A Guide to Body Sense, vol. 1: Movement Patterns (Feldenkrais based) 0615265227, 9780615265223

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A Guide to

Body Sense The Digital Version

I. Movement Patterns

Robert Burgess PhD

A Guide to Body Sense The Digital Version

Volume I: Movement Patterns Lessons from the Feldenkrais Method

Robert Burgess B.Ed, PT, PhD Physical Therapist, Feldenkrais Practitioner S K E L E T A L LIFE PUBLISHERS

®

Acknowledgements My three models need acknowledging. Rina and Andrew were very generous with their time and they are still good friends of mine. They spent many hours posing for these drawings and make up the bulk of the drawings in this book. My wife, Amelia, also contributed and I thank her for her love, support and encouragement. Thank you also to Dr Moshe Feldenkrais for creating such a wonderful potent methodology of enhancing human movement, behavior and life.

A Guide to Body Sense - The Digital Version (GTBS-DV) Volume I: Movement Patterns Copyright © 2008-2014 by Robert Burgess. All rights reserved. This book is protected by copyright. No part of this book maybe reproduced in any form or by any means without prior written permission from the copyright owner. A Guide to Body Sense - The Digital Version (GTBS-DV) is sold under a license agreement. Robert Burgess retains the ownership of this copy of GTBS-DV, any copies and updates including all text and diagrams. Permitted uses: You, the licensee is permitted to use GTBS-DV on one single computer. Pages can be printed for students and patients as necessary for your professional or personal usage. Prohibited uses: You, the licensee may not transfer, distribute, rent, sub-license or lease. You may not alter, modify or make copies of this product.

Limitation of Liability: Under no circumstances shall Robert Burgess be liable for any special, incidental or consequential damages that result the use of GTBS-DV.

Except for some free clipart all diagrams were created, designed, produced and are owned by Robert Burgess.

ISBN: 978-0-615-26522-3 S K E L E T A L LIFE PUBLISHERS

Wolfeboro NH USA

Contents

Chapter 1. Pelvic movements ........................................................ 1 pelvic movements1 – pelvic tilt ......................................................................... 3 pelvic movements2 – pelvic tilt mechanics ......................................................... 5 pelvic movements3 – pelvic clock variations ...................................................... 7 pelvic movements4 – “pouring tea” .................................................................. 9 pelvic movements5 – the pelvic clock – full set ................................................ 11 pelvic movements6 – pelvic translation & rotation ............................................ 13

Chapter 2. Trunk movements ...................................................... 15 trunk rotation1 – double arm raise.................................................................. 17 trunk rotation2 – double leg raise ................................................................... 19 trunk rotation3 – anatomy of double leg raise ................................................. 21 trunk rotation4 – double leg and arm raise ...................................................... 23 trunk rotation5 – rotation and side bend ......................................................... 25 trunk rotation6 – counter rotation- “walking on your side” ................................ 27 trunk rotation7 – crossed legs and tilt – “classic trunk rotation”......................... 29 trunk rotation8 - trunk and head rotation ........................................................ 31 trunk rotation9 – counter rotation- “walking on your back” ............................... 33 trunk rotation10 – roll back to front ................................................................ 35 trunk rotation11 – leg tilt prone1 .................................................................... 37 trunk rotation12 – leg tilt prone2 .................................................................... 39 trunk rotation13 – roll to sit ........................................................................... 41

trunk side bending on the side ....................................................................... 43 trunk side bending in supine1- ‘Frog Side Bend’ ............................................... 45 trunk side bending in supine2 – ‘the Rib Cage as a Spring’................................ 47 trunk side bending in supine3 ........................................................................ 49 trunk side bending in supine4 ........................................................................ 51 trunk rotation and side bend .......................................................................... 53 trunk flexion in supine ................................................................................... 55 trunk flexion and roll ..................................................................................... 57 trunk extension1 ........................................................................................... 59 trunk extension2 ........................................................................................... 61

Chapter 3. Arm trunk coordination ............................................. 63 arm-trunk coordination1 – arm reach supine ................................................... 65 anatomy of arm reach in side lying ................................................................. 67 arm-trunk coordination2 – arm & knee reach................................................... 69 arm-trunk coordination3 – windmill................................................................. 71 arm-trunk coordination4 – windmill reach........................................................ 73 arm-trunk coordination5 – egyptian reach ...................................................... 75 arm-trunk coordination6 – piston.................................................................... 77 arm-trunk coordination7 – arm clock .............................................................. 79 arm-trunk coordination8 – arm reach to ceiling ................................................ 81 arm-trunk coordination9 – side bend and rotation ............................................ 83 arm-trunk coordination10 – on all fours .......................................................... 85

Chapter 4. Leg trunk coordination .............................................. 87 leg-trunk coordination1 – leg raise in side lying ............................................... 89

leg-trunk coordination2 – leg-trunk rotations ................................................... 91 leg-trunk coordination3 – supine leg roll.......................................................... 93 leg-trunk coordination4 – leg roll and push...................................................... 95 leg-trunk coordination5 – double leg roll ......................................................... 97 leg-trunk coordination6 – leg roll prone........................................................... 99 leg-trunk coordination7 – supine trunk roll .................................................... 101 leg-trunk coordination8 – raise head and hips................................................ 103 leg-trunk coordination9 – raising head & leg.................................................. 105 leg-trunk coordination10 – raise, arm-head-leg .............................................. 107 leg-trunk coordination 11 – leg shortening & lengthening ............................... 109 leg-trunk coordination12 – foot slide ............................................................. 111 leg-trunk coordination13 – leg bridge............................................................ 113 leg-trunk coordination14 – legs crossed ....................................................... 115 leg reach on side1 ....................................................................................... 117 leg reach on the side2 ................................................................................. 119

Chapter 5. Feet and hands......................................................... 121 foot-leg rotation1 ........................................................................................ 123 foot-leg rotation2 ........................................................................................ 125 foot-leg rotation3 ........................................................................................ 127 bridging – finding your feet1 ........................................................................ 129 bridging – finding your feet2 ........................................................................ 131 bridging – finding your feet3 ........................................................................ 133 bridging – finding your feet4 ........................................................................ 135 bridging – finding your feet5 – “clawing toes”................................................ 137 “bell hand” ................................................................................................. 139

“ball bearing hand” ..................................................................................... 141

Chapter 6. Movements & posture in sitting .............................. 143 sitting1 – neck trunk coordination ................................................................. 145 sitting2 – squat to sit................................................................................... 147 sitting3 – anatomy of good sitting ................................................................ 149 sitting4 – pelvic movements in sitting ........................................................... 151 sitting5 – side bend on a chair ..................................................................... 153 sitting6 – hand to foot ................................................................................. 155

Chapter 7. Eyes, head & neck .................................................... 157 eyes movements1 – ‘look up, look down- eyes only’ ....................................... 159 eyes movements2 – ‘look up, look down- eyes & head’ .................................. 161 eyes movements3 – ‘eyes left, eyes right’ ..................................................... 194

Chapter 8. Advanced and various .............................................. 196 rolling fists1 ................................................................................................ 198 rolling fists2 ................................................................................................ 200 rolling fists3 ................................................................................................ 202 hand to knee .............................................................................................. 204 hand to foot1.............................................................................................. 206 hand to foot2.............................................................................................. 208 hand to foot3.............................................................................................. 210 side bend in sitting ...................................................................................... 212 hip and trunk coordination ........................................................................... 214 walking on hands and knees ........................................................................ 216

weight bearing hand and foot ...................................................................... 218 “dead bird” ................................................................................................. 220

References ................................................................................... 222

PELVIS PELVIS

pelvic movements1 - basic pelvic clock a & b. Posterior pelvic tilt. Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor (Figure a). Notice what part of the pelvis makes contact the floor. The large bony surface is the sacrum- see figure b. Roll the pelvis towards your head. Think of lifting the tail bone. The back of the pelvis is somewhat curved so it is possible to roll the pelvis to and fro like a rocking chair (Figure a-d). Roll the pelvis toward the head. Roll to the top of the sacrum or to belt level of your waist (Figure a & b). You may feel your low back press into the floor. Rolling the pelvis toward the head and flattening the back is known as a posterior pelvic tilt or posterior pelvic rotation however mostly commonly it is simply referred to as a pelvic tilt (Figure a & c). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c & d. Anterior pelvic tilt. Now roll the pelvis in the opposite direction, i.e. away from your head and feel what happens to the arch of your back (Figure c). Roll to the tail end of the sacrum (Figure c & d). This is anterior pelvic tilt or anterior pelvic rotation. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. e. Pelvic clock. Imagine a circle on the back of your pelvis and a matching circle directly below on the floor. Think of these circles as clock faces. 12 o'clock is at the top of the sacrum and 6 o'clock will be at the tail end of the sacrum. Rolling to 12 o'clock is a posterior pelvic tilt as before and rolling to 6 o'clock is an anterior tilt. 9 o'clock will be near or under the left hip and 6 o'clock related to the right hip (It doesn't matter which way you might prefer right or left and 6 and 9 o'clock). Begin with your pelvis at 12 o'clock. Roll from 12 through to 3 then onto 6 and then 9 and back to 12. Make a circle with the back of your pelvis on the floor. The imaginary clock help as a symbol to assist with the rolling round a circle. There is nothing special about the clock itself. It is a fun varied way to explore pelvic motions. f-g. Pelvic clock clockwise & anticlockwise. Roll clockwise and then roll anti-clockwise around your pelvic clock. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor.

page 3

pelvic movements1 - basic pelvic clock c. anterior pelvic tilt

a. posterior pelvic tilt

roll pelvis towards your head

roll pelvis away from your head

d. roll to the tail end of the sacrum

b. roll to top of the sacrum

e. an imaginary clock on back of pelvis and the floor f. roll the pelvis clockwise around the pelvic clock

12 3

9

12

6

3

3

9

6

12

6

g. roll anti-clockwise around the pelvic clock

12

9 3

9 6 page 4

pelvic movements2 - pelvic mechanics Attention affects performance. Perform the following variations of attention to completing a posterior pelvic tilt: a. roll the pelvis toward your head with all attention on rolling the pelvis (Figure a). b. now have all of your attention directed to rounding and flattening your back to the floor to complete a pelvic tilt (Figure b). c. bring your attention to tensing your abdominal muscles to do a pelvic tilt (Figure c). These are three different ways to do the same thing. What are the differences? What feels the most comfortable? Why? Lead with the pelvis? Or lead by flattening the back or tensing muscles? Repeat the same procedure with anterior pelvic tilt: d. attention to rolling the pelvis (Figure d). e. attention to arching your back away from the floor (Figure e). f. attention to contracting back muscles to lift and arch the spine (Figure f). What are the parameters of choice for a focus of attention? Or is there one and only parameter for best action? In FM, the pelvis leads the motion and is the primary focus of attention.

The pelvis is the base of the spine and leads good spinal action.

g-h. A pelvic tilt does not stop at the pelvis or lumbar spine. The spine is one long linked chain. Roll your pelvis repeatedly from 12 to six (Figure g-h). Notice what happens to your head. It may roll in the same direction as the pelvis. i-j. Imagine the pelvis as the engine of a train and the head is the caboose. Between them are 24 vertebrae or 24 rail carriages. As the engine moves, so too does every vertebrae/carriage all the way to the head. Rolling of a rounded object on a flat surface is always accompanied by a translation of that object- this is how all wheels work.

Movements from the pelvis are transmitted along the length of the spine to the head.

page 5

pelvic movements2 - pelvic mechanics a. posterior pelvic tilt

c. abdominal contraction

b. lumbar flexion

d. anterior pelvic tilt

e. lumbar arching

f. extensor contraction

h.

g.

posterior pelvic rotation and translation

anterior pelvic rotation and translation

24 vertebrae pelvis-to-head = one long linked chain i.

