is such a deep muscle within the body, feeling can be quite different from feeling the quality of tone as in the abdominals. We also get confused with a tight muscle as feeling with a truly functioning muscles.
Stand up, bend your knees and flex your spine. Place your hands on your belly and try to soften the abdominals muscles. As you soften your belly, sink your hands deeper into your solar plexus. Try to pick one leg up and you should feel the psoas bulge out.
Study an anatomy book and look at where the iliopsoas connects to the upper spine and then connects to the lesser trochaner. Since the muscles are so deep within the body, visualization is key to good function. As Irmagard Bartenieff describes “the iliopsoas is the key to pure hip movement. “ With correct initiation, the thighbone differentiates from the pelvis. The iliopsoas, psoas for short, is one of the deepest muscles of the torso. It connects the trunk to the leg. It is responsible for the flexion of the hip. The psoas major connects to the lumbar spine. It diagonally crosses down in front of the pubic bone and attaches to the lesser trochanter of the femur. The iliacus attaches to the inside of the iliac crest (the hip bone). It also connects into the lesser trochanter.
Tightness of the psoas can lead to dysfunction and change the alignment of the body. Lie on your back with one leg straight and the other foot bent. Observe how your psoas feels on both sides. Is one side tighter? Where…upper, middle or lower? I will do a variation of constructive rest like this. Sometimes I do 5-10 minutes on each leg. As my psoas relaxes, I feel a totally different space inside of my torso.
Place your hands on the front of the pelvis. Now try to slide one leg down to straight on the floor and then return back to bent knee with the foot resting on the floor. This is a Bartenieff fundamental, a pre-thigh lift. Here you do activate the psoas but it should not change the torso’s length and stability.
Laban’s theory of mobility/stability is an important concept in engaging correctly the psoas. If the pelvis changes with unleveling or out of neutral spine, the body will go somewhere else to move the leg instead of the psoas.
Thigh Lift
The flexion of the thigh, the femur bone in the hip socket should feel like a folding of a hinge. This femoral fold should be soft if one is connecting to the illiopsoas. If there is a contraction around this fold, one could be overusing other muscles such as rectus femoris, some certain fibers of the adductors and even the back muscles. When the back becomes involved, this gives the appearance of the hips hiking, unleveling and/or rotating. The awareness of the movements of the pelvis and the thighbone are very important to establish for correct sequencing.
Definitely pregnancy, illness and stress can affect the psoas. When my digestive problems act up, I feel my psoas tighten.
Great reading is Eric Franklin. Eric will also be at Movements Afoot April 5 to teach a workshop on the psoas.
I also would like to thank my teachers about my understanding of the psoas, Amy Matthews, BodyMind Centering and CMA, Irene Dowd and Nicola Weiner’s Psoas Workshop.
by Doris Pasteleur and Lesley Powell
Edited by Dr. Martha Eddy
Movement is the shifting of the body’s weight on different surfaces. Different parts of the body may shift on the ground or surface. However the weight shift is the propulsion of the center of the body, the pelvis through space to cause locomotion or a change of levels and locomotion.
Building blocks: A good weight shift is the coordination of the body to (1) ground into the floor (surface) and (2) to move the body in a specific direction in space. Before we can move up, we must have the foundation of down, grounding. Grounding is a basic foundation. Without a foundation, there can be no building. Weight shift involves the coordination of dynamic alignment seen in the sequential leverage of our bones from toe to head, organized by the muscles, and accompanied by the fluids and organs moving in synchrony.
Propulsion: When a person releases his or her own natural body weight into the floor, it helps the brain estimate the amount work needed to coordinate the necessary push off to shift the body into space. Even when pulling a heavy load successfully involves having a person push her or his feet into the ground first. An improper weight shift puts undue pressure on the spine and superficial muscles of the limbs.
Pelvic Shifts: Irmgard Bartenieff divided the concept of weight shift into two building blocks of movement, pelvic shift forward and pelvic shift lateral. Of course this fundamental action includes multiple aspects, for instance the pelvic shift forward includes a pelvic shift back. A healthy gait has elements of both the forward and lateral pelvic shifts.
Weight shifts enable level changes from lying down to sitting to standing. They are the building block for locomotion – traveling across space. There is a constant changing relationship of weight shifts from one body part to another, a dynamic dance.
I have been teaching a class, PilatesDancing, for the past year. It has been amazing how many changes are happening in my students. I combined Pilates, Laban/Bartenieff and the Franklin Method to create this class.
The structure of the class consists:
Foot training includes releasing tension, strengthening the foot and the mechanics of the foot in movement. We bring the new foot connections back to standing. As the foot become better connected and grounded, alignment and core tone changes.
