Spinal Rotation, with Scapulas, Sacrum, and Spatial Self-Imaging (Patrons)

Explore small movements with big attention, and experience the benefits of spatial imagination. Cultivate subtle relationships of your scapulas and ribs, imagine the volume and movements of individual vertebrae, and discover that action can be generated from the root of your spine. Eventually hip joints join the fun as we connect spinal rotation to walking. Along the way, enjoy the unique neurological effects of imaging a spacious ease around your eyes and brow. Typical lesson benefits include melting rigidities of the spine, ribs, and shoulders, quieting the nervous system, and an easier, more open uprightness and attention.

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.

Browser/device size and audio player

Tech tip: On mobile or tablet? Once you start playing the audio, your device’s native playback controls should work well.

Tip – Logo Homepage Content Guide

TIP: Our homepage is our content guide for newcomers. You can always get there by simply clicking our logo at the top left of any page on our site.

Tip 1 – Interrupted?

Study tip: Interrupted or don’t have enough time? You can return to the lesson later today or tomorrow. Read how best to continue your learning on our FAQ page.

Tip 2 – Social Sharing

Project tip: Try the share button near the lesson title above, and help us on our mission to spread the life-changing benefits of Feldenkrais study as widely as possible!

Tip – Directions are Relative

Study tip: Directions are always relative to your body. For example, if you’re lying on your back “up” is toward your head, and “forward” is toward the ceiling.

Tip – Lesson names

Lesson access: Thanks to our donors, our lessons are freely offered unless the title ends with (Patrons) – those are how we thank our Patron-level donors. Lesson duration: If you don’t see a duration listed with a title, it’s a regular hour-long class.

Tip 4 – Padding

Study tip: Comfort first! Carpeted floors usually work well, but it’s great to have an extra mat or blanket nearby in case you need a softer surface in some configurations.

Tip – Pause the recording

Study tip: If you’re really enjoying a movement and want to explore longer, or you just need a break for a while, pause the recording!

Tip – What’s New

What’s New? At the bottom of our homepage you can find all our news, newest lessons and courses, and current comments, questions, and discussions with listeners.

Tip – Join!

Join the Project! Members and Patrons see streamlined lesson pages, enjoy My Journey (marking lessons played  saved  and “faved” ), and can access the Related Lessons tab below.

Tip – Got Questions?

Questions? Am I doing it right? How do I study if I don’t have an hour? How often should I study? I can’t get comfortable – what should I do? See our FAQ!

Tip – Technical Difficulties

Tech tip: If you have any trouble with the audio player, reboot your browser. That solves most issues. If not, try another browser or contact us.

Tip – skip a lesson

Study tip: If you can’t find a comfortable way to do the initial movements or configuration of a lesson, it’s ok to skip it for now and go on to another lesson.

Tip – Complete the Movement

Study tip: Complete one movement before beginning the next. You’ll improve faster if there’s enough time between movements that you feel fully at rest.

Tip 3 – Head Support

Study tip: It helps to have a large bath towel nearby when you start a lesson. You can fold it differently for comfortable head support in any configuration.

Tip – what to wear

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

Tip 5 – Discomfort

Study tip: If a configuration or movement causes any increase in discomfort, or you feel you just don’t want to do it, don’t! Make it smaller and slower, adapt it, or rest and imagine.

Tip – Comments

Project tip: Leave a lesson comment below! It’s a great way to give feedback or ask a question, and it helps google find us so we can achieve The Feldenkrais Project’s vision!

Tip – Rewinding

Study tip: Many instructions are repeated. If you get a little lost, rest and listen. You’ll often find your way. Or use the rewind button on the page or your mobile device.

Tip – How to find lessons

How to find lessons and courses: Use the checkboxes and advanced options on our Lesson Search to apply powerful filters. Alternatively, try Searchable User Comments or our Birds Eye View.

Tip – LESSS is more

LESSS is more: Light, Easy, Small, Slow, & Smooth movements will ease pains and improve your underlying neuromuscular habits faster than any other kind of movement, no matter who you are or what your training is!

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)

Once you start making “triangle arms,” feel free to rest them as frequently as needed.

If you find you’d like more time for any of the imagination tasks, feel free to pause the recording.

There are 12 thoracic vertebrae in total; I mentioned the ten that have complete rings of ribs. The bottom two thoracic vertebrae are connected to the floating ribs.

In discussion after class one student said that she imagined rolling the vertebrae like a ball covering distance, and rotation of the vertebrae like twisting a doorknob. This is very accurate!

A video illustration of rolling vs rotating/twisting on the axis is in the Curiosities tab of this lesson. It refers to the pelvis, but it’s exactly the same concept for the vertebrae here.

Check out the Little Dip linked in the Context tab for lots of information about unique elements of this lesson.

In discussion after it was recorded, one student commented that he felt great, but “didn’t know enough anatomy.” I clarified that anatomical knowledge isn’t at all necessary to benefit from the lesson. You can use the counting of the upper thoracic vertebrae (for example) to guide your imagination to create roughly five distinctions on the length of your spine that runs between your shoulder blades. It does not matter if they don’t accurately align with your actual T1-T5 vertebrae.

Imagination of this type – I call it spatial self-imaging – is often applied in Feldenkrais lessons in less anatomically-specific ways, but whether we’re using more poetic or metaphorical imagery, or specific anatomical imagery like in this lesson, this imagination process helps us sense and refine our self-image, and that is all that matters in the process of refining and maturing our behavior.

Another student commented that it was difficult for her to understand global spinal twists on the floor, but when she finally got up and walked she understood how “the spine walks us.” I replied that while walking we conventionally think of counter-rotation of the hips and shoulders – one end of the spine twisting one way, the other end the other way – but from the point of view of the function of the spine it’s always one twist from end to end, then the other. The spine flashes into one twist to propel one leg and flex the other, and then vice versa.

“Those lessons about rotating the pelvis in space” are Pelvis Lifting and Rotating on Its Axis, Part 1 and Part 2.

This lesson is found in Patron Treasures, our collection of lessons exclusively for Feldenkrais Project Patron-level donors. It also has a prominent place in our Little Dip called On Attention: Feldenkrais, Spatial Self-Imaging, and Open Focus.

It was recorded in The FP Weekly Pay-What-You-Can Class on August 12, 2025. The live recording has been edited to improve flow, clarity, and audio quality.

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.

horizontal-squiggle

2 Comments

  1. judi clinton on November 29, 2025 at 2:45 pm

    I have joined Patrons so I could enjoy your new Fermi influence, and I did the wholoe lesson, instead of my usual skipping ahead. It was actually easy for me to do the spinal articulations, and that opened up the whole thoracic deeper into my open heart surgeries scar tissue. Yeah. Sp I am really taking time to enjoy my first standing up after the lesson. And I’m still feeling breath space into eyes and heart space. A big blessing for this holiday. and a great day to be snowed in. Judi

    • Nick Strauss-Klein on December 3, 2025 at 7:31 am

      Lovely! Yes, it’s fun stuff. I find the attentional and spatial cues really do have a unique effect. Lots of others are emailing about connecting to this work, so I imagine more and more of Fehmi’s influence will appear at The FP over time.

Leave a Comment