J.

page 6

pelvic movements3- pelvic clock variations a. The pelvic clock. The basic pelvic clock begins lying on your back with bent knees (Figure a) (See pelvic movements1). b. Pelvic clock with weight on the elbows. From lying on your back, raise the body from the floor and bring your weight to rest on your elbows (Figure b). Then bring the soles of your feet together a frog like shape to the legs (Figure b). Roll the pelvis back and forth along the length of the sacrum as in pelvic movements1 (i.e. from 12 to 6). Now perform a clock motion of your pelvis (Figure d). Explore both the clockwise and anticlockwise directions (Figure d). Rest. c. Pelvic clock while resting on the hands. Bring your weight onto your hands with your feet together (Figure c). Notice what part of the pelvis and sacrum lie on the floor in this position. Roll the pelvis back and forth along the length of the sacrum and tail bone as in pelvic movements1 (i.e. from 12 to 6). Now roll around the clock in this position. d. Basic pelvic clock. The basic clock can be completed in both the clockwise and anticlockwise directions (Figure d). e. Half clock. Begin at 12 o'clock and roll around through to six o'clock (Figure e). Then continue straight to 12 o'clock to complete half of a clock. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Repeat in the opposite direction. f. Quadrants from 12 to three. Begin at 12 o'clock. Roll to three o'clock and back again. Repeat several times. Now roll from three to six and back. Rest. Now roll from six to nine and back. Finally roll from nine to 12. g. Quadrants from 10 to two. Begin at 12 o'clock. Roll to two and then back through 12 to 10 o'clock. Continue 10 to two several times. Repeat from two to four. Then go from four to eight and finally eight to 10. h. Spokes. Begin with a pelvic tilt 12 to six. Then a tilt from one to seven, then three to nine. Continue making spokes on a wheel by then rolling from four to ten etc… i. Figure 8. Imagine two clocks, one under your right hip and one under the left. Complete several complete circles over your right hip. Then repeat over the left hip. Finally, make the two clocks intersect by rolling around the right clock and then shift to the left clock and back again (Figure i). Rest. Stand and walk around. What is different in your gait now?

page 7

pelvic movements3- pelvic clock variations b.

a.

c.

d. a full clock

9

9 e. half a clock

6

12

12

12

6

3

9

12 3

9

3

3

6 f. 12-3 quadrants

6

g. 10-2 quadrants

12 2

10

3

9

h. spokes

8

6

12

4

3

9 i. figure 8

3

9 6

6

12

12

3

9 6

page 8

pelvic movements4 - ‘pouring tea’ a. Sit with your with weight on your hands. Sit with your weight resting on your hands behind you as in Figure a. Bring the soles of your feet together in a frog shape. b. Raise left hip & roll onto right hip. Lift your left hip from the floor to roll onto your right hip as shown in Figure b. Feel the contact on the back of the pelvis as it rolls from the left to the right. What happens in your low back? What can you feel in your rib cage? Repeat many times gently. The head should remain looking straight ahead. Notice what goes on between the head and the pelvis. Notice what happens along the left side of the low back. Can you feel muscles contracting? What do you feel on the right side? Which side shortens and which side lengthens? Shift your weight by thinking of lifting and rolling the left hip. Repeat several times. Now bring your attention to the muscles of your left low back. Think of the muscles contracting to perform this action. Return to having your attention with the hip and skeleton rather than with muscles. Feel the difference. c. “Pouring tea”. This action is rather like pouring from a large pot like a tea pot. A smooth action is required to tilt a heavy pot. The left hip and low back is like the handle of the pot, the pelvis is the pot itself and the right thigh is the spout (Figure c). Rest. Repeat to the other side. The major muscle group involved in raising the left hip from the floor are the left lumbar muscles. As they shorten the left side shortens and lifts the left hip from the floor. The right side of the low back lengthens and opens toward the right. Again as with pelvic tilt mechanics this motion is controlled from the pelvis. Doing this by having all of your attention with the muscle contraction does not work as well.

page 9

pelvic movements4 - ‘pouring tea’

a.

b.

c.

page 10

pelvic movements5 - the pelvic clock - full set This page is the full set of pelvic movement illustrated on the previous four pages. It is inserted here for completeness of the set. a. posterior pelvic tilt. b. anterior pelvic tilt. c-e. Pelvic tilt supine, on elbows, on hands. f. Half clock. g. Full clock clockwise, anticlockwise. h. Quadrants. i. Spokes. j. Figure 8. k-m. “Pouring tea”

page 11

pelvic movements5 - the pelvic clock - full set a.

b.

posterior pelvic tilt

anterior pelvic tilt

roll pelvis towards your head

roll pelvis away from your head

d.

c.

e.

f. half clock

12

g. full clock

12 3

9

3

9

6

k.

j. figure 8

2

12

3

3

9 8

6

i. spokes 12

12

6

3

9

6

h. quadrants

9

3

9

6

10

12

12

4

12 3

9

3

9

6

6

6 l.

m. pouring tea

page 12

pelvic movements6- pelvic translation & rotation in standing pelvic translation in standing a. In standing pay attention to the alignment of your shoulders, hips and ankles. They are one above the other. Sense the length of spine from shoulders to hips and then the length of leg from hips to ankles (Figure a). As you perform the movements on this page, it is important to keep the shoulders still while the hips move backward and forward. They remain directly above the ankles through out all of the motions on this page. b. Translate your hips backward (Figure b). Backward translation is a sliding directly backward as if you were sliding your hips across an imaginary table top. Stand with your back near a wall. Shift, slide, translate your hips backward reach for the wall behind you with your hips. c. Translate your hips forward. Stand facing a wall. Translate your hips forward toward the wall in front of you.

pelvic rotation = pelvic tilt in standing d. Tail out. Imagine you have a tail (Figure d). This imaginary tail is an extension of your tail bone and spine. Tilt your pelvis forward at the top to have your tail behind you like a cat or dog or kangaroo. This is anterior tiling or rotation of the pelvis. Return to neutral and then tilt again. Repeat several times. Rest. Notice what happens in your low back- what vertebrae allow this movement? How many vertebrae are moving during this pelvic rotation. Most people will initially use only the very low back to complete this motion. e. Tail under. Tuck your imaginary tail between your legs (Figure e). This is posterior tiling or rotation of the pelvis. Again observe which vertebrae in your back are moving. Repeat. rest.

pelvic translation & rotation f. Translate backward-tail out. Combine a backward translation and an anterior rotation of your pelvis (Figure f). Remember to keep your shoulders still and located directly above your ankles. Feel that you can use all of your back to do this. Feel the entire length of the back from your tail to your shoulders (Figure f). g. Translate forward-tail under. Combine a forward translation and posterior rotation of your pelvis (Figure g). Remember to keep your shoulders still and located directly above your ankles. Feel that you can use all of your back to do this. Feel the entire length of the back from your tail to your shoulders (Figure f). What happens between your shoulder blades? Combining the two motions allows more of your back to be involved in these motions. Pelvic tilt or rotation alone can be performed just in the low back which can contribute to strain. Learning to use the full length of your spine spreads the load and produces a simply easy motion.

page 13

pelvic movements6- pelvic translation & rotation in standing wall

b.

a.

c.

d.

a.

e.

wall

pelvic translation backward & forward

pelvic rotation backward & forward “tail out”

“tail under”

f.

g.

pelvic translation & rotation

page 14

Rib Cage = Thorax

Length of Spine

T1

T12

L5

Pelvis

TRUNK

TRUNK

trunk rotation1- double arm raise a. Lie on your right side. Place your arms out front at shoulder height, palm to palm (Figure a). b. Raise both arms. Lift your two arms from the floor a short distance (Figure b). Raise a comfortable distance. How do you do this? What happens at the shoulders and shoulder blades? What do you feel in your back and rib cage? Repeat several times. This action is more about the rotation of the body than action at the shoulders. c. Raise both arms some more. Continue to raise both arms and go as far as you can comfortably. You don't need to match the diagrams for range. Feel the motion of the rib cagethe rib cage behaves like a flexible spring rather than a rigid cage. Continue raising the two arms more and more. Feel the rotation in the trunk. What is the length of spine doing- i.e. the long vertebral axis from tail to head? What is the rib cage doing? What is the pelvis doing? These are the three structures of the trunk- the pelvis, length of spine and the thorax or rib cage. d. Rotate all of the body segments. With the hands palm to palm there is a constraint placed on the shoulder joints. The two arms and shoulders move as one unit. The arms are being moved in space from the trunk and not the shoulder joints. Many people will begin this motion using the shoulders and shoulder blades and no body movement- explore both ways of doing the movement, i.e. all shoulders and no body and then no shoulders and all body. The major intention of this movement is to make the trunk rotate to produce this motion.

The trunk = the 5th body segment: the pelvis, length of spine and thorax.

e-f. Trunk = pelvis, length of spine and thorax- the fifth body segment. The trunk is defined by the pelvis as the base, the length of spine (tail to head) and the thorax or rib cage. The trunk is the fifth body segment and a major focus of attention. The five body segments- trunk, 2 legs and 2 arms make up the skeletal scaffolding of the human body- this is the “True Core” of human anatomy and movement. Figures a-e illustrate trunk rotation using the double arm raise. page 17

trunk rotation1- double arm raise a.

b.

c.

d.

f. pelvis, length of spine as the trunk e. rotating the trunk

page 18

trunk rotation2- double leg raise a. Knees bent 45 degrees. Lie on your right side with the knees bent. Bring your feet under your hips and straighten your knees a little toward a 45 degree angle (Figure a). For knees at 90 degrees both your hips and knees would be at a 90 degree angle. b. Raise both knees. Raise both your knees from the floor keeping the feet on the floor and the knees together (Figure d). Continue and notice what happens in your hips, pelvis and spine? What happens in the rib cage? Observe the length of spine rotating along it axis. Rest. c. Raise both knees some more. Continue to raise your knees. Go as far as you can comfortably. Observe the movement of your pelvis relative to your head. What happens in between your head and pelvis- i.e. the trunk? Feel the rotation of the long axis of your spine from pelvis to head. Can you feel ribs moving? Keep the head still but not rigid. Rest. There is a constraint made by keeping two limbs glued together. In this case the hips are constrained so to lift your knees the trunk must do the work and not the hip. This is rotation of the trunk from the bottom up toward the top whereas raising the two arms, trunk rotation (double arm raise- previous page) was from the top down. Both actions require mobility in the rib cage. The rib cage is flexible from the top down as well as from the bottom up. In fact, many human functions require this bottom up flexibility of the thorax. Walking requires that the thorax rotates at the bottom allowing the pelvis and legs to make large movements without disturbing the freedom and stability of the head. Likewise, the thorax rotates in the opposite direction from the top down with the swing of the arm. This counter rotation of the trunk top to bottom is the one unique primary characteristic of human locomotion (Inman et al 1981). d. Raise one knee. Lift the top knee (left knee in the diagram) away from the underneath knee. Feel the motion of the hip. What happens to the pelvis and spine? Feel the rotation of the pelvis and spine.

page 19

trunk rotation2- double leg raise knees bent t o 450

a. knees bent to 45 degrees knees at 900

b.

c.

d.

page 20

trunk rotation3- double leg raise a. Knees at 90 degrees. Lie on your side. Bend the knees to a 90 degree angle as shown on opposite page Figure a and below.

knees at 900

b-c. Raise both from the floor a distance and then place them down again (Figure b). Raise the knees again a little further as comfortable (Figure c).

d. Knees at 45 degrees. From the previous page: Bring your feet under your hips and straighten your knees somewhat so that the knees are now bent to 45 degrees as shown on opposite page (Figure d and below).

knees at 450

e. Raise both knees. The straighter your knees and the more your feet are under your hips, the easier it is to raise your legs. Adjusting the angle of the knees and the position of the feet changes the leverage and effort in raising the knees. At 90 degrees raising the knees requires some effort however at 45 degrees and with the feet moved to be in line with the hips and spine, raising the knees becomes much lighter. Approaching zero degrees is even lighter and easier. Explore and feel the differences. Explore many angles between 90 and zero degrees. Feel the differences. Work only with what is comfortable for you.

