Moving Your Head and Legs Backward (Patrons)
Mostly front-lying, frequently one knee pulled up your mat. A sophisticated exploration of primary arching organizations in combination with twisting and pushing off the ground, from head to toes, to organize the spine. Begins with a brief "ATM rules" reminder about taking care of yourself in challenging lessons. The lesson begins in back-lying at around the three-minute mark, and includes back-lying steps designed to make it more accessible.
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Got a question for Nick, or a thought about this lesson?
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Beautiful lesson, that’s how we learn to go in all four and we start to crawl!
Hi,
Great lesson. I have a question about a certain instruction, the one where you say to lift the head and the forearm back together. Is the intention not to use so much muscle of the neck and do it solely from the arm? That was very difficult for me.
Right, it likely won’t happen solely in the arm/shoulder/back. Definitely normal that you’d notice some engagement of your neck, but of course if that’s not comfortable please do less or see if you can reorganize for more sense of the arm leading. A good guide to the quality of your organization as you play with this is whether or not you can breathe comfortably and continuously, too.
But the idea is not to lift the head and the arm, but the arm that the head is lying on, giving it more weight? Maybe it’s not so important. I just felt, when I did the lesson, that thinking about it like this, and thinking about it like this made a huge different.
Yes, and that’s a difference that may be very valuable to explore. That difference isn’t the focus of this lesson as it’s presented, but there may be something important about it for you so it’s great that you’re thinking about it. The lesson leaves room for interpretation and (if I remember correctly) just says “lift them together”, but as you can tell there’s multiple ways to do that. Once we notice something like that in a lesson it’s great to experiment, with your comfort, curiosity, and easy breathing as a guide.
One way to experience some of the subtleties of this relationship: even if the head weren’t on top of the arm (let’s say they’re both resting on the floor, the bent arm near the head) lifting one will involve reorganization of the other.
Lovely lesson, specially for pro extension spine movers, like me.
Little nervous about the side bent knee, as it was rotating my spine.
Recovering from upset low back over twisting.
My neck benefitted a lot from the lesson, more freely moving. Thank you very much.
What a gas. For some reason, lying on my stomach makes me feel silly and playful, which served me well. “Tummy time” as the moms say now. My neck and shoulders feel a little disoriented now, but I suspect that’s a good thing. Thanks
I have found this lesson such a powerful learning about what I do with my neck that I’ve practiced it on six almost consecutive days and will probably continue. It usually leaves with a very slight dizzy sensation which subsides. My thought it to continue (gently) until that sensation is no longer occurring. Any suggestion Nick about what other lesson(s) I might combine/alternative with as I continue to explore?
Pardon my slow reply – missed this one at first. Lessons can be repeated daily, as long as they’re not becoming rote. Your active, novel, in-the-moment curiosity about what you’re experiencing is essential.
I wonder also about very gentle supine head rolling lessons, and perhaps work with the eyes. Have you explored any like that? And how are things, a month later?
No problem Nick! Thanks for all your care with this project – it really is quite incredible. I agree with your point about the risk of rote, which hasn’t happened yet with this one because there is so much to attend to, down into ribs and pelvis etc., that has been very informative. I think the dizziness was in fact a mild viral infection and not the exercise. And yes, I’ve found that gentle head rolls are good always. Yesterday I did this one for example – it’s always great: https://feldenkraisproject.com/lesson/calming-the-nervous-system-bell-hand/