Moving from the Inside Out: 7 Principles for Ease and Mastery in Movement--A Feldenkrais Approach

by Lesley McLennan, Julie Peck

Overview

Seven powerful principles for better, more easeful movement—a Feldenkrais approach.

More often than not, we move through life focused on results or where we're going, rarely paying attention to how we move until we experience pain or need to learn a new skill or perform at an elite level. But movement isn't just about getting things done or getting from here to there: at its essence, it's an integration of thinking, sensing, and feeling with action such that to change one part changes the whole.

This book is written for those times when we don't need quick fixes, bandaids, or shortcuts to solve an immediate problem, but can instead dedicate time and attention to explore, laying the foundation to become experts in our own body and movement patterns for long-lasting positive growth. Moving from the Inside Out shows us how to resolve complex movement issues, balance stability and instability, increase power and precision, and explore our own movement using innate learning strategies.

Written for practitioners, movement therapists, and somatic teachers and students, the curious athlete or casual learner will also find much to gain in learning the practical and accessible fundamentals of movement. Authors Lesley McLennan and Julie Peck introduce seven core principles that address:
• The dynamic balance between instability and stability
• How to move with ease and grace
• The secrets of flexibility and support embedded in every musculo-skeletal system
• How anxiety and curiosity shape our individual developmental sequence
• How qualities of movement are clues for your investigation
• The special role of intra-abdominal pressure in our physical and emotional worlds
• How moving and learning are entwined

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781623175085
Publisher:	North Atlantic Books
Publication date:	07/28/2020
Pages:	208
Sales rank:	632,330
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.98(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

LESLEY MCLENNAN has had a diverse background through teaching, performance, arts administration, and philanthropy. The unifying themes of movement and accessibility have linked each stage in her professional career. McLennan initiated the webinars on Organising Principles that have been the foundation of this book. JULIE PECK is an internationally respected educational director of Feldenkrais professional training programs (FPTPs). Her annual schedule has her crossing the world to teach, present workshops, and mentor, between weeks at home working in her practice. Her passion is creating learning environments through which students can discover their full potential.

Table of Contents

Starting Points 1

The Power of Principles 2

The Power of Distinctions 2

The Power of Stories 4

Seven Organizing Principles of Movement 6

The Presence of Absence 8

Neuroplasticity 9

Using This Book 11

OP1 Balance Is Dynamic 15

The Beginning of Balance 17

Moving Across the Ground 21

Sensing Yourself 25

Shifting and Balancing 26

OP2 Skeletal Alignment Liberates Movement 35

Alignment and Action 37

Defying Gravity 39

Power and Alignment 43

OP3 Progress Is Cyclical 49

Spinal Movement 51

Homologous Movement 54

Homolateral Movement 58

Contralateral Movement 63

Moving in Cycles 66

OP4 Qualities Refine Self-Direction 69

Absence of Effort 71

Absence of Resistance 74

Presence of Reversibility 77

Freedom of Breath 82

Exploring Qualities 85

OP5 Head Guides and Pelvis Drives 87

Your Guide: The Head 89

Connecting Through the Spine 96

Your Drive: The Pelvis 102

Parts of the Whole 117

OP6 Power Is Central and Precision Peripheral 119

Two Ends of an Action 121

Specialization of Power and Direction 126

Freeing the Limbs 129

OP7 Pressure Organizes 133

Meeting Pressure with Pressure 134

Strong Muscles May Cover Weakness 136

The Strength of Pressure 138

Pressure and Anxiety 140

The Pressure of Contact 142

Learning from the Inside Out 147

The Power of Processes 148

Seven Learning Processes 149

Principles into Practice 171

Feldenkrais: A Framework for Learning 172

Starting, Again 174

References 177

Index 179

About the Authors 189

Editorial Reviews

This is a delightful book, full of practical exercises and convincing stories about how to get to know yourself better from the inside—and the inestimable benefits that result if you do. I found it fascinating and enlightening, and you will too.”
—Guy Claxton, author of Intelligence in the Flesh

“Moving from the Inside Out is an exciting and lucid presentation of the potent ideas behind the practice of the Feldenkrais Method. A central theme of the text is the pivotal role that how we move plays in our overall health. The authors create an inviting, multifaceted narrative, using stories, theory, and movement experiments that quickly engage the reader. Moving From the Inside Out provides a wonderful new introduction to the Feldenkrais Method, and at the same time its themes will be relevant to a wide variety of health professionals.”
—Elizabeth Beringer, Feldenkrais Trainer and editor of Embodied Wisdom

From the Publisher