Summer 2020
Autumn 2020
Winter 20/21
Spring 2021
Summer 2021
Autumn 2021
Summer 2020
1. A gentle twist – Taught on Wednesday 5th August 2020
Themes:
Differential rotation of spine. Counter-rotation of hips, shoulders, neck.
Works with:
Hips, waist, shoulders, spine, ribs, neck.
2. A little flexion – Taught on Wednesday 12th August 2020
Themes:
Flexion is both shortening the front of the body and lengthening the back. Because stress inevitably tenses and shortens the posterior musculature, this is a great lesson for relieving stress and anxiety, as well as for balancing the entire body in the fore and aft vertical plane.
Works with:
Forward bending of the entire body, lengthening through the back.
3. A little extension – Taught on Wednesday 26th August 2020
Themes:
Extension is movement that shortens the back of the body and lengthens the front. Like looking up or bending backwards. In our culture these are unusual movements, and therefore this is a very valuable lesson. However, because these movements involve muscles that may be seldom used, particular attention is invited to move slowly and mindfully, and not to effort and strain.
Works with:
Activates posterior musculature and counterbalances tendency to collapse forward.
Autumn 2020
4. Flower opening, rolling side to side – Taught on Wednesday 2nd September 2020
Themes:
This is really about flexion, but in a way that develops movement possibilities in the rib cage for flexion, extension, and rotation.
Works with:
Opening the chest, coordination of the limbs, and coordinated rotation of spinal elements.
5. Arm to the back – Taught Wednesday 9th September 2020
Themes:
This is about turning the waist, twisting the trunk, and differentiating the movement components of the upper body: shoulders, arms, spine, ribs, neck, head, and eyes. It is more subtly about the interplay of flexion and extension in a certain kind of twisting movement.
Works with:
Differentiating upper back, shoulders, and neck muscles. Clarifying the function of turning the upper body, as in reaching back or looking over the shoulder.
6. Watchamasaurus – Crawling like a lumbering creature – Taught Wednesday 16th September 2020
Themes:
This lesson works with extension themes like looking up and bending backward, but also explores how these themes are related to several fundamental aspects of standing upright and walking.
Works with:
Hip joints, lower back, spinal rotation and extension, middle and upper back, neck rotation, and head carriage. Just about everything!
7. Reaching up – Taught Wednesday 24th September 2020
Themes:
This is about reaching upward from standing, and making connections through the trunk and across the body from feet to hands. It also integrates the whole body into functions of standing, walking, and spinal rotation.
Works with:
Integrates hip joints, trunk, ribs, waist, shoulders, head, eyes, and neck into a coordinated whole.
8. Diagonals – Taught Wednesday 31st September 2020
Themes:
Standing and reaching, screwing in light bulbs, walking, overall balancing the relationship between muscles of the front and back of the body.
Works with:
lengthening along diagonals from each foot across and through the trunk to the opposite hand. Connects the arms and legs to each other by linking them functionally to the strong muscles of the trunk.
9. Freeing the upper back – Taught Wednesday 7th October 2020
Themes:
Walking, carriage of the head, posture and balance of the upper body.
Works with:
Relieves the familiar and common tensions of shoulders and upper back by differentiating movements of the upper spine and shoulders; extension and rotation of the spine; functional connections among arms, legs, and torso.
10. Standing and centering – Taught Wednesday 14th October 2020
Themes:
This is about alignment in gravity. How do we carry ourselves over our feet, in dynamic alignment with gravity, with minimal effort and maximum comfort?
Works with:
This really works with the entire body, building ourselves in gravity from the ground upward. In particular, though, the lesson works with flexibility and softness in the ankles, mobility and stability of the pelvis, supple alignment of the spine, and easy carriage of the head.
11. Walking the spine – Taught Wednesday 21st October 2020
Themes:
Creates a basic vocabulary of flexion and extension, and forms the basis for standing, walking, bending, and reaching
Works with:
Balancing flexors and extensors, extending range of motion of hips, creating a sense of length in the entire body, and establishing a sense of ease.
I started recording after the reference. Before lying down notice how you are standing, how tall do you feel, how stable or ready? Take a walk and notice how your head is carried over the rest of you, how do you leave and greet the floor with your feet?
12. Calibrating Extensors – Taught Wednesday 4th November
Themes:
This is about awakening the posterior muscles to their functions in standing, walking, turning, and looking up. Expands the range of easy motion in backward bending movements, and provides stronger support for the carriage of the upper body by balancing the natural curves of the spine.
Works with:
Back, ribs, shoulders, pelvis, head and neck
13. Head and Shoulders – Taught Wednesday 11th November 2020
Themes:
Turning the head, twisting the trunk, carriage of the head, and mobility of the upper spine.