page 21

trunk rotation3- double leg raise knees at 00

a. knees bent to 90 degrees

90

knees at 45

0

0

knees at 900

b. double leg raise, 0 knees at 90

c. double leg raise, 0 knees at 90

d. knees bent to 45 degrees 45

0

e. double leg raise, 0 knees at 45

page 22

trunk rotation4- double leg and arm raise a. Alternate arm & leg raise. Lie on your right side, knees bent to a 90 degree angle (or any angle 90 to 45 as comfortable). Once raise your two arms and then once raise your two legs (Figure a). Alternate between these two motions. Repeat several times. What happens to the middle of your spine? Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Rest. Alternating the motion of trunk rotation from the top down and then from the bottom up allows for a greater sense of the length of the spine and a connection from top to bottom. b. Alternate feet & knee raise. Once raise both feet and once raise both knees (Figure b). Alternate between these two motions. Repeat several times. What happens to the middle of your spine? Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Rest. Note: as shown in these figures, when raising both knees the movement can move all the way to the top of the spine but also the two hands can separate slightly. The constraint of keeping the palms together to encourage mainly trunk motion is a not a rigid demand. Allowing some give of the arms and hands will ensure full easy trunk motion and a more whole self action.

page 23

trunk rotation4- double leg and arm raise

a. alternate lift arms, lift knees

b. alternate lift feet, lift knees

page 24

trunk rotation5 - rotation and side bend a-b. Knees at 90 degrees knees at 900

a. Knees at 90 degrees Lie on your right side with your knees bent to 90 degrees as shown above and opposite (Figure a). b. Knees at 90, raise both feet = Trunk Side Bend (Figure b). What happens to your pelvis? Raising both feet toward the ceiling pivoting at the knees produces a side bend of the pelvis and low back. See also pages 43-44, trunk side bending on the side.

c-d. Knees at 45 degrees knees at 450

c. Knees at 45 degrees. Bring your feet under your hips and straighten your knees somewhat so that the knees are now bent to 45 degrees as above and opposite (Figure c). d. Knees at 45, raise both feet and roll them forward = Trunk Rotation (Figure d). Raising the feet like this produces a trunk forward rotation. Adjusting the angle of the knees and the position of the feet affects the resulting trunk motion. Knees at 90 degrees and raising the feet produces a side bending of the pelvis and low back. Whilst placing the knees at 45 degrees and with the feet moved to be in line with the hips and spine, raising the feet leads a forward pelvic rotation. Explore and feel the differences. Work only with what is comfortable for you.

page 25

trunk rotation5 - rotation and side bend a-b. knees at 90 degrees knees at 900

a. knees bent to 90 degrees

90

0

b. raise both feet toward the ceiling

c-d. knees at 45 degrees knees at 450

c. knees bent to 45 degrees d. raise both feet forward

page 26

trunk rotation6- counter rotation - “walking on your side” All motion in this series on this page has the knees bent to 45 degrees- see diagram below and see trunk rotation3 for more details. knees at 0

0

knees bent to 45

knees at 90

0

0

a. Raise both arms. Lie on your right side knees bent to 45 degrees (Figure a & below). Raise both arms (Figure a). Repeat several times. Rest. This is backward trunk rotation from the top. b. Raise both feet with your knees at 45 degrees to encourage a rotation of the forward pelvis and trunk (Figure b). Repeat several times. Rest. This is forward trunk rotation from the bottom. c. Raise both arms and feet simultaneously. Raise both arms and feet at the same time (Figure c). Repeat several times. Go gently and slowly. Make the motion smooth and easy. Rest. This is counter rotation of the trunk i.e. backward rotation from the top and forward rotation from the bottom. d. Push both arms into the floor as if you could rotate the arms and trunk in this direction (figure d). Feel what happens in your trunk. Is there a small amount of trunk rotation in the intended direction? Repeat several times. Rest. This is forward rotation of the trunk from the top. e. Lift both knees (Figure e). Repeat several times. Rest. This is backward trunk rotation from the bottom. f. Push both arms and raise both knees simultaneously (Figure f). Repeat several times. Go gently and slowly. Make the motion smooth and easy. Rest. Alternate, i.e. once raise both arms and feet (figure c) and once push both arms and raise both knees (Figure f). Continue to alternate the motions of Figure c and Figure f. Raising both arms and both feet simultaneously produces a counter rotation of the trunk, i.e. the top backward and bottom forward. Similarly, pushing the arms is a forward rotation of the top of the trunk whilst raising both knees is a backward rotation of the trunk. Again this is counter rotation. Trunk counter rotation is a feature of human walking hence this page is an exercise in 'walking on your side'.

page 27

trunk rotation6- counter rotation - “walking on your side” a. raise both arms, knees at 450

knees at 45

0

b. raise both feet

c. raise both arms and feet

d. push both arms into the floor

e. lift both knees

f. push arms and lift knees

page 28

trunk rotation7 - crossed legs and tilt a. Cross left leg over right. Lie on the floor on your back with your left leg crossed over the right so that the back of your left knee rests on your right thigh (Figure a). b. Tilt both knees to the left a little and return to the middle (Figure b). What does the pelvis and lumbar spine do? Is there any movement in the rib cage? What happens to your head? Repeat several times to a comfortable limit of rotation. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Raise both arms toward the ceiling palm to palm (Figure c). Maintain this triangular shape of the arms. d. Tilt both arms to the right (Figure d). Think of raising the left shoulder blade from the floor and rolling onto the right shoulder blade. The intended action is rotation of the trunk and not of the shoulders blades or shoulders- in this exercise they come along for the ride by the action of the trunk. What do you feel in the rib cage? Follow the contact of the back of yourself across the floor as you tilt the arms. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. e. Raise head. Again cross your legs and tilt them to the left. Remain with the legs tilted to the left and bring your interlaced hands behind your head (Figure e). Raise your head from the floor with your hands to look at your right hip (Figure e). What do you feel in the front and back of yourself? What happens in your low back and pelvis? What does the spine and ribs do? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Repeat all of the above with the right leg crossed over the left. This is a classic Feldenkrais Awareness Through Movement lesson from Moshe Feldenkrais's book “Awareness Through Movement” (Feldenkrais 1972).

page 29

trunk rotation7 - crossed legs and tilt- ‘Classic Trunk Rotation’

a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

page 30

trunk rotation8 - trunk and head rotation a. Knees bent. Lie on your back with knees bent and feet apart (Figure a). b. Tilt both knees to the right and roll your head to the left (Figure b). c. Tilt the knees to the left and roll the head to the right. Feel the motion of the pelvis, spine and thorax. Sense the length of spine or the axis of your trunk. Sense the connection from pelvis to head. The significant aspect of this exercise is to feel what happens between the pelvis and head. Turning the head involves all 24 elements or vertebrae of the spine and not just the seven cervical vertebrae as commonly mistaken.

page 31

trunk rotation8 - trunk and head rotation a.

b.

c.

page 32

trunk rotation9- counter rotation - “walking on your back” a. Raise right shoulder. Lie on your back, legs straight (Figure a). Raise your right shoulder and shoulder blade from the floor. Repeat several times. Notice the front of yourself- what happens to the chest bone and ribs? Rest. b. Raise left hip. Raise your left hip from the floor (Figure b). Repeat several times. Rest. c. Raise shoulder and hip together. Raise the right shoulder and left hip simultaneously (Figure c). Repeat several times. Notice how the two movements meet or connect in the middle of yourself. Rest. d. Push right shoulder. Push your right shoulder blade into the floor (Figure d). Think of squashing an object between your shoulder blade and the floor. Notice the movement of your spine and ribs. Repeat several times. Rest. e. Push left hip. Push your left hip into the floor (Figure e). Again think of squashing an object that rests between your hip and the floor. Feel your spine. Rest. f. Push shoulder and push hip together. Push your right shoulder and left hip simultaneously into the floor (Figure f). There are many variations. Once push your shoulder and hip and once raise your shoulder and hip. Alternate between pushing and raising. Repeat these motions with the opposite shoulder and hip, i.e. raise your left shoulder a few times. Raise your right hip a few times. Raise them together. Alternate, once push with the right shoulder and left hip, once lift the right shoulder and left hip, once push the left shoulder and right hip and once lift the left shoulder and right hip. Push and lifting the hip and shoulder like this produces trunk rotation. Alternating shoulder and hip right and left produces counter rotation. This motion sequence is “walking on your back”.

page 33

trunk rotation9- counter rotation - “walking on your back”

raise shoulder

raise hip

a.

b.

raise shoulder & hip c.

push hip d.

push shoulder

e.

push shoulder & hip

f.

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trunk rotation10 - roll back to front a. Hands & knees up. Begin on your back with knees and elbows bent in front of you (Figure a). b. Roll knees to right. Roll to your right a little and back (Figure b). Continue to explore rolling to the right more and more (Figure c-d). Bring your left knee over the right knee while at the same time bringing your right elbow to the floor and above your head. Repeat several times. Rest. c-d. Roll knees, arms and body onto right side. Continue to roll all the way to your side and back (Figure c-d). e-f. Roll to your front. Continue to roll all the way to your front (Figure e-f). Your elbows and knees should not make contact with the floor, if possible. Reverse the entire sequence to return to your back. Roll from your back to front several times without the knees or elbows touching the floor (Figure e-f). Repeat several times. Rest. This is one of the first movements that we accomplish in life.

page 35

trunk rotation10 - roll back to front a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

f.

page 36

trunk rotation11- leg tilt prone1 a. Tilt leg side to side. Begin by lying on your stomach. Place your right hand on your left. Brings both hands under your face. Turn your head to the right and rest your left cheek on your hands. Bend your left leg to 90 degrees as shown (Figure a). Tilt your left leg to the left and to the right. Observe motion at the hip joint. Observe motion of the pelvis and spine if any. Repeat several times. How does this feel? Try the other leg and compare. Rest. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. b. Tilt two legs to side. Bend both legs keeping the knees apart a distance (Figure b). Tilt both legs to the left and back to the middle only. Keep both thighs on the floor (see two arrows and markers showing that both knees and thighs remain on the floor). Observe the motion of the thighs, hip joint, pelvis and spine. How many vertebrae are moving when you do this? Can you feel any motion in your rib cage? Repeat several times. Rest. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Tilt two legs together to side. Bend both legs and bring your knees and ankles together (Figure c). Imagine that the legs are tied together at the knees and ankles. Tilt both legs to the left. As you tilt the legs allow the right thigh to stay with the left so it will rise from the floor glued to the left thigh. Only the left thigh remains on the floor (Figure c). Feel the movement of your thighs, hips, pelvis and spine now. What can you feel in your neck? What can you feel of the front of the rib cage? Do some ribs raise from the floor or push into the floor? Repeat several times. Rest. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. This motion requires some strength and mobility. Find the easiest way to do this. Don't strain. If it is a strain then go small and slow or not at all. In this motion the spine in this movement acts as one long unit pelvis to head.

