Do/Don't Do - Taking It Slow 3 - Spine Turn From Above, Spine Turn From Below
Do/Don't Do - Taking It Slow - 3 - Spine Turn from Above, Spine Turn From Below
“Learning must be slow and varied in effort until the parasitic efforts are weeded out: then we have little difficulty in acting fast, and powerfully.”
Allowing Movement, Not Resisting Movement
Based on AY 110 by Moshe Feldenkrais
Every vertebra in the spine has a unique relationship with the pelvis and the head. In this lesson, we keep the head quietly turned to feel into the way the hip and head relate via the interlocking spinal vertebrae.
In this lesson, the head is turned to one side, and stays there. That puts a twist at the top of the spine that the middle vertebrae (the thoracic) have to absorb when the hips are also called into action.
Taking it slowly, quietly, minimally opens the door to mid- and- upper back sensation and awareness, especially awareness of what we are doing that we don’t have to do. Maybe that’s unnecessary tension in the ribs or neck muscles. Maybe you try to twist the big vertebrae in your low back - an anatomical “don’t do” as the lumbar vertebrae don’t twist.
This is a supine, lying on back lesson. With heads turned to one side, and held in place with hands on the forehead, we move through different ways of moving the pelvis to bring awareness to the way the thoracic spine accepts twisting. Blocks are we finding? Blind spots? Good!
Most of the movements in this lesson are easy and gentle. Lift one side of the pelvis, then the other in various ways. The final twist, with one foot in the air, is completely optional.
Science Nerd Candy Bowl: No new suggestions. Check last week’s post for a round of videos on the spine.
Set Up:
Lying supine on a mat. Support behind the knees might be helpful if you don’t like to lie on the floor with legs long
OR seated on a flat-bottom chair with a back, knees level with hips. A folded towel might be helpful for padding sit bones as one hip lifts
Head turned to one side immobilizes the cervical spine. When the hips move, it’s up to the thoracic spine to do the twisting. How easy can you let that be?
How You Might Feel After This Lesson: Deeply Relaxed with a supple and supported spine; Tuned into the subtle differences of vertebral action up and down the spine; Aware of which combinations of head and hip turning are cohesive, and which block things up; Slightly abashed that your habits bollux things up now and then; Spaced out - you went deep.
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