Works with:
Shoulders, head and neck.
14. Flexible Feet – Taught Wednesday 18th November 2020
Themes:
Mobility of the feet, walking, standing, turning
Works with:
Feet, ankles, legs, hips, lower back
15. Carriage of the Torso – Taught Wednesday 25th November
Themes:
The central difficulty of upright carriage is the intricacy of the subtle alignments of the various parts of the body over the feet. Emotional stress, injuries, and incomplete mastery of our movements all lead to the development of counterproductive tensions. In particular, we unconsciously carry excess tensions throughout our posterior musculature which impair motor function and manifest as pain, limited range of movement, and energy-draining postural imbalances.
Works with:
Relationship of feet to pelvis and pelvis to spine; widening and lengthening the back; calibrating the muscles which organize the chest, shoulders, and head for upright carriage.
Winter 2020/21
16. Throwing Arrows – Taught Wednesday 9th December
Themes:
These movement are adapted from an outside-in middle block from Tae Kwon Do; they are really about coordinating the whole body into a strong twisting movement, which can be applied directly to walking, running, kicking, or swinging a baseball bat, golf club, or tennis racket, as well as a staff or sword.
Works with:
Head, neck, arms, shoulders, and chest, especially in relationship with waist, hips, and legs in rotation and counter-rotation
17. Long Back – Taught Wednesday 16th December
Themes:
This lesson continues a theme of recent lessons, of lengthening the back, by reducing chronic tensions in the posterior musculature, enhancing the coordination of flexors and extensors. There is a direct connection from this lesson to more effective and powerful walking and running; you should notice these improvements after you have worked with the lesson a few times.
Works with:
Like all of these lessons, this one really works with the organization of the whole body; in particular here we are working with the relationships of the arms to the legs, through the trunk and spine, both along each side and across diagonals.
18. Soles Together – Taught on Wednesday 6th January 2021
Themes:
Integrating hip joints, pelvis, and lower back into movements of twisting, bending, and stretching.
Works with:
Opening hip joints, increasing flexibility of lower back, spinal rotation.
19. Twisting and Lengthening – Taught on Wednesday 13th January 2021
Themes:
In a twisting movement, alternately one diagonal and then the other gets longer; this lesson explores how this combination of twisting and lengthening links the whole body together.
Works with:
Whole body, from feet to head, and from fingertips to toes.
20. Neck, Shoulders and Eyes – Taught 20th January 2021
Themes:
Turning the head and eyes, looking up and down, calibrating muscles of the neck.
Works with:
Neck, upper spine and back, head, eyes, shoulders, hips.
21. Aligning the Legs – Taught 27th January 2021
Themes:
Walking, standing, carriage of the trunk and head over the feet, differentiating functional elements of the legs.
Works with:
Alignment of feet, ankles, knees, and legs with the pelvis and spine.
For this lesson you need to be able to lie on your back with your feet on the wall (or on a door), lower legs parallel to the floor and thighs at right angles as though you were sitting in a chair.
22. Pelvis and Neck – Taught 3rd February 2021
Themes:
Carriage of the head in walking, bending, and turning; relating movement of the pelvis to the movement of the head and neck.
Works with:
Hip joints, lower back, rib cage, shoulders, neck, and head
23. Rolling from Back to Sitting – Taught Wednesday 10th February 2021
Themes:
Rolling, twisting, and turning; coordinating flexors and extensors;establishing comfortable mobility on the floor.
Works with:
Flexibility and organization of trunk and spine, and relationships with arms, legs, and head.
24. Freeing the Arms and Hands – Taught Wednesday 24th February
Themes:
Reducing habitual tension in hands, wrists, arms, and shoulders; combating carpal tunnel syndrome; opening the heart to embrace new possibilities; improving creativity
Works with:
Arms, wrists, shoulders, neck, back, and upper spine.
Before you do the lesson find an everyday object that you engage with regularly (pen, spoon, computer mouse, pair of glasses) and notice as you move it in your hands how you touch it. What sensations do you have in your dominant hand? Notice the feelings in your fingers, palm, wrist, elbow, shoulder and neck.
Spring 2021
25. Hip Circles – Taught Wednesday 3rd March
Themes:
Walking, rolling, reaching, bending, power movements
Works with:
Turning waist, differential rotation of hips and shoulders
26. Softening the Trunk – Taught Wednesday 10th March
Themes:
Standing balance; easing the breath; freedom of chest, ribs, and shoulders
Works with:
Trunk, chest, ribs, spine, shoulders, breath
27. Big Eyes – Taught Wednesday 17th March
Themes:
Virtually all movement is conected in some way to the eyes, head, and neck; this is about expanding the mental “map” of the eyes to relieve eye tension and related movement inhibitions, and to illustrate how awareness itself is a powerful force for change.
