Printable essay: It feels good to move!
Moshe Feldenkrais said that.
I wasn’t there, but when I heard it, I was intrigued. The “lions and tigers” part sounded so lively, and, yet, wasn’t exercise good for you? Wasn’t exercise exactly what one should have more of? When I heard it, I was in my early thirties and had been living with chronic back pain for nearly ten years. I had consulted various professionals, and they said I needed to be stronger and more flexible and that exercise would get me there. I was trying what they said, but it wasn’t working. So I was looking into this other approach that a friend had recommended – the Feldenkrais Method.
I started with a weekend workshop, and then a private session, and then a series of private sessions, and then recordings, and then more weekend workshops. After several years I decided that I loved this stuff, and I made the commitment to become a Practitioner. I have been a Practitioner now for nearly 30 years.
What have I learned over all these years of exploring “lion-and-tiger-moving”? I have:
• Regained and expanded the experience that movement feels good
• Continued to improve in moving while getting older
• Learned to attend to the linkages among the various parts of the body, so every action is – at least, heading toward — being a well-coordinated expression of the whole body
• Learned to attend to the many supports for comfortable and effective movement, such as the breathing, use of the eyes and mental and emotional focus
• Learned to focus on creating options in movement as a basis for improvement
• Learned how to break complex movements into smaller parts and develop simple actions into progressively more complex actions
• Discovered a great joy in exploring a continually expanding movements horizon.
It is possible that people who engage in the Feldenkrais Method over the long term have even more fun than lions and tigers! Would you like to join us?