The Carriage of the Head Affects the State of the Musculature (Patrons)
Lying on the belly, knees bent, soles of feet oriented toward the ceiling, learning to tilt the feet to the side in order to integrate the pelvis, the length of the spine, and the ribs and shoulders with various configurations of the head and neck. Also, late in the lesson, discovering the potency of imagined movements.
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Another great lesson Nick. It is amazing just how powerful imagery is. How it can, in a very short time, transfer the effects of movement on one side to the other.
I very much dislike lessons on the belly, so I generally avoid them. However this lesson kept coming up in my mind as one to try for some issues I was having, resulting from Aikido front rolls.
There was a new discovery that I encountered with this lesson, specifically with the idea of lengthening. Could it be that I was compacting myself instead of rolling out into length during the Aikido classes?
During the lesson, the idea of lengthening was mentioned several times, and I discovered a movement of my spine, very subtle, that I didn’t realize could happen.
Afterwards I felt a freedom in my lower thoracic region that seemingly had nothing to do with the neck or shoulder (the area of concern).
I am realizing that it is important to try even those lessons that appear uncomfortable (as long as one knows the guidelines for keeping oneself comfortable so one can really learn). There are new discoveries to be had by trying the not so favorite lessons. Which makes this lesson a new favorite for the freedom I received!
Amazing!
It was challenging yet fruitful to imagine the movement on the second side. Thank you.
As a chronic pain sufferer, I think this is the lesson I need the most. it is not the most comfortable, but I am sensing the beginnings of lengthening. I do not yet understand though how I can possibly tilt the knees when legs are together so that one comes off the floor without wrenching my back. Lol Any tips? I have done many, many of the lessons and they keep me going on the hard days, so thank you greatly for this site!!!
Glad to offer it! The first option is always to go so small and so slow that you simply can’t hurt yourself. The intention is to “err” on the side of doing nothing, but of course it’s not an error at all. With quiet attention (and not making your nervous system defensive by “wrenching” things) you will improve, even if you’re barely moving or only imagining moving!
Second idea for this belly-lying configuration is to experiment with putting a folded up towel under your hips. Try different thickness and sizes until you find a position that allows you to feel, while resting, that your back is longer and more slack before you begin to move.
Playing with some of the breathing lessons that use belly-lying might also help prepare you to benefit from this lesson: try Getting Oriented Lesson 7, or Breathing from Head to Heels.
Thanks for listening and please spread the word about the Feldenkrais Project!
Thanks Nick I will try the towel and go gently
I love this lesson, feeling taller and ‘chic’ after.
Thanks, Nick.
I didn’t expect a facial, just by tilting my legs but I got one and even significant changes just by imagining.
Another fabulous lesson, thanks Nick! I love the clarity of your instructions, and the details that surprise my attention and improve my movement, even with lessons that are familiar from other sources.
I clicked on this lesson yesterday in the throes of back spasms and just smiled. In zoom class over a year ago, a similar lesson guided me out of back pain. Back then I couldn’t imagine that getting on my stomach was even possible, let alone smart, but this time, I just did it. Moving the lower legs in this way was once again profoundly helpful. I want to stay out of back pain woes and am committing to doing the Daily most days. Just sayin’ 🙂 Thank you, Nick!
Wonderful! And great that you’ve made a connection between a personal challenge and a genre of lessons to go looking for when you feel it. Thanks for sharing the story!
After working on the right side, I could see the right side of my face in the mirror noticeably more relaxed than the left side. After working on the left side, both parts of my face were equally relaxed. My head was erect and comfortable, and I had a feeling of increased wellbeing. Thank you for the superb way in which you lead the lessons!
Wobble head in a good way. Relieved some thoracic discomfort. A bit challenging for my lower back. Will be more gentle next time. Hard not to maybe twist too much with gravity since it feels so good.
I suffer from a significant dyspraxia and find imagining without doing pretty near impossible.
One way I approach Feldenkrais lessons is to look for patterns in my nervous system. When I find them these seem to be inherent. Instead of imagining, I looked for a movement pattern that existed in my nervous system and, voila, something as close to imagining as I’ve ever achieved.
i feel the same regarding the “imagining”, i’ll just begin to engage in a more subtle mode. However, i sometimes find myself doing the movement pattern while sleeping. It even happens that i wake up and continue doing some parts of the lesson in a dreamy state and if i get lucky i’ll receive an epiphany. I love when that happens. This happens even though i do my lessons these days during the day and not before bed time.
Nick, for me, this lessons is difficult to do without straining. Thats okay, i gladly wiggle around that, but maybe some more technical description of the pattern would be helpful to orient myself, because i have always had a hard time to attend and be aware of my whole spine. It seems to be that i was a bit alone in this lesson, and i would have loved more clarity in your guidance. But thats just me in this particular lesson.
Thanks for your reflections. I agree that Moshe Feldenkrais’s structure in this lesson (and hence my own, since I’m trying to stay close to the text) leaves students a little more “on their own” than I like to. Have you tried the recommended lesson for those who struggle with this one? It’s in the Comfort & Configuration tab. If you do, please let us know if that one helps clarify this lesson.
I found this lesson very challenging and confusing. I ended up doing most of it either in my imagination or with only tiny movements . It was extra hard to imagine all the movements on my left side, which is always my weaker and most challenged side .
However , after the lesson, I now feel surprisingly more balanced than usual .
🙏
Hey Nick,
To be in this position — prone with feet up — for a long time really put a load in my lumbar spine. To have my knees on the ground meant my ASIS were not on the ground (muscle-y thighs), so an anterior tilt of pelvis, so lumbar lordosis. Ouch! I was so distracted by the low back that I didn’t notice much else.
Ouch indeed! That’s the kind of can’t-get-comfortable signal we should listen to right away, ideally. Though the temptation to continue through pain is often strong, you said it perfectly: “I was so distracted by the low back that I didn’t notice much else.” Escalating pain takes us out of learning, out of the state of curiosity and questioning. It’s not worth pushing through. Better to enjoy another lesson, and perhaps come back to this one later.
Thanks for letting me know. I’ve added some advice to this lesson’s Comfort & Configuration tab, and also copied there the recommended more accessible lesson from the Related Lessons tab.
Thanks Nick! Yeah, it didn’t bother me at first, but after a while I noticed my attention was on discomfort and not the lesson. That’s exactly when I stopped. Maybe I’ll come back to it another time. Lots of other lessons to explore and enjoy!
I definitely want to do this lesson again and switch to the left side to start. It was an interesting challenge for me to do all the imagining (as I want to moved) but can definitely see the power in it. But I did have more range on the right after so many reps on that side and would love to feel more even. Making room to gently roll onto the back for rests as recommended definitely improves the experience of this lesson. It allowed me to stay relaxed.
Very challenging to stick to just imagination at the end (my mind craves symmetry), but surprisingly effective 🙂
Wow! That was a workout, even though I did very small movements to make sure my lower back was OK. By the end I was able to do much more and felt the lengthening of my spine. After the imagining I was amazed at how much the left side had shifted compared to before the imagining. Great lesson.