Works with:
Eyes, head, neck, chest, arms, shoulders, spine
28. Tongue and Throat – Taught Wednesday 24th March
Themes:
Movements of the head and neck can be affected in numerous ways by unconscious tension in the tongue and throat; giving the tongue a little more spaciousness can provide improved mobility of the head and upper spine.
Works with:
Connections among the tongue, throat, neck, spine, and pelvis
29. Rolling from side to back – Taught Wednesday 31st March
Themes: Flexion and extension, coordinating arms and legs, using the whole self to roll
Works with: Arms, legs, spine, head and eyes
Summer Term 2021
30. Connecting legs through upper spine – Taught Wednesday 21st April
Themes: Where do your legs stop and your body begin? In walking, running, or kicking, the “functional leg” doesn’t
stop at the hip joint; it comes all the way up into the upper torso to support head and shoulders, in a way that
allows for easy changing of support from one leg to the other.
Works with: Legs, spine, ribs, hips, shoulders
31. Ischia – Taught Wednesday 28th April
Themes:
The pelvis is a pretty weird and pretty functional shape. This lesson uses feedback from the hands to explore the pelvis, particularly the sitting bones (ischia) and how they relate to movements of the legs and spine in standing and walking.
Works with:
Pelvis, legs, spine
32. Oscillations – Taught Wednesday 5th May
Themes:
Rhythmic movement can be a powerful tool for integrating the entire body into a unified whole; this lesson uses inner awareness and rhythmic movement to open the rib cage and lengthen the sides, improving vertical organization and balance.
Works with:
Feet, legs, hips, trunk, chest, and spine.
33. Ankles and Knees – Taught Wednesday 12th May
Themes:
Flexible feet are an important key to smooth and balanced walking, running, or dancing. This is about softening the feet and connecting them functionally to the ankles, knees, hips, and spine.
Works with:
Feet, ankles, knees, hips, spine.
34. Stabilising Your Centre – Taught Wednesday 19th May
Themes:
Most of the movements we do require us constantly to be shifting our centre of gravity in space, while
somehow maintaining our balance over that moving centre, as weight shifts from one leg to another, and as
our focus wanders from place to place. This lesson beings awareness to how to carry our weight smoothly
from one standing or walking leg to another.
Works with: Legs, hips, spine, torso, balance
35. Turning the waist – Taught Wednesday 26th May
Themes:
Nearly every full-bodied movement requires the coordinated counter-rotation of hips and shoulders, while at the same time maintaining balance and keeping the head free to orient in many directions. This lesson coordinates the movements of the pelvis, shoulders, and chest through a range of flexion, extension, and rotational movements.
Works with:
Hips, shoulders, chest, spine
36. Seated Twist – Taught Wednesday 9th June
Themes:
Differential rotation of spine, turning and twisting the torso, looking over the shoulder (as when driving), initiating movement from the center of gravity.
Works with:
Differentiating spinal elements; pelvis, waist, trunk, neck, head, eyes.
37. Pelvic Clocks – Taught Wednesday 16th June
Themes:
Our centers of gravity fall within the pelvis, and the moving relationships between our pelvis and ribcage determine our balance and mobility in virtually every activity. The movements in this lesson bring awareness to these moving relationships in ways which enhance one’s ability to remain centered in a wide range of movements.
Works with:
Pelvis, waist, ribs, spine.
38. Aligning the Knees – Taught Wednesday 23rd June
Themes:
Distortions of vertical alignment and organization take an inevitable toll on our knees. This lesson integrates the alignment of the knees with the feet, ankles, hips and spine.
Works with:
Knees, hips, spine, feet
39. More Shoulder Circles – Taught Wednesday 7th July
Themes:
This lesson is similar to Freeing the Shoulders, but more clearly differentiates movements of the shoulder from movements of the ribs, head, neck and pelvis .
Works with:
Shoulders, chest, ribs, spine, hips.
Autumn 2021
We are starting off this term with a series of lessons to soften the chest and improve breathing.
40. Hand to heel variations – Taught Wednesday 1st September
41. On the side, with straight arm in an arc – Taught Wednesday 8th September
42. Arm Circles – Taught Wednesday 22nd September
43. Circling the Feet – Taught Wednesday 29th September
44. Minimal Folding – Taught Wednesday 6th October
45. Breathing (to weld by breathing) – Taught 3rd November
46.Breathing Rhythmically 1 – Taught 10th November
47. Bow string – Taught Wednesday 17th November
Themes:
This is about distributing side-bending movement along the whole body, and therefore improving balance in the right to left (vertical) and also front to back (sagittal) planes.
Works with:
Legs, hips, spine, ribs, shoulders, neck