The Spine acts as one Functional Unit from Head to Tail and Tail to Head. d. Tilt two legs to side and raise head. Place you right hand on the floor under your shoulder as if you were about to do a push up (Figure d). Tilt both your legs to the left keeping them together as in Figure c. Tilt the legs, push with the right arm and hand and raise your head to look over your shoulder. Repeat several times. Rest. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Repeat to the other side. page 37

trunk rotation11- leg tilt prone1 a. b.

c.

d.

page 38

trunk rotation12 - leg tilt prone2 a. Legs bent, hands like a push up. This lesson immediately follows the previous page. Begin with both hands on the floor as if to do a push up and have your legs bent (Figure a). b. Tilt legs to side, push with hands & arms. Tilt the legs to the left and push with both arms (Figure b). Continue gently several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Tilt to side, bring right hand from the floor. Continue the motion again gradually moving further and further to the left and begin to allow your right hand to come away from the floor (Figure c). Hint: To raise your right hand from the floor your left elbow will likely be straight. Your left leg moves over the top of the right and extends behind you pulling you up away from the floor (Figure b-d). Hint: Go a little quicker and find the lightest way to do this. It becomes very easy and fun. The legs and pelvis tilting and dropping to the left is what lifts your head from the floor- like a seesaw affect. Don't strain. d. Come to sit. Eventually you maybe able to sit on the floor with only your left hand or no hand on the floor (Figure d). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Repeat to the opposite side. Alternate sides. Once tilt and sit up to the left and return through the middle to the right. Go side to side like this. Speed up the motion. Make it light and quick.

page 39

trunk rotation12 - leg tilt prone2 a.

b.

c.

d.

page 40

trunk rotation13 - roll to sit a. Slide arm. Lie on your back. Slide your left arm to the side across the floor a distance and back (Figure a). Repeat several times. Rest. b. Slide arm, bent leg. Roll and slide your left leg to the side (Figure b). Repeat and combine the leg roll and slide with the sliding of the left arm (Figure b). Repeat several times. Rest. c-d. Slide arm, bent leg and roll to side. Continue this motion of sliding the left arm and rolling the left leg and begin to raise your right shoulder from the floor to roll toward your left side (Figure c-d). Repeat and rest. e. Raise head an arm from floor. Continue to slide and roll the arm and leg and roll onto your left side. Bring your right hand to the floor and raise your head from the floor and slide your left arm toward your shoulder (Figure e). Repeat and rest. f-g. Raise body from floor. Gradually bring the head further from the floor until your left hand slides to be under or near your left shoulder (Figure f-g). e. Come to sit. Eventually come all the way to sit up with one or both hands away from the floor (Figure h).

page 41

trunk rotation13 - roll to sit a.

b.

c.

d.

e. f.

g. h.

page 42

trunk side bending on the side Lie on your right side. Support your head with a pillow or rolled towels or with your right hand (not shown). The head should lie parallel to the floor and not be excessively bent downwards. Make sure you are very much on your right side so that your left shoulder is directly vertically above your right shoulder. Your legs are bent with the knees bent to a 90 degree angle and the same for your hip joints. a. Raise head. Raise your head from the floor a little (Figure a). Feel the effort in your neck. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. b. Raise head and arm. Bring your left hand over the top of your head so that the finger tips of your left hand come to touch the top of your right ear. NB: over the top of the head is not behind the head (See figure b). Raise your head from the floor with your hand supporting the head like this. Notice what happens in the neck and rib cage. Make sure you stay in the frontal planehence no forward or backward movement of the head. Think of your left ear moving toward your left hip. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Raise feet. Raise both feet from the floor while the knees remain on the floor (Figure c). Feel what happens at the hips, pelvis and lower back as you raise your feet. Your head stays on the floor. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. d. Raise head & feet. Raise the head and your feet together at the same time (Figure d). Notice the movement of the rib cage, spine, pelvis and the whole length of the spine from pelvis to head. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. e. Raise head. Now again raise your head alone without the supporting hand or the feet (Figure e). Notice how many vertebrae now contribute to lifting the head. Raising the head using only the neck muscles and joints is very stressful on those structures (Figure a). Raising the head with the hand encourages the upper and mid back vertebrae (i.e. the thorax) to contribute to the action and support the head and neck (Figure b). Raising the feet and the head adds in the action of the low back and pelvis to the upper body movement (Figure d). Raising the head using all 24 vertebrae of the spine along with the rib cage and pelvis provides an even spread of the load along the whole length of the spine.

The Head is Supported & Moved by 24 Vertebrae, the Pelvis and Legs.

page 43

trunk side bending on the side a. lifting the head with only the neck is neck strain

b. the forgotten torso moves & assists lifting the head

c. the pelvis & low back = the base & power

d. using it all - the pelvis chest and head

e. using the whole spine, this is no neck strain

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trunk side bending in supine1 - “Frog Side Bend” a. Hands behind head, soles of feet together. Lie on your back with hands clasped together behind your head and soles of your feet together in a “frog” leg like pose (Figure a). b. Slide head. Slide your head, shoulders and elbows to the right and back (Figure b). Observe what happens to the spine along its length. Observe the length of your sides. What happens to the ribs on the left and right sides? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Slide feet. Slide both feet together to the right (Figure c). Notice the motion of the hips and the pelvis. Think of your waist on the right coming up towards the right shoulder. The contraction and effort is along the right side of your trunk. With the soles of the feet together, the hip joints become constrained and hence inviting the pelvis and trunk to do the work. Some people can be very flexible in the hips and still perform the motion with the hip joints. Try both ways- allow the hips to be constrained and encourage the pelvis and back to move. Try also using just the hip joints to slide your feet. d. Slide head and feet. Do both motions simultaneously, i.e. as you slide your head and shoulders to the right, slide the feet to the right also (Figure d). Go gently and smoothly. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Repeat the same process to the other side.

page 45

trunk side bending in supine1 - “Frog Side Bend”

a. b.

c. d.

page 46

trunk side bending in supine2- ‘the Rib Cage as a Spring’ a. Rib cage as a spring. On this page we examine the motion from the previous page. The opening and closing concertina effect of the rib cage with side bending in supine is the clearest example of the rib cage behaving as a spring like structure (Figure a).

the Rib Cage or Thorax behaves like a hooped “Spring” Obviously, rib cage anatomy is not exactly like a spring i.e. there are no spiraling rungs like a true spring. The rib cage anatomy is a series of hoops- each pair of ribs right and left can be considered as a hoop with each hoop linked by musculature and the spine. Rib cage motion behavior of opening and closing and lengthening and shortening of the sides of the rib cage during this motion is very much like how a spring, hooped or otherwise would behave. It is a useful illustrative model of rib cage motion for all planes of movement. Unfortunately the title rib “cage” invokes the concept of a rigid non moving structure whereas the spring freely invites movement in any planes. There are at least three functions for the Thorax: 1. The Protective Function of the rib cage (protecting internal organs namely the heart and lungs) especially has led to an image of rigidity for the thorax. 2. Thorax movement is a vital part of Respiration. It is not possible to breath with a completely rigid thorax. 3. The thorax is a key part of trunk motion- a forgotten link in trunk motion as most of this book clearly illustrates, as does the scientific and medical literature (Buchalter et al 1988, Stokes et al 1989, Willems et al, 1996, Chan et al 2006, Burgess et al 2009- for a more complete review see Burgess 2007). However, despite this, the rib cage is most frequently viewed as a rigid structure in medicine, physical therapy and recreational training. page 47

trunk side bending in supine2- ‘the Rib Cage as a Spring’

a.

page 48

trunk side bending in supine3 a. Slide to the right. Continued from the previous pages- Slide your head, elbows to the right whilst simultaneously sliding your legs also to the right and then return to neutral(Figure a). b. Slide to the left. Slide your head, elbows and rib cage to the left whilst simultaneously sliding your legs also to the left (Figure b). a-b. Slide right to left. Slide the head and feet once to the right, then once to the left several times (Figure a-b). c. Slower and smaller. Slide side to side. With each repetition reduce the amplitude of the motion until eventually there is little or no movement (Figure c). Continue smaller and smaller until you only “take up the slack” i.e. there is little or no movement but rather a muscular contraction for the very beginning of the movement. The ability to contract along the length of one side of the body and then switch to the other side alternately is reminiscent of the fish and crocodile's ability to sequentially alternate contractions along either side of the body to produce locomotion (Grillner 1998). Side bending is still a significant part of human locomotion (Inman et al 1981; Chan et al 2006) and human motion in general. The greater the control of a small amplitude action, the greater the control of the larger more powerful motion. For the brain, a larger movement is a scaled up version of the smaller movement, e.g., like a dimmer switch or volume control.

Large movements are scaled up small movements. Learn small before big.

Bernstein (1967) proposed that the brain controls sets of muscles and bones performing actions or synergies rather than controlling individual muscles. Reason? to minimize the amount of brain power required to control motion. Synergies are the basics of vertebrate motor control (Berthoz 2002). It has even been found in frogs at least that these synergies can be summated. A few basic “motor primitives” can be manipulated to create an entire repertoire of motor abilities (Mussa-Ivaldi & Bizzi 2000). No need to think about muscles when learning movement skills- instead think skeletally, think patterns, think actions, think synergies.

The Brain controls Synergies for Action not musclesForget Muscles. page 49

trunk side bending in supine3 a.

b.

c.

smaller & slower smaller & slower smaller & slower

page 50

trunk side bending in supine4 a-b. Side bend to left. Begin as for “trunk side bending in supine1” (previous pages); slide the head and feet to the left (Figure a-b). c-d. Roll to left side. Repeat a-b: Stay side bent to the left. While side bent to the left, bring your right elbow over toward the left elbow and at the same time bring your right knee toward the left knee to then roll all the way onto your side (Figure c). Gently explore this motion until you eventually can roll all the way onto your left side easily and smoothly (Figure d). Repeat until you can make it one movement from the back to the your side, a-d - i.e. side bend and roll in one coordinated action of side bend followed smoothly by rolling onto your side. d-f. Uncurl to back. Do the exact reverse to return from lying on your side all the way back to lying on your back. a-f-a. Repeat the motion as one smooth complete movement from ‘a’ to ‘f’ and back to ‘a’ without stopping. Repeat several times.

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trunk side bending in supine4 b. slide to left

c. roll to left

d. complete roll to left

a. start in neutral

e. reverse roll from left f. slide back to neutral

page 52

trunk rotation and side bend a. Legs crossed left over right. Lie on your back and cross your left leg over the right (Figure a). Make sure the legs are fully crossed. b. Tilt legs to left. Tilt both legs to the left a little at a time (Figure b). Continue until you find a comfortable limit (Figure b). Follow the contact of the back of the pelvis with the floor. What do you sense along the spine and ribs? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Slide head to right. Bring your hands behind your head while keeping your legs crossed (Figure c). Slide your head, shoulders and elbows to the right (Figure c). Notice what happens to the length of your sides. What happens to the ribs on the right side? Left side? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. d. Tilt legs to left, slide head to right. Cross your legs and bring both hands behind your head. Perform both of the above movements simultaneously (Figure d). Hence as the legs tilt to the left, the head slides to the right. Go gently and smaller than before. The combined movement will likely be more difficult than when performed individually. Avoid trying hard or pushing the movement. Tilting the legs to the left is trunk rotation to the left. Sliding the head to the right is trunk side bend to the right. Combining the two motions is trunk rotation to the left from the bottom up and sliding the head to the right is trunk side bend to the right from the top down. Generally, all movement can be decomposed into a combination of the basic sets of trunk movement as defined by the Cartesian planes i.e. flexion-extension, rotation and side bend.

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trunk rotation and side bend a. cross legs, hands behind head

b. drop knees to side

c. slide head and shoulders to side d. drop knees and slide head

page 54

trunk flexion a. Right hand to left knee, left hand behind head. Lie on your back with knees bent. Bring your right hand to your left knee and bring your left knee to your right hand. Place your left hand behind your head (Figure a). b-c. Knee to elbow, elbow to knee. Gently, bring your left elbow toward your left knee and your left knee toward your left elbow (Figure b-c). What happens along the front and back of your self? What happens to the pelvis and low back? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. d-e. Swap hands, i.e. bring your left hand to your left knee and right hand behind your head (Figure d). Again bring the knee to the elbow and elbow to the knee and notice what is going on between your elbow and knee (Figure d-e). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. f. Rocking in a flexion: knee to elbow and elbow to knee. Stop the motion with your elbow and knee close to each other (Figure f). Maintain this position and roll forward and backward on your spine so that as the head goes down the pelvis comes up and vice versa. With the elbow and knee toward each other the back is rounded somewhat like a rocking chair. Lower your head by pushing with your right foot and leg. The pelvis rolls simultaneously with the head. Then release the push with the leg to let your head come back up and the pelvis to lower. Repeat with the right hand to the left knee and left hand behind the head. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Repeat all of these motions with the right knee up and left knee down (Mirror of Figure a).

page 55

trunk flexion a.

c.

b.

d.

e. f. rocking- head up-tail down, head down-tail up

page 56

trunk flexion and roll This page follows the previous page “trunk flexion in supine”. a. Left hand to knee, right behind head. Left hand to left knee, right hand behind the head (Figure a). b. Elbow to knee, knee to elbow. Bring your right elbow toward your left knee and left knee toward left elbow (Figure b). Remain with the elbow and knee approximated. c. Roll to left. Roll your body a little to the left and back (Figure c). Continue again a little further and further. d. Roll onto left side. Explore rolling to a “falling point” and or all the way onto your left side (Figure d). Can you roll all the way to the floor and back easily or do you fall? Continue several times. Rest. Do the same to the other side, i.e. right hand behind head, left hand to right knee and roll to the right.

