Like A Natural Woman - 2 - Count to 8 Left and Right
Girl playing keyboard with metronome - source: www.musicschoolmiami.com
Like a Natural Woman - 2 - Count to 8 Left and Right
Finding the Pelvic Floor with the Breath, a Groove, and A Little Help From the Legs and Abs
Based on a lesson in “Pelvic Floor Discovery” series as taught by Deborah Bowes, GCFT®
My bass teacher has had me counting, counting, counting. Rhythm comes first, before melody, for the bass player.
Moshe Feldenkrais was coming to the realization - or so the legend goes - that rhythm is an essential part of movement, on par with thinking, feeling and sensing. Rhythm, as defined by online Britannica:
Rhythm is music’s pattern in time. Whatever other elements a given piece of music may have (e.g., patterns in pitch or timbre), rhythm is the one indispensable element of all music. Rhythm can exist without melody, as in the drumbeats of so-called primitive music, but melody cannot exist without rhythm... Plato’s observation that rhythm is “an order of movement” provides a convenient analytical starting point.
To add to the developmental approach to building up the pelvic floor, we employ an 8-count, a rhythmic foundation for structuring the lesson, slowing down the breath with side-to-side sensing to strengthen the pelvic floor. The weight of the legs, the power of breath and the vibration of our own voices are our learning tools.
We (optionally) begin and end standing, the better to sense your balance. From there, it’s an on-your-back lesson that moves from breathing and sound to strengthen and differentiate the left and right sides of the pelvic floor. The voila moment comes when you stand back up with a new sense of deep balance.
Science Nerd Candy Bowl:
We have referred to these in the past, but a review with your current level of knowing may reveal some interesting insights:
Ilio-psoas Muscle (a short build up of the pelvis-knee connection)
The female pelvic organs: the muscles of the pelvic floor, the inner walls of the pelvic cavity (a 7 minute exploration of all the bones, muscles and organs that layer up to create the pelvic floor system)
Abdominal Muscles (little dough boy builds up the abdominal anatomy - see sidebar)
How Abdominal Muscles Work (Little dough boy orchestrates sit ups - see sidebar)
Hanging Leg-Hip Raise | Muscle & Motion (little dough boy orchestrates pelvic tilt)
“I have been interested in the value of rhythmic movements for a long time, and I was pleased to learn that research confirms the fact that rhythmic movements can be used therapeutically to help people soothe themselves, reduce pain, and improve their ability to move.
”
Pelvic floor balance is critical to overall balance in standing and sitting. Now is the perfect time to start improving your balance. Your future self is thanking you.
Set Up:
Lying on your back on a mat with the support you like for your head and back
Sitting on a flat bottom chair with knees and hips level
(Optional) Support to go from floor to standing at beginning and end of lesson
Download the Healing Sounds Chart here
How you might feel after this lesson: Festive; Open; Connected; Joyful; Fluid in torso, able to turn on a dime; Able to use your breath and relaxation to dance and dance and dance. Ready for it to be spring already!
If you have a Wednesday 9:30 am or 6:30 pm class registration, keep using it. If you were registered for the 12:00 pm Wednesday session, you’ll need to register. Registered, paid students receive the lesson recording link on Thursday. $40/month; $15/single lesson. PayPal or Venmo to jackisue@aol.com. Or check to Jacki Katzman, PO Box 116, Bethlehem, NH 03574
For new student registration, Click Here
Building up that natural woman. Remember - YOU can be the one to make you feel ...