Feldenkrais

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I’ve been suffering with back pain and other symptoms (Achilles pain most recently) of something since about 2002.  I’ve gone through a lot of types of therapy from physical therapy to chiropractic, to Muscle Activation Techniques to Active Release Therapy, acupuncture, massage, prolotherapy and lots of different corrective exercise protocols.  My issue seems to be a movement issue.  That is, as I move the sequence of events–muscle contractions, feedback from muscles and joints, etc.–that should be happening aren’t happening in an ideal way.  I’ve gotten better especially with my introduction to Z-Health but nothing has quite yet resolved my issues.   I’ve been aware of Feldenkrais for a while and it’s been on my list of modalities to investigate.  I recently emailed Seattle-area Rolfer and Z-Health practitioner Todd Hargrove (Todd writes an excellent blog) to ask him his opinion and he suggested I search out a Feldenkrais practitioner, so I did.  Yesterday was my first experience and it was quite interesting.

I met with local Denver Feldenkrais practitioner Ray Little for two hours and I became quite a bit more aware of how I move–and how I should move.  Without any technical terminology or complicated instructions, he helped me feel how to walk properly.    The most powerful thing he showed me was where on my foot to feel the impact of walking (right in front of the heel) and then how to effectively push myself forward.  We discussed the idea of lengthening into stride, taking the impact of the foot strike and smoothly rebounding into forward motion.  All and all it was a very enlightening experience and I very much look forward to meeting with him again next week.

As I’m about to post this, I’ve gone on two runs since Monday and I’ve felt better than I have literally in years.  I think I’m back on the horse!!

One thought on “Feldenkrais

  1. Karen

    I’m sure you’ve heard your relatives remark that you look like your grandfather walking — the gait, the posture, the arms. How does that happen? Is it genetic? I don’t know, but I can’t imagine that you spent enough time around him that you mimicked his walk. Perhaps it wasn’t a good thing, tho, since he suffered a broken hip at about age 20 and had a limp that manifested especially when he was tired. And, of course, he wasn’t an endurance athlete — unless you define “endurance” as being in fairly good condition for most of his 94 years.

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