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trunk flexion and roll

a.

b.

c.

d.

page 58

trunk extension1 a. Lie on your front. Lie on your front with your chin on the floor near your hands (Figure a). b. Raise your head to gaze at the horizon. Lift your head from the floor to see the horizon (Figure b). Notice what happens along the front and back of your self. To do this think of the head being at the end of the whole length of the spine and find a way to use all of the spine, especially between your shoulder blades (Figure b). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Raise your pelvis. Begin as in Figure a. Lift your pelvis from the floor directly upwards toward the ceiling (Figure c). What happens in your hips, spine and rib cage? What happens in your neck? We don't usually think of movement of the spine from the pelvis toward the head, usually it is the other way round i.e. head and trunk on the pelvis. Rest. d. Raise head & pelvis together. Lift the head and pelvis at the same time (Figure d). Go slowly. This will be a smaller movement than either of these motions done alone as in Figure b & c. Where does your back extend? e. Raise your head, push with your arms. Lie on your front. Bring your hands under your shoulders as if your were about to do a push up. Look up, push with your arms and arch your back (Figure e). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Notice what structures are moving. What can you feel of your neck, upper back, low back and pelvis? Are all or some moving? f. Raise your head, push with your arms. Begin by looking up with the eyes, then deliberately make your neck move next and then your upper back and then your low back and then your pelvis (Figure f). This is one variation and a way to identify the many structures than can be involved in extension of the trunk. Repeat again but have all motions beginning at the same time, hence as you begin to look up your pelvis rotates backward and your whole spine arches backward. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor.

There are no right or wrong ways. Know 3 or 4 ways to do the same thing. This is Agility and Flexibility of Action and Being.

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trunk extension1 a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

f.

page 60

trunk extension2 a. Push with arm, look over your right shoulder. Lie on your front. Turn your head to the right and place your right hand on the floor near your right shoulder with the elbow toward the ceiling as if you were about to do a push up (Figure a). Your left arm is down by your side and it remains resting through out this process. Raise your head to look over your right shoulder and toward your left heel (Figure a). You don't have to “achieve” the task of actually being able to see the heel, instead go a distance in the direction of intention. Repeat several times. Continue and notice what you feel between your shoulder blades and along the length of your spine. What happens to your pelvis and left leg? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. b. 100% arm action. Again place your right hand on the floor near your right shoulder. This time when you lift and look over your shoulder imagine that your trunk is paralyzed so 100 percent of the effort must come from pushing with your right arm (shaded) (Figure b). Try this 3 or 4 times and feel the effort required by the arm do accomplish this task alone. Rest. c. 100% trunk action. Imagine that the arm is paralyzed and 100 percent of the effort to raise the head, comes from the trunk (shaded) (Figure c). Hence as you lift your head, lift the right hand from the floor at the same time (Figure c). Again just 3 or 4 times to feel the effort required. Rest. d. The arm steers trunk. Repeat this motion again and explore variable percent efforts between the arm and trunk like 50-50, 40-60 or maybe 20-80, arm-trunk ratio. Maybe, you might begin to feel that the trunk does the work and the arm steers the motion (Figure d). Find the most comfortable and efficient way to get the job done while avoiding strain. The arm is frequently viewed and used as a structure that moves from the shoulder only like the way a child's Teddy Bear's arm moves at the shoulder. It is a very mobile joint and it is easy to see a lot of action at the arm-trunk junction. However the major effort and motion in arm action actually comes from the trunk. This increases the range and power of arm action and minimizes strain at the shoulder. The ability to differentiate and determine what and how a movement or action occurs is the basis for a FeldenkraisAxiom (Feldenkrais 1981, p70):

“When you know how you do it you can do what you want”

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trunk extension2

a. lift head, push with the arm

b. push with arm, 100% arm, 0% trunk = over powerful over stressed arm

c. raise hand and arm, 100% trunk, 0% arm = no arm action

d. use arm and trunk, 60-80% trunk, 20-40% arm = the arm steers a powerful trunk

page 62

ARM & TRUNK

arm-trunk coordination1 - arm reach in side lying a. Lie on your right side. Place your two arms straight out in front at shoulder height with palm to palm (Figure a). b. Reach straight out front. Slide the left hand and arm forward beyond the right (Figure b). The line of motion is in line with the line of the arms (Figure b). Notice what happens at the shoulder joint, shoulder blade, rib cage and spine. Allow your chest bone to roll towards the floor to bring your thorax into the motion. Allow your pelvis and knees to move a little to encourage the pelvis and low back to contribute. In the beginning many people use only the shoulder blade sliding on the thorax to reach with the arm. Such an action has the thorax and pelvis inhibited and the shoulder joint and shoulder blade are over worked. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Reach upward. Place both arms pointing in a direction above the head a distance at a comfortable angle (Figure c) (the dotted lines indicate the original position as in Figure a). Slide the left hand forward beyond the right. Notice what happens at the shoulder joint, shoulder blade, rib cage and the length of the spine. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. d. Reach downward. Place both arms at an angle pointing downward toward your knees (Figure d). Slide your left hand forward beyond the right along this line. Notice what happens at the shoulder joint, shoulder blade, rib cage and the length of the spine. How does the rib cage move? Does your pelvis move? Lie on your left side. Repeat all movement above.

Reaching is a function of the whole self: arm, shoulder, trunk, legs and the self.

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arm-trunk coordination1 - arm reach in side lying

a.

b.

c.

d.

page 66

anatomy of arm reach in side lying Reaching with the arm and trunk is one of the most basic human functions. Reaching whether standing, sitting, lying down or on all fours is all the same basic action of arm and trunk motion. Motor control of reaching originated from fore limb stepping of the vertebrate quadruped (Georgeoploulos & Grillner 1989). That is, during evolution from the four legged on all fours quadruped animal to a bipedal human gait on two legs, that part of the brain that previously controlled the action of the front legs for walking, scratching and digging now controlled the arm action of reach and grasp. Same brain similar action, new orientation and skill. The reaching of the arm forward like this involves the trunk. In fact, if you think about it, there is no arm reaching per se, i.e. the arm can't change its length in this reaching task. It is the trunk that rotates and side bends to allow reaching of the arm- this is basic arm-trunk coordination. For many people however, reaching is reduced to shoulder blade and upper back motion with no action from the middle and lower trunk. a-b. Reaching straight out in front. Reaching straight in front involves a rotation and side bend of the trunk. The shoulder joint and shoulder blade contribute but the base and power of the action comes from the trunk- thorax, spine, pelvis and legs. c. Reaching upwards. Reaching slight upwards involves a lengthening of the trunk. The side bending component of the motion is a side bend to the left allowing a lengthening of the right side. Can you feel this? d. Reaching downward past the knees involves side bend of the spine also but this time it is a shortening of the spine. Side bend is to the right to shorten the right side. Also notice the force along the length of the spine- there is a downward force through each vertebrae. This motion especially, connects arm action the spine. Feel the difference along the spine between reaching downward versus reaching upward.

Reaching = Trunk Rotation and Side Bend.

page 67

anatomy of arm reach in side lying a. arm reach = trunk rotation

b. arm reach = side bend or lengthening of the side

c. reach upward = lengthening the spine

d. reach down by the knees = shortening the spine

page 68

arm-trunk coordination2 - arm & knee reach a. Reach with the arm. Lie on your right side. Place your arm at shoulder height palm to palm. Slide your left hand forward beyond the right as for arm coordination1 (Figure a). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. b. Reach with the knee/leg. Lie on your right side again in the same configuration. Now reach with your left knee forward beyond the right (Figure b). It is a smaller motion than the arm. It is a movement of the thigh and hip. The right leg does not move and the feet stay together. Notice what happens in your left and right hip joints, pelvis, lumbar spine and thorax. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Slide the arm backward. Lie on your right side again in the same configuration. This time slide the left arm so that the shoulder moves backward and the left hand slides towards the right elbow along the wrist and forearm of the right arm (Figure c). Notice what happens to the shoulder blade, rib cage and spine. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. d. Slide the knee/leg backward. Slide the left knee backward several times (Figure d). There are many variations. Alternate. Once the arm reaches forward and then backward (Figure a then c). Once the knee reaches forward and then backward (Figure b then d). e. Slide arm backward and leg forward. As your left arm slides backward, the left knee slides forward (Figure e). f. Slide arm forward and leg backward. As your left arm reaches forward your left knee slides backward (Figure f). e-f. Repeat these motions alternately. Once slide the knee forward and arm backward as in Figure e then once slide the arm forward and knee backward as in Figure f. Continue repeating e then f, f then e. Notice what happens to your trunk as the arm and knee slide alternately like this. With the arm reaching forward the upper half of the trunk rotates forward. At the same time, as the knee slide backward the lower half of the trunk rotates backward. Hence the trunk is performing two motions at once, a forward and backward rotation. This simultaneously opposing motion of the trunk is known as counter rotation. It is one major determining characteristic of human locomotion (Inman et al 1981).

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arm-trunk coordination2 - arm & knee reach a. slide arm forward b. slide knee forward

c. slide arm back d. slide knee back

e. slide arm back & knee forward f. slide arm forward & knee back

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arm-trunk coordination3 - windmill a. Lie on your right side, with your arms out straight in front (Figure a). b-c. Raise your left arm upward = arm-trunk coordination. Raise your left hand upward away from the right hand toward the ceiling (Figure b). Continue several times exploring how far and how easy you can do this motion (Figure a-c). It is not important how far back the arm goes. Do what is comfortable. Notice the motion of the shoulder blade, the rib cage and the trunk. Notice the length of the spine and how it may move. Think of the line of the arm and the line of the trunk and how they interact and intersect (Figure a-c). Let the head roll and watch the left hand. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. d. Variations: arm alone, no trunk. Do this same motion of the arm but keep your eyes looking to the right hand and prevent your head and chest from moving (Figure d). Repeat several times. Notice what happens to the chest and the length of the spine. Now allow your eyes to follow the left hand as in Figure c. Notice what happens to the chest and the length of the spine. What is the difference between these two variations of the same thing? In the example above, the movement of the eyes determines the involvement of the trunk in the motion. With the eyes looking to the right hand while the left arm swings behind you, trunk motion is inhibited and mostly the shoulder blade and shoulder does all of the work (Figure d). When the eyes are allowed to follow the left arm then the trunk also follows and contributes to bringing the arm behind you (Figure c). This is another basic arm-trunk coordination action. Traditionally, medicine and biomechanics are regional only such that arm and shoulder biomechanics and function are treated separately from the trunk (Nordin and Frankel 2004), however in life and in FM, movement involves the whole self (Feldenkrais 1972; Mulder 1991; Winter 1995). e. Hands behind head. Repeat the motion above and then remain with your left hand to the left and with your trunk rotated to the left (Figure c). Bring both hands behind your head with fingers interlaced (Figure e). f. Raise your head. Raise your head from the floor, enough to view your left hip (Figure f). Notice the movement of your pelvis, low back, middle back, chest and notice the contraction of the abdominal muscles. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor.

Movement in Life involves the Whole Self.

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arm-trunk coordination3 - windmill a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

f.

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arm-trunk coordination4 - windmill reach a. Raise arm upward and behind. Begin as for arm-coordination3- windmill (previous page). Bring your left arm upward and behind you to reach the floor (Figure a). If you can't rest your left arm on the floor, place a pillow or pillows under the arm to support it. b. Reach left arm to the left. In this position with the two arms hand to hand forming one long line or yoke, slide the left hand toward the left. The right hand follows the left, i.e. both hands and arms slide or translate the same distance to the left. The head can roll a little to watch the left hand slide. Observe the upper back, it too slides or translates and also rotates a little- see arrows on the diagram. Notice how the ribs move. What happens along the length of your spine? Is the pelvis and low back involved? Repeat several times from the neutral starting position and sliding to the left. c. Reach right arm to the right. Repeat in the other direction- slide both arms to the right. Again observe the upper back motions. b-c. Alternate, reach to the left, reach to the right. Repeat these motions, once to the left, once to the right.

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arm-trunk coordination4 - windmill reach a.

b.

c.