Pilates mat and floor barre includes strengthening the core three dimensionally in a dynamic movement routines on the floor. This includes challenges of balance and level changes which demand more core than doing exercises on your back.
A standing warm up, we use a block to challenge balance and understand the importance of the standing/working leg. I also bring into principles from my training from the Franklin method and Amy Matthews, a BodyMind Centering practioner, about rhythms of bones in the leg to enhance standing and function.
We end with an adagio. The purpose of the adagio is to practice the themes of the class that day.
Traditionally in fitness “core” use to refer just to the abdominals. When someone has back problems, the traditional approach has been to train the “abs” and then the back separately. In our BodyMind Fitness training, one has to train the spine 3 dimensionally for posture and daily movements. First a person has to get in touch with how the spine moves in different directions – moving front-back, sideways and rotating.
3-D Spine with Dr. Martha Eddy & Lesley Powell at Movements Afoot
Dates: Sat 4/12/2008
Time: 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM
Somatic Saturday with Dr. Martha Eddy & Lesley Powell
April 12 4-6 PM $60
In our upcoming workshop at Movements Afoot, the 3-D Spine the 3-dimensionality refers to the anatomy of the spine as well as to these various movements of the spine. Part of the lack of effectiveness in overcoming back problems is that people do not understand how the spine moves. So in our workshops, we get you to experience how the spine works. We look at the shape of each vertebra and the Sliding action of the facets in movement. The 3-D core refers to the volume of the torso and the internal contents. This awareness gives you a different understanding of your body. We learn some of the organ anatomy and how to breathe into the torso to feel supported.
IN our upcoming workshop at the BodyMind Expo called Laban Space Harmony: Bringing 3-D to your Session we will incorporate concepts from the 3D Spine, 3D Walking, and 3D Swing. Perhaps you will join us in New York or in CA!
By Amy Matthews, Certified Laban Movement Analyst, BodyMind Centering and Yoga teacher
Breath is an amazingly powerful tool for increasing the effectiveness of our fitness training and enhancing our movement skills. An appropriate and efficient breath pattern supports core strength, stabilizes the spine and creates freedom in the limbs – and when we hold our breath, we make ourselves work much harder than we need to, and create situations where we are more likely to overwork and injure ourselves.
Paying attention to the breath is an excellent way to gauge the appropriate level of exertion, and to tune in to what’s going on in your body. Sometimes we hold our breath to avoid feeling pain or to hide from an experience – and when we’re avoiding a sensation, we’ll be less able to attend to the rest of the experience (such as sensing form or timing or alignment).
On the other hand, changing a habitual breathing pattern can be one of the most profoundly unsettling things you can ask of yourself, or someone else. When we change our breath we are affecting ourselves in the most fundamental ways we can imagine – many of our breath patterns were developed as very young children, and in one way or another had to do with survival on some level.
It’s impossible to say that there is one ‘right way’ to breathe – it depends on the situation, the position of the body, the action being performed and the person performing it (with all the experiences that the person brings to that moment).
When we work with someone to help them find a ‘better’ way to breathe, we need to take into account the anatomy and kinesiology of the ribcage, spine and accessory structures that affect breathing (which could be just about anything in the body!). At the same time, we need to be sensitive to the effects of the breath on the body and on the psychological states and emotions of the mind and spirit.
With knowledge, skill and sensitivity, we can use various movements and exercises to help people have different experiences of their breath, and increase the number of options they have about how to breathe.
Martha Eddy’s SMTT program truly reflects her movement experience, in depth knowledge of the body, and responsiveness to connecting to community. Using her creativity, compassion, and intellect she weaves a dynamic system that is accessible for learning and provides a strong foundation from which practitioners can then layer their own movement perspective.
As a movement specialist and dancer, I fuse Pilates, Yoga, and Gyrotonics along with the Bartenieff Fundamentals to create a movement vocabulary. I tend to work from a sensing/listening approach which can sometimes be challenging to contain and shape from exploration into pro-movement action. The SMTT program gave me a structure and a tangible way of assessing movement, listening and perceiving the nervous system, organs, and glands as well as taping into movement expression along with movement function. This focus on motion and emotion helped me recognize how I can better support and hold the space for my clients so awareness and change can manifest from within the client. This work helps me create more on point custom programs for each client where I can address their specific needs.
Martha is a natural community builder and the program is truly a moving community that functions in the same way as we work. I feel we are all participating and energetically adding to thus huge web of movement approaches and communication. We are truly creating a support system not only for our clients but for us practitioners as well.
