The Alexander Technique and balance are related on multiple levels. On February 17th, 2008 I was hiking in the woods in upstate New York. There was snow on the ground, the trees were dark and bare, and the late afternoon sky was silver. As I was getting back to where I had parked my car, [...]
Soft focus. A wider view. The big picture. Draw back. Back off. Hold up. Pause, wait, stop, relax, ease up, chill. Lengthen. Widen. Take a step back and see the whole rather than just the parts. Alexander Technique, especially in NY. Sometimes too much involvement can draw us in, and down, collapsing into ourselves. Too much involvement; too much riding on it. Even our jaw muscles tighten and shorten. Too important, as if it's life or death. It makes us want to lean in, anyway we know how; usually by shrinking, compressing. Breathing shallows. We get tense, and then we stay tense. It happens to us someplace, then anyplace, then everyplace. Some times to almost all the time. Then it becomes "that's the way I am", or, "I'm a tense person"...
‘P‘ words seemp to have have an important and prominent place in the Alexander Technique, precisely why there’ll be a pot-pourri of p’s permeating and peppering this perfunctory post. It’s plausible to think the Alexander Technique is about particular positions, poses or appearances but more precisely...
"It's not what you do, it's how you do it. The Alexander Technique is the how of how you do anything." Those phrases have been spoken countless times by Alexander Technique teachers at Alexander Technique lessons. The Alexander Technique is the how of everything you do. It's how you sit at the computer, more than just that you're sitting at the computer, that might lead to bad posture, neck pain, back pain, or shoulder pain. As an Alexander Technique teacher I help people sit at the computer, stand, and walk, with more ease and less tension. This results in improved posture, pain relief, and an overall sense of well-being. There is also another angle, however, regarding how you use the Alexander Technique; it's what you don't do...