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arm-trunk coordination5 - egyptian reach This page is a variation on the previous page of the windmill reach and is best performed after completing arm-trunk coordination3 and 4. a. Lie half on right side, reach with right arm. You are lying half on your back and half on your right side. This position can be arrived at from the previous page arm-trunk coordination4windmill reach. You can also position this way by first lying on your right side and then bring your left shoulder blade to the floor behind you. Both arms are down by the sides respectively (Figure a). Reach with the right hand a distance along the length of the arm (Figure a). Feel what happens at the shoulder, shoulder blade and spine. How does the upper back move? What can you feel along the length of your spine? Feel the pull on your spine. b. Reach with left arm. Reach downward with the left arm in this same position (Figure b). Feel the effect on the spine and ribs. c. Reach down with left & right arm. Leave the left arm down by your side and bring the right arm to be above shoulder level (Figure c). Reach with the left arm to the left. Allow this reach with the left arm to also pull on the right arm. Repeat several times. d. Reach upward with left & right arm. Reach with the right arm to the right as in Figure d. Repeat. Now reach once to the right (Figure d) and once to the left (Figure c). Repeat, alternately right and left several times. Rest. e. Reach arms apart. Slide the left arm to the left and the right arm to the right. That is, each arm slides in the opposite direction as if to stretch the shoulders and upper back apart. f. Reach arms apart. Figure f illustrates another variation. This time the right arm is down by your side and the left arm above shoulder height. Repeat steps c to e. Slide both arms to the left and then slide both arms to the right. Finally, slide both arms opposite to each other.

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arm-trunk coordination5 - egyptian reach a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

f.

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arm-trunk coordination6 - piston a. Lie on your right side (Figure a). b. Raise your left hand upward away from the right hand toward the ceiling to bring the arm pointing directly upward toward the ceiling- i.e. it is vertically aligned (Figure b). c. Reach vertically to ceiling. With the arm pointing vertically, reach the left arm upward toward the ceiling (Figure c). Notice what happens to your trunk to do this. Arm action and trunk action are related. What does the trunk do with this arm reaching? d. Bring shoulder down to floor. From the elevated reach to the ceiling in Figure c, now bring the shoulder and arm back down. Continue to bring the arm down, such that your left shoulder blade reaches the floor. Be sure to keep your left arm vertically aligned all of the time. c-d. Repeat this motion with the arm raising and lowering along this vertical axis and the trunk rolling left and right. The arm slides up and down along the same vertical line, there is no forward or backward movement of the arm. The arm-trunk coordination is like a piston action, the trunk rolls back and forth driving the arm up and down. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor.

The Arms are Powered by the Trunk.

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arm-trunk coordination6 - piston a.

b. swing arm to vertical position

c. reach to ceiling

d. drop shoulder to floor

page 78

arm-trunk coordination7- arm clock a. Slide from 3 to 6 o'clock. Lie on your right side with your arms out in front palm to palm. Slide your left arm down toward the knees and back several times (Figure a). Imagine that you are lying on a clock face as in Figure e. Sliding the left arm toward the knees and back is sliding from 3 to 6 o'clock on your imaginary clock. What do you feel in your shoulder, shoulder blade and rib cage? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. b. Slide from 3 to 12 o'clock i.e. slide the left arm upward away from the right arm toward being overhead - from 3 to 12 o’clock (Figure b). Observe what you feel in the spine between your shoulder blades. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Slide from 9 to 6 o'clock. Bring your left arm to the floor behind you (Figure c). In this position, slide the left arm from 9 to 6 o'clock i.e. from shoulder height to the hips (Figure c). What happens in the upper back and along your left side? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. d. Slide from 9 to 3 o'clock. Starting on your right side, slide the left arm from 3 to 9 through 12 o'clock and back again (Figure d). Notice what you do with the hand and arm to allow this motion and keep the hand on the floor. You may roll the palm from palm down to palm up Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. e. Full arm clock. Finally, take the arm around the entire circle rotating several times clockwise and then anticlockwise. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Repeat these motions with the right arm while lying on left side.

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arm-trunk coordination7- arm clock a.

b.

c.

d.

e. 9

6 12

3 page 80

arm-trunk coordination8-arm reach to ceiling a. On your back, arm vertically aligned. Lie on your back with your right leg bent and your right arm standing vertically toward the ceiling. The left leg and arm lay on the floor (Figure a). b. Reach arm to ceiling. Raise your right shoulder blade from the floor, roll onto the left shoulder blade and reach the right hand toward the ceiling (Figure b). Begin small and explore this reaching. Notice what happens along your spine. What happens to the rib cage along your back on the right? on the left? What happens across the front of your self? What does the pelvis and hips do? Rest. c. Push with right foot & leg. Continue this motion and begin to push with your right foot into the ground to assist with the reach (Figure c). Continue and push some more with the right foot and leg to lift the right hip from the ground and roll onto the left hip. Find a timing between the reaching of with the arm and the pushing with the foot and leg. Repeat several times. Rest. d. Roll onto your left side. Continue the motion until you lie fully on your left side. The right knee remains quite still and vertically aligned- feel what this constraint means to the right hip joint (Figure d). Rest.

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arm-trunk coordination8-arm reach to ceiling

a.

b.

c.

d.

page 82

arm-trunk coordination9 - side bend and rotation a. Left leg over right. Lie on your back with your left leg crossed over your right (Figure a). b. Slide left arm to left. Slide your left arm to the left on the floor upward toward shoulder height and then above shoulder height (Figure b). Go slow and small and gradually increase the motion. Feel what happens to the shoulder blade, collar bone and ribs. Rest. c. Tilt knees, slide arm. Tilt both knees to the left several times leaving the arm by your side. Notice the twisting of your pelvis and spine. Now begin to do both the leg tilt and sliding the arm simultaneously (Figure c). Can you feel a connection between the pelvic rotation and the arm sliding? Rest. d. Slide head to right and arm to left. Begin with you left arm along your left side and your right hand under your head (Figure d). The right arm and head slide to the right bending the trunk to the right (Figure d). Now, at the same time slide the left arm as before. Left arm slides to the upward and head slides to the right. Again find a way to coordinate the slide of the head to the right and the left arm to the left. Rest. e. Slide head, tilt legs & slide arm. Combine all three motions, i.e. slide the left arm upward, tilt the legs to the left and slide the head to the right (Figure e). Try this with your right arm by your side. As you slide with your left arm upward, you can reach with the right hand toward the right foot and let the back of the head come along with the right hand toward your right foot (Figure e). Repeat then rest. Again, as in earlier pages, arm motion is powered by the trunk as well as the shoulder itself. Combined trunk rotation and side bending frequently accompany shoulder abduction.

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arm-trunk coordination9 - side bend and rotation a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

page 84

arm-trunk coordination10 - on all fours a. Stand on your hands and knees (Figure a). Place the back of your left hand on the floor. b-c. Slide hand & arm to the right. Slide the left hand to the right a little and come back. Continue sliding the left hand more to the right as far as you can comfortably reach and then back again (Figure b-e). The hand slides underneath your body toward the right. Notice what happens to your trunk. Notice the hip joints and contact of the knees with the floor. Rest. d-e. Slide arm bring head under shoulder. Slide the left arm as far as you can to the left. Let your head come underneath the right shoulder and your left shoulder approaches the floor (Figure e). Rest. Repeat many times. Rest on your back. f-h. Stand on your hands and knees. Raise the left arm from the floor upward toward the ceiling. Continue this motion back and forth gradually extending the reach of the arm to the ceiling (Figure f-h). The left shoulder rises to be above the right shoulder (Figure h).

Arm Action is a function of the Whole Body - Legs, Trunk, Pelvis and Shoulders.

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arm-trunk coordination10 - on all fours

a. b.

c.

d.

e.

f.

g.

h.

page 86

leg trunk coordination1 - leg raise in side lying a. Raise right leg. Lie on your left side. Raise your right leg from the left several times. Raise a comfortable distance to just above horizontal (Figure a). What joints are moving and what bones are moving? What can you feel in the hip joint? What can you feel of your pelvis and lumbar spine? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. b. Raise head. Bring your right hand over the top of your head so your fingers just touch the top of your left ear. Use your hand to raise your head from the floor (Figure b). Be careful not to strain the neck. This configuration encourages the hand to support the head and neck and allow your trunk or spine to do the work. If you feel strain in your neck, rest. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Raise leg & head. Raise your head and raise your right leg simultaneously (Figure c). Repeat. Observe what happens between the head and leg. What are your rib cage, spine and pelvis doing? Remember to think of the rib cage being able to behave like a spring. What happens along the entire length of your spine? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. d. Raise both legs. Return to your side and this time raise both legs and the head at the same time (Figure d). Go gently, small and slowly. Don't strain. See how small and slow you can do this motion. Try to just take up the slack, i.e. feel the contraction and shortening of the muscles involved with only very little movement. What happens to your pelvis, low back and ribs? What do you feel along the length of your spine? This is a simple but instructive lesson for several reasons. Notice when you raise your leg what happens to the pelvis and low back? The pelvis and spine move in coordination with the leg action and hence the strength, mobility and action of the trunk contributes to the leg action. Differentiation. Try this motion without the involvement of the trunk- i.e. place your right hand on your hip to resist any motion of the pelvis as you raise your leg- what do you feel? This is Differentiation or isolation in the extreme. Is the movement easier or harder? Imagine raising the leg all day long like this- how easily would it tire and become painful? Integration. Now use your right hand to assist the motion of the pelvis. What do you feel? Is the movement easier or harder? Imagine raising your leg all day long like this- how easily would it tire and become painful? This is Integration. Understanding and improving human movement requires a local and global view of action - and that is just the beginning. Movement in life is an action, a behavior, an intention with a consequence, not an isolated movement of no consequence.

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leg trunk coordination1 - leg raise in side lying a.

b.

c.

d.

small & slow page 90

leg trunk coordination2 - leg trunk rotations a. Raise left knee. Lie on your right side with knees and feet together. Raise your left knee away from the right knee keeping the feet together (Figure a). Observe the motion of the thigh and the hip joint. What happens to the pelvis and spine? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. b. Raise your left foot away from the right (Figure b). The knees remain together. Observe the motion of the thigh and the hip joint. What happens to the pelvis and spine? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. a-b. Alternate- Once raise the foot once raise the knee. Repeat several times. Observe the motion of the pelvis and spine as you move your legs. c. Raise both knees from the floor while the feet remain on the floor (Make sure the feet stay on the floor and act as the pivot for this motion. (NB do not lift all of both legs from the floor) (Figure c). (This is the same as trunk rotation2- double leg raise). Observe the motion of the thigh and the hip joint. What happens to the pelvis and spine? How many vertebrae rotate with the motion? What happens in the rib cage? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. d. Raise both feet from the floor leaving the knees together on the floor (Figure d). Observe the motion of the thigh and the hip joint. What happens to the pelvis and spine? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c-d. Alternate- Once raise the feet once raise the knees. Repeat several times. Observe the motion of the spine as you move your legs. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Notice the difference between raising one leg individually and raising two legs together. Moving two legs simultaneously (either feet together or knees together) tends to increase the motion in the spine. The “constraint” on the hip joints created by keeping the legs together demands something else to move- i.e. the pelvis and spine. One leg alone is less constrained at the hip and hence less or no motion of the pelvis and spine may occur. People vary considerably with this motion; mostly that isolated hip only motion occurs and little or no pelvic and lumbar contribution. The opposite, of a totally rigid hip with mostly spinal motion performing the action also occurs. The significant thing here is to pay attention and sense hip and trunk contributions.

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leg trunk coordination2 - leg trunk rotations

a. raise left knee

b. raise left foot

c. raise both knees

d. raise both feet

page 92

leg trunk coordination3 - supine leg roll a. Lie on your back with the legs straight and arms by your side (Figure a). b. Roll leg side to side. Roll the left leg a little to the left and then to the right (Figure b). Continue rolling on your left heel like this several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Roll to outside of foot. Again roll the left leg to the left and back and gradually extend the roll to the left such that the outside of your left foot comes to the floor (Figure c). d-e. Roll & bend leg to side. Continue a-c and allow the left knee to bend and the foot to slide along the floor toward your hip (Figure d-e). Continue gently several times. Allow the knee to hang so that the groin or adductor muscles are not contracting. Notice what the pelvis and low back are doing- is there a roll to the left with the leg as shown in the figures d-e. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor.

