Head Under the Gap, Supine: Workshop/Review Version (Patrons)

Don’t miss the 1-minute video demo below if you haven’t done a hand bridging lesson yet.

Prerequisite: See the Context tab below.

Designed to clarify and distribute the image of arching and turning your whole self after you've explored the Long Belly, Strong Back lesson. Explore the unusual support of a bridged hand and its fascinating extension implications for your scapulas, shoulder girdle, ribs, and neck. Great for posture, breath, athletics, confidence, and groundedness.

Before you begin read this for practical tips and your responsibilities, and check out Comfort & Configuration below.

Recorded live in a Feldenkrais Awareness Through Movement (ATM) class, this lesson is copyright Nick Strauss-Klein, for personal use only.

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Study tip: Wear loose, comfortable clothes that are warm enough for quiet movement. Remove or avoid anything restrictive like belts or glasses.

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The bridge position of the hand can be challenging, but many alterations are possible.

1) Near the beginning you'll hear that I visually demonstrated and showed adaptations:

2) It's also possible to stand the palm on a small pillow or a bundled pair of thick socks, so the angles of the fingers and wrist can be more relaxed.
3) See the Curiosities tab to learn how bridging your hand isn't even necessary!

We offer over 50 free lessons, but this one's just for Patrons. You can learn about it in the free lesson notes and comments below. To access the audio, join The FP at the Patron level. Learn more

Donor Tip: Skip this login next time! See Why & How to Stay Logged In (and why it's safe)

It’s helpful in this lesson to use the minimum head support you need for comfort, and as always it should be smooth so your head is free to move. You may find you want even less head support as the lesson progresses.

If both shoulders are reasonably comfortable, on a subsequent listening you might start with the other arm bridged.

Many people struggle with the bridged hand position. Don’t worry if you can’t do it, or can’t do it for long. After our full-length version of this lesson students reported discovering that the bridge position of your hand is not that important to what the lesson offers:

  • “The hand position didn’t feel so necessary…it was about the chest.”
  • “I realized I didn’t need to use my hand much, but just move the ribs.”

Do at least one of these prerequisites first: either version of Long Belly, Strong Back (short or expanded workshop version) or our full-length Head Under the Gap.

The Long Belly, Strong Back workshop is

This workshop is one of our Patron Treasures, exclusively for Feldenkrais Project Patron-level donors.

It was recorded in the global online Feldenkrais Festival on Nov 14, 2024, then edited to improve flow, clarity, and sound quality in this permanent audio version.

Members and Patrons. Learn more or login:

Members and Patrons. Learn more or login:

Got a question for Nick, or a thought about this lesson?

Use the comments section below! Public comments build our community and help search engines find us.

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3 Comments

  1. Dee on January 12, 2025 at 4:15 pm

    Hi Nick, I know there is no such thing as a dumb question, tho this one feels a bit like one…! I couldn’t understand where my head was meant to be, or what the “gap” was when, part way through the lesson, you said “under the gap”… I tried various different things like turning head left and right, up and down, and I knew it was somehow related to the hand position, but… Could you elaborate please! 😉

    • Nick Strauss-Klein on January 17, 2025 at 6:03 pm

      No dumb questions, and I’m so glad you asked, because it made me realize I’ve got a few readily available photos this.

      For anyone reading this before doing the lesson: DON’T CLICK the following two links! Try the lesson first. It’s better if you don’t have an expectation.

      Here’s one photo and here’s another. NOTE: It’s not at all necessary to be so far “under/through the gap” as the man in these photos is. But you can see how the back of the head slides back through the gap created by the bridged arm.

      • Dee on January 18, 2025 at 7:12 am

        Great! That’s so helpful – thank you. The exploration has resonances with Baby Liv’s explorations on your ‘what is Feldenkrais’ video page!

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