Michelle Cohen, a professional modern dancer, is a Pilates and movement instructor. She is a senior teacher at Movements Afoot as well as a senior teacher and teacher trainer of Pilates at the Kane School. She has conducted international teacher training workshops for the Kane School in Brighton, England and Tokyo, Japan as well as nationally in Indiana, New York, and Florida. Michelle’s own workshops in nutrition, dance, yoga, and Pilates have been received in places like California, New York, and Belgrade, Serbia. She initially received her Pilates certification with Kelly Kane through the PhysicalMind Institute in 1998 and has been a certified Gyrotonic® and Gyrokinesis® instructor since 2001. Michelle is also a Kettlebell Concepts™ Level I Instructor and integrates momentum training into her teaching practice. Michelle has studied anatomy with Irene Dowd and continues to study Pilates and Bartenieff Fundamentals with Lesley Powell. She has been studying the Alexander Technique with Nancy Wechter since 2001. Michelle has expertise in working with professional dancers and has worked with company members from American Ballet Theater, Limon Dance Company, Royal Danish Ballet, and Merce Cunningham Dance Company. She has been quoted in Pilates Style Magazine (July 2005) in the article ‘Healing Practice’ for her work with clients with disc herniations. As a dancer, Michelle continues to perform locally and internationally with several New York based dance companies. She holds a BA from the American University in Washington, DC and a dance certificate from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. She is presently receiving her yoga certification at Laughing Lotus in New York City. As a teacher, Michelle uses her listening skills to hear the body and then fuses her movement sensibilities with sound biomechanics to create customized programs and classes.
Movements Afoot brings together workshops for trainers to have a deeper understanding of the body, introduction to unique body therapies/systems such as Bartenieff Fundamentals, BodyMind Centering and Laban Movement Analysis.
Become a leader in the greatest approach to fitness – the whole person,intelligent fitness program:
Body-Mind Fitness.
Students will learn to carefully observe and accurately describe movement, and how to integrate anatomical, physiological and neurological information into movement protocols. We will review the importance of the bones in initiation, and how the muscles interact in specific movements. This program also includes a bodymind approach by exploring “internal support” – how the organs and the other autonomic body systems affect posture and movement habits. Once observations are made hands-on and movement techniques for enhancing core support at this deeper level are shared. Teachers learn when to direct their attention to muscles, organs, glands or fluids to get the most meaningful results.
Using Laban’s theories of how the body moves 3-dimensionally in space, the importance of the balance of stability/mobility for every action, Bartenieff Fundamentals and biomechanics, students gain a more profound understanding of how to move the body with efficiency.
Throughout the training we apply the principles of biomechanics, Laban’s and Bartenieff’s theories, and other body-mind principles to our movement practices, fitness training, Pilates, yoga, dance, wellness, etc. All participants will practice how to “train without strain.”
Learn:
* Biomechanical principles of the joints and musculature
* Improving efficiency and increasing healthy functioning
* Dynamic stability to improve mobility
* 3-dimensional understanding of the whole body
* Practical applications to your teaching
And more! Sunday workshops:
* Integrating the Pelvis October 21 Doris Pasteleur Hall * Integrating the Upper Spine November 18 John Chanik * Integrating Breathe December 16 Amy Matthews * Integrating the Legs January 20 Lesley Powell
Sunday and Monday courses are part of the required course of study for Soma II BodyMind FITNESS Certificate.
Monday classes are led by Dr Martha Eddy, exercise physiologist and motor learning specialist and former president of the International Somatic Education and Therapy Association and Director of Center of Kinesthetic Education
Join us on weekends for Soma I throughout the fall to learn the basics and get a taste!
Fundamentals of Fitness (Bartenieff work)
Evolution of Fitness (Motor development)
Body-Mind Fitness Coaching (LMA)
Functional Anatomy and Physiology (BodyMind Centering)
Did you know that its Ovarian Cancer Awareness month? Next month is Breast Cancer Awareness month. Using our body-mind (somatic) approach to fitness we have helped hundreds of survivors to feel better, have more energy and to be stronger physically. In particular I designed Moving On Aerobics in response to a colleagues experience of deep fatigue due to chemo. Due to her persistent research she learned over seven years ago what journals are making commonplace knowledge over the past year and a half – aerobic exercise is a great boon to cancer survivorship (and prevention).
As an exercise physiologist and dancer it was natural to create a program including dance and aerobics. What the somatic approach also brings to Moving On Aerobics is careful awareness of the body, working with breath support and three-dimensionality, as well as being open to taking time to speak about our life experiences, worries, and joys.
xes, I feel a totally different space inside of my torso.
View Lesley Powell's profile