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leg trunk coordination3 - supine leg roll a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

page 94

leg trunk coordination4 - leg roll & push Continued from the previous page. a-c. Roll & bend leg to side. Roll, bend and slide your left leg and foot to the left (Figure a-c). d-e. Raise knee to vertical. Once the knee is bent to a comfortable limit begin the raise your left knee from the floor toward the vertical in the mid line (Figure d-e). Allow the knee to return toward the floor and then slide the leg out straight again. f. Tilt leg over right knee. Repeat the motion from a to e and then tilt knee from the vertical position to the right to come over the right knee (Figure f). a-e. Repeat this entire motion of rolling, bending and raising the leg to the vertical (Figure a-e). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. a-f. Again repeat the whole sequence to bring the knee to the vertical. This time continue the motion of the knee from a vertical upright position to tilt over the right (Figure f). a-f-a. Continue the entire sequence from start to finish. As you reach the limit of tilt of the left knee to the left push the left foot into the floor so that the knee is pushed away from the hip along the line of the thigh (Figure f). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Repeat the entire sequence with the right leg.

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leg trunk coordination4 - leg roll & push a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

f.

page 96

leg trunk coordination5 - double leg roll This page is best performed after leg-trunk coordination3 supine leg roll . a. Lie on your back (Figure a). b. Roll two legs side to side. Roll both legs to the left and back several times. (Figure b). The whole leg rotates at the hip joint and the outside of the left foot rolls toward the floor and the inside of the right foot rolls toward the floor. Rest. c. Roll two legs to left side. Continue to roll and begin to bend the knees a little to the left (Figure c). Rest. a-e. Roll two legs to side and bend knees. Continue to roll and bend knees to the left. Gradually extend the motion to bend the knees more and more and allow the knees to slide toward the hips (Figure d-e). Repeat the entire motion from start to finish (Figure a-e). Rest.

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leg trunk coordination5 - double leg roll a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

page 98

leg trunk coordination6 - leg roll prone a. Roll right leg. Lie on your stomach with your hands under your face. Gently roll the right leg left and right (Figure a). b. Roll & bend leg. Continue rolling the leg and allow the knee to bend to the right (Figure b). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Roll, bend & slide leg. Gently extend the movement to a comfortable limit with the right knee bent some distance to the right (Figure d). This motion may be difficult and may not be easily possible immediately. Better to explore slowly and gently- all good movement is easily reversible (Feldenkrais 1972, p85). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. d-e. Pull & push right knee. Return to the place with the knee bent to the right and remain with the leg bent like this (Figure d). Slide the knee toward your right hip (Figure d). Slide the knee away from the hip (Figure e). Notice what happens to the pelvis and the angle of the groin. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Repeat for the left leg.

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leg trunk coordination6 - leg roll prone a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

page 100

leg trunk coordination7- supine trunk roll a. Palms together, arms vertical. Lie on your back. Bend both your knees and place your feet flat on the floor. Bring your arms to point vertically toward the ceiling with your palms touching (Figure a). b-c. Tilts arms to left. Tilt both arms to the left a short distance or angle (Figure b). To do this, keep your arms straight and avoid bending at the elbows. Think of lifting your right shoulder and shoulder blade from the floor and rolling onto to your left shoulder and shoulder blade. You might also think of the length of the two arms and the distance between your shoulders as a triangle and keep the same shape of the triangle and tilt it to the left. Notice what happens to your trunk, i.e. your rib cage, low back and pelvis (Figure b). The point of this exercise is that the arms come along for the ride. The arms and shoulders are relatively passive while the trunk does the work. This is one of the basic premises of the Feldenkrais Method- the power of the arms comes from the trunk and legs and all of your self and not just from the shoulder muscles. It has been estimated that 50% of ball speed from the pitch of a baseball pitcher comes from the shoulder and the other 50% comes from the trunk and legs (See Pappas et al 1985). Notice the arms moving through space not by the action of the shoulder joints and muscles but via the action of the trunk (Figure b). So now you have had the experience of moving your arms through space using your back alone. This is another example of moving both limbs together to create a constraint to limit limb movement and encourage trunk motion. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. d. Right leg bent, left straight. Right leg is bend, left leg is flat to the floor (Figure d). Arms are pointing to the ceiling with palms together (Figure d). d-e. Tilt & push with leg. Tilt both arms to the left as before but now push with your right leg to raise your right hip from the floor and roll onto your left hip (Figure e). Repeat several times and gradually extend the movement. You may come to rest on your left side. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. This is leg-trunk coordination- the leg and trunk coordinate to move the arms.

The Arms are Powered by the Legs and Trunk and not only the Shoulders. page 101

leg trunk coordination7- supine trunk roll a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

page 102

leg trunk coordination8 - raise head and hips a. Raise head. Lie on your back with both hands behind your head (Figure a). Raise your head and shoulders from the floor (Figure a). What do you feel of the contact of the low back with the floor? What does the pelvis do? What happens along the front of yourself- the abdominal muscles? The chest bone? The entire length of the spine rounds- this is trunk flexion. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. b. Raise hips. Bend both legs and raise your hips from the floor (Figure b). Observe the back raising from the floor and the pressure on the upper back. Sense the length of the spine from pelvis to head- how does this movement? This is bridging of the trunk. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. a-b. Alternate, once raise the head, once raise your hips. Once raise the head then once raise the hips (Figure a-b). Alternating trunk motion once from the top and once from the bottom end allows a sense of the length of spine in action. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Raise head & hips. Raise the head and pelvis simultaneously (Figure c). Repeat several times. d. Raise head & hips & rock. Raise the head and pelvis simultaneously and remain with them raised (Figure d).The shape of the back is rounded like the base of a rocking chair- rock up and down so that as the head raises the pelvis lowers and vice versa. Follow the contact and pressure of the back with the floor.

e. raise head - bend like a “Banana”

page 103

leg trunk coordination8 - raise head and hips a. raise head - bend like a “Banana”

b. raise hips

c. raise head & hips

d. rock back & forth with raised head & hips

page 104

leg trunk coordination9 - raising head and leg a. Raise head and right leg whilst lying on the left side. Feel the right leg and length of spine coordinate to complete this action. Repeat this motion while lying on your right side. b. Raise head and left leg whilst lying on the left side. This time, you raise the underneath leg, the left leg in this case. The right leg can be bent forward out of the way to allow the left leg to rise. Feel your left thigh come away from the floor. Roll onto your right side and repeat with your right leg. c. Raise head and right leg whilst lying prone. Lie on your stomach. Turn your head to the left as in Figure c on the opposite page. Lift your head and leg from the floor (both arms remain on the floor). Like this you can have the sense of how the head is connected and moved by the entire length of spine. d. Raise head, left hand and elbow and the right leg whilst lying prone. Lie on your stomach. Turn your head to the left as in Figure d on the opposite page. Your right cheek is placed on top of your left hand. Raise the head again as in the previous action (Figure c) but now with the whole left arm as well, that is, the arm remains attached to the face and head. Simultaneously raise your right leg with the arm and head. e. Raise head and right leg whilst lying supine. Bring your two hands behind your head. Raise the head and right leg together. repeat several times and then lift the head and left leg.

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leg trunk coordination9 - raising head and leg a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

page 106

leg trunk coordination10 - raise, arm-head-leg a. Raise leg alone. Lie on your stomach with legs and arms outstretched. Raise the right leg from the floor (Figure a). What happens in your back? Shoulders? Rest. b. Raise arm alone. Raise your left arm from the floor (Figure b). Repeat several times and then rest. c. Raise only the head. Raise your head (Figure c). Repeat several times and then rest. d. Raise head & leg. Raise your head and right leg simultaneously (Figure d). Repeat several times and then rest. e. Raise arm & leg. Raise your left arm and right leg simultaneously without moving your head (Figure e). Repeat several times and then rest. There are many variations. Raise all three- i.e. head, leg and arm. Repeat this series of head, arm and leg raising with left leg and right arm.

page 107

leg trunk coordination10 - raise, arm-head-leg

raise leg

a.

raise arm b.

raise head c.

raise head & leg d.

raise arm & leg e.

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leg trunk coordination11 - leg shortening and lengthening a. Lie on your back (Figure a). b. Hitch right hip up. Hitch your right hip and leg by sliding the right hip up toward your right shoulder (Figure b). Think of the level of the belt on the right moving toward the right shoulder. The pelvis moves toward the shoulder in a side bending motion of the trunk from the bottom up. The knee and hip joint are inactive. The leg is passive to the action of the lower trunk. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Go gently. See how small you can make this movement. Notice the movement of the pelvis from the side i.e. side bending. Notice also the motion of the front of the pelvis. What is this motion? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Hitch right hip down. Hitch your right hip downward to lengthen the right leg (Figure c). d. Slide head to side. Bring both hands behind your head and slide the head and shoulders to the right (Figure d). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. What happens to your leg as you do this? Can you feel the right leg wanting to shorten and hitch. e. Slide leg to side. Slide your right leg to the right (Figure e). What do you feel in the hip joint? pelvis? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. f. Slide head & leg to side. Slide the head and leg simultaneously to the side (Figure f). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Variations: Remain with the right leg to the right (Figure e). Shorten and lengthen your leg in this position. Remain with the head and leg to the right (Figure f). Try shortening and lengthening the right leg in this position. Notice how much less range of motion is available with increasing shortening of the trunk on the right.

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leg trunk coordination11 - leg shortening and lengthening a.

b.

hitch hip up - leg shortens

c.

d.

hitch hip down - leg lengthens

slide head & trunk to side e.

f.

slide leg to side

slide head & leg to side

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leg trunk coordination12 - foot slide a. Slide foot & leg down & out. Lie on your back with the left leg bent (Figure a). Slide the left foot down and away from you (Figure a). Observe what you feel in your hip and ankle joint. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Feel the skeleton between the ankle and hip i.e. the leg. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. The constraint here is that the entire sole of the foot must remain on the floor the whole time. There is a tendency for the toes to lift from the floor- prevent this from happening. Maintaining the foot flat to the floor ensures maximum affect at the hip and ankle joint . b. Slide foot, lift hip. Continue to slide the foot down and to the left. Begin to raise the left hip from the floor as you slide the leg (Figure b). Raise and roll the pelvis to help the foot slide even further away from you. Notice what happens along the length of your knee and in the ribs. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Slide foot, lift body. Continue to slide the leg and raise the hip. You raise the right hip from the floor and roll onto the left hip. Feel the motion extend through the length of the spine (Figure c).

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leg trunk coordination12 - foot slide a.

slide leg to side

b.

slide leg to side - raise and roll pelvis

c.

slide leg to side - raise pelvis and trunk

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leg trunk coordination13 - leg bridge a. Roll & bend left leg. Lie on the floor on your back. Bend your right leg and stand on your right foot. Roll your left leg to the left, slide your heel towards your hip and bend your knee to the side i.e. bend your left leg to the left (Figure a). b. Slide foot under knee bridge. Begin as in Figure a. Slide your left foot to the right under the bridge made by your right knee (Figure b). Keep your left knee bent to the same angle throughout the movement- the action comes from the hip and pelvis but not from the knee. Slide the foot back and forth this way several times including a return to neutral. What do you feel in your hip joint, pelvis and low back? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Slide foot away from knee bridge. Begin as in Figure a. Slide your left foot to the left away from the right knee (Figure c). What do you feel in your hip joint, pelvis and low back? Repeat several times. Rest. b-c. Slide back & forth under bridge. Alternate back and forth right to left with the left foot (Figure b-c). d. Slide right foot around left foot. Begin as in Figure a. Slide your right foot this time around the left foot to the left (Figure d). This time the left leg is stationary and the right foot slides. Repeat several times. Make sure you keep your right foot flat on the ground i.e. all toes and heel remains on the floor through out the motion. e-f. Slide foot to knee and beyond. Gradually, extend the motion more and more to the left (Figure d-e-f). The right foot now slides beyond the left foot and heads toward the left knee. Continue back and forth from d to e. Observe your hip joints, pelvis and back as you slide your right foot. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. We are used to moving the leg from the hip joint. The hip joint is very mobile and able to move the leg through a large range of motion. However, some motion should come from the pelvis and back also. In this position the hip joints become constrained and are prevented from moving as much as usual. Notice when the sliding of the foot under the right knee there are contributions from the pelvis and spine. Notice what happens along the left side of your low back and indeed the whole spine and rib cage. There is a combination of bending and lengthening. Moving the pelvis and back like this is unusual but in fact it is a vital movement in life. This motion of side bending of the pelvis and low back occurs with every step in human walking (Inman et al 1981). The lengthening and shortening of the sides enhances human stride length- i.e. it contributes to the length of the stride. Hence we partly walk with our legs and we partly walk with our trunk. These motions are easily lost with poor habit.

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leg trunk coordination13 - leg bridge a. b.

c. bend left leg slide left foot under the right knee

d.

slide left foot away from the right knee

e.

slide right foot around left foot

f.

slide right foot toward left knee slide right foot around left knee page 114

leg trunk coordination14 - legs crossed a. Stand on your hands and knees (Figure a). b-c. Lift left knee. Lift your left knee from the floor to cross over and behind your right calf (Figure b-c). c. Cross left knee over right knee. Cross the left knee behind your right calf and bring your left knee to the floor (Figure c). d. Take weight on left knee and shift pelvis backward. Continuing from steps a-c, take full weight on the left knee and bring your pelvis backward over your knees (Figure d). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Variations: Instead of reversing the movement i.e. taking weight off the left knee and bringing back across the right knee to the floor to the right- you can simply slide the right knee forward to bring the right foot around and in front of the left knee (on the floor) and place the right leg back in the original alignment as in Figure a.

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leg trunk coordination14 - legs crossed

a.

b.

c.

d.

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leg reach on side1 a. Lie on your left side, right arm & leg straight. Lie on your left side with your right arm overhead and your right leg straight beneath you (Figure a). The left leg can be bent or straight. This position of the arm overhead may strain your shoulder- if so place a pillow between your arm and head to take the strain off the shoulder joint. b. Leg reach. Reach long with your right leg so it stretches downward (Figure b). The intention is to slide the leg downward as if it were to become longer. Repeat several times and notice that it is not your leg that gets longer but that your spine lengthens on the right side (Figure b). What does your pelvis do? Notice what happens along the lower right side of your back. Notice what happens along the left side of your low back. Can you feel the left side of your low back contracting and lifting away from the floor? See arrows on Figure b. Rest. c. Arm reach. Reach with your right arm overhead (Figure c). How do you do this? What happens along the right side of your rib cage? What happens along the left side of your rib cage? What happens in your lower back as you do this? With your right shoulder in this position it is somewhat constrained and hence the reach comes primarily from the rib cage and spine. Observe the left side of your rib cage. Lift the left side of the rib cage from the floor. Go gently and small. Rest. d. Arm-leg reach. Repeat lengthening both the arm and leg simultaneously (Figure d). Feel the whole right side become longer and the entire left side shorter. Every vertebrae and every rib contributes to the motion, it is an action of the entire trunk and a clear example of the length of spine functioning as one coordinated unit. Find a smooth easy way to do this. Don't strain. Nothing to achieve, rather it is to observe and fine tune your sense and control of motion. Return again now to lengthen the leg alone and allow the entire length of the spine to be involved in leg reach. So every vertebrae and every rib contributes the leg lengthening. The entire spine is now involved in this action. This makes the motion smoother, easier and more powerful. Repeat for the arm, i.e. reach with your right arm and entire length of spine. With the arm and leg in this position the shoulder and hip are constrained and unable to move significantly (there is a small motion at the shoulder joint and shoulder blade). The movement of the arm and leg is a function of the trunk lengthening and shortening. This action clearly defines a relationship between limb and trunk with reaching. Whilst the arm moves from the shoulder and is powered from the shoulder there is great support and power to arm action being contributed by the trunk. Arm-trunk and leg-trunk coordination are factors in human movement. Loss of these coordinations creates excessive effort and strain in action at the shoulder and hip and may cause damage.

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leg reach on side1 a.

b.

c.

d.

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leg reach on side2 Continued from the previous page and is best performed after exploring the previous of legtrunk coordination. a. Lumbar spine side bend. Lie on your left side with your right leg straight beneath you (Figure a). The right arm rests in front and left leg can be bent or straight. Lengthen the right leg beneath you. Feel how much of your spine is involved in this action. You may notice that it is mainly the low back doing the work to lengthen your leg. This is a side bend or lengthening/shortening of the lumbar spine. Rest. b. Lower thorax side bend. Continue to lengthen your right leg and bring your attention and intention a little higher in spine to just above the low back i.e. the lower rib cage (Figure b). Make these levels T9-12 be involved in the leg lengthening. Raise the left side of the rib cage at this level and feel the vertebrae here side bending (i.e. shortening on the left and lengthening on the right) (Figure b). The pelvis and low back continue to contribute to the motion but now the lower rib cage is involved. All of the lower half of spine now does the work to lengthen the right leg. Rest. c. Middle thorax side bend. Lift the middle of the rib cage from the floor (Figure c). This helps you to feel T4-8 and differentiate motion in this part of your back. Again the pelvis, low back and lower rib cage contribute but with your attention and intention you can add T4-8 to the motion. So now as you lengthen your right leg, all vertebrae from T4 to the hip joints contribute to the motion. Rest. d. Whole spine side bend. Lengthen the right leg again using the entire length of the spine i.e. T1 to the tail bone (Figure d). The ability of every level of the spine and rib cage to be involved in the lengthening of a leg is a key motion in human locomotion. For adolescents the thorax lengthens or side bends 20 degrees during walking as does the lumbar spine and pelvis (Chan et al 2006). Any reduction in thorax side bend during human gait could affect low back and leg function. All trunk segments combine to create one unit of function. This is called a trunk synergy- pelvis, lumbar spine and thorax combining to make one whole action of the trunk. This is a parameter of motor control for the human brain- one combined unit of trunk function.

Trunk Synergy. All Trunk Segments combine as one Functional Unit to perform Life’s Actions. page 119

leg reach on side2

a.

b.

c.

d.

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The HANDS were once FEET

The FEET were once HANDS

foot & leg rotations1- ‘shank to sacrum’ a. Raise the right heel. Lie on your left side with your knees and hips bent to 90 degrees (Figure a). The right heel and right big toe rest on the left heel and left big toe respectively. Raise the right heel away from the left heel keeping the toes together (Figure a). Notice what happens to the shank (shin bone), the knee, the hip, the pelvis and the lumbar spine. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. b. Raise the toes. Keeping the heels together, raise the toes of the right foot away from the left i.e. lift your right big toe away from the left big toe (Figure b). Notice what happens to the shank, the knee, the hip, the pelvis and the lumbar spine. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. a-b. Alternate heel and toes. Once raise the heel and then once raise the toes. Notice what happens to the shank, the knee, the hip, the pelvis and the lumbar spine. Repeat several times. c. Raise both heels together keeping the toes on the floor (Figure c). What do you feel in your hips and back? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. d. Raise both feet, keeping the heels on the floor (Figure d). Repeat several times. Notice what happens to the shank, the knee, the hip, the pelvis and the lumbar spine. c-d. Alternate both heels and both sets of toes. Observe the hips, pelvis and back. As the shank rotates what happens in the lower and middle back. During walking the lower leg or “shank” rotates on the ankle 20 degrees and hip joint rotates 10 degrees (Inman et al 1981).

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foot & leg rotations1- ‘shank to sacrum’

a.

b.

c.

d.

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foot & leg rotations2 a. Leg bent to side. Lie on your back with your right leg bent to the side (Figure a). b. Raise the right heel from the floor (Figure b). Repeat several times and notice what you sense in your ankle, knee and hip joint. What happens to the lower leg and thigh? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Lift the toes from the floor (Figure c). Repeat several times and notice what you sense in your ankle, knee and hip joint. What happens to the lower leg and thigh? b-c. Alternate- raise the toes then raise the heel. Variation: Raise the heel and raise the head at the same time (not shown). Raise the toes and raise the head at the same time (not shown).

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foot & leg rotations2 a.

b.

c.

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foot & leg rotations3 a-b. Roll sole to ceiling. Lie on your back with the right leg bent to the side and with the outside of the foot on the floor (Figure a). Roll on the outside of the foot to have the sole of the foot face the ceiling and back again to the starting position (Figure a & b). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c-d. Roll sole to floor. Roll the foot so that the sole faces the floor (Figure c & d). Repeat. Rest. a-d. Alternate- sole to ceiling, sole to floor. Roll side to side like this from sole to ceiling. Variation: Repeat the motion of rolling the sole to the ceiling and at the same time raise the left hip. Repeat several times. Now as the sole rolls to the floor raise the right hip. Continue and alternate several times. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Now try doing the opposite: as the sole rolls toward the ceiling, raise the right hip. As the sole rolls toward the floor raise the left hip.

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foot & leg rotations3

a.

c.

b.

d.

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bridging - finding feet1 a. Knees bent, feet flat. Lie on your back, bend your knees and place your feet on the floor. Feet are hip width apart (Figure a). b. Raise your hips. Raise your hips from the floor a comfortable distance several times (Figure b). Raising your hips like this is frequently referred to as bridging.

Motion Parameters: skeletal linkages, contact and lines of force. ci. Contact pressure through the sole of the foot. Pay attention to the size and shape of the contact pressure through the sole of the foot with the floor (Figure c). Where does the weight go: on the heel, on the ball of your foot, to the outside or inside of the feet? cii. Linkages and Forces through the skeleton. Sense the forces through the ankle, shin, knee, thigh, hip and back (Figure d). We stand and walk on our feet without ever paying much attention to them. This series is designed to bring awareness to the shape, size, contact and pressure of the feet with the ground and the forces transmitted along the skeletal linkages of the legs and spine. This exercise of lifting the pelvis is also known as bridging. This regular exercise in rehabilitation treatment regimes is used to strengthen the quadriceps (front of the thigh) and gluteal muscles (buttock muscles). However, it is also a simulation of standing and of standing up from sitting down. The same muscles and forces are utilized during this exercise as with standing and rising from a chair. In this series bridging is used to bring awareness to your feet and skeleton. The feet make contact and pressure with the ground. This is a motion parameter that is monitored by the brain and to which we can become more aware. At the same time as you take weight through the feet there are forces transmitted from the feet to the upper back through the skeletal linkages of the legs and spine (Figure d). For this whole series, attention is brought to the contact pressures of the feet on the floor and the forces through the skeletal linkages. This is sensing your skeletal scaffolding in standing from feet to head. This is finding your feet and linking it to your skeleton.

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bridging - finding feet1

a.

b.

motion parameters - linkages, contact, lines of force

cii. forces through the skeletal linkages: legs thighs spine

ci. contact pressures on the soles of the feet

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bridging - finding feet2 a. Heels close. Slide your heels as close to your buttocks as possible and then raise your pelvis (Figure a). Notice the contact, pressure and forces in the feet and legs. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. b. Heels afar. Slide your feet as far away from your buttocks as possible but maintaining full contact of the toes on the floor (Figure b). Raise your hips in this position. Is this easy or hard? c. Feet wide. Raise the pelvis with the feet wide apart (Figure c). Repeat several times. Rest. d. Feet together. Raise the pelvis with your feet together (Figure d). Repeat. Return to placing your feet at a comfortable or neutral distance apart and raise your pelvis. Again observe the contact and pressure on the feet and the forces through the legs. Repeat several times. How does the action in Figure c differ from Figure d? Which has balance issues? e. Toes out. Turn your feet out and raise your pelvis (Figure e). How does this feel? Try this with as much outward rotation as you can comfortably do- like a ‘Charlie Chaplin’ gait. Now gradually reduce the amount of rotation from a maximum to a minimum. How small a rotation from your natural orientation of your feet does it take to feel a difference when raising your hips? The smaller you can differentiate the finer and greater the motor control and body awareness. f. Toes in. Turn the feet inward and raise your pelvis (Figure f). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Repeat the maximum to minimum process as for Figure e.

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bridging - finding feet2 a.

b.

d.

c.

e.

f.

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bridging - finding feet3 - weight bearing lines - walking the tight rope The foot has five toes, linked to five metatarsal bones in the foot followed by the instep (three cuneiform bones, cuboid and navicular bones) and the tarsal bone of the ankle. The process on this page explores the weight bearing lines of the foot and heel. Each toemetatarsal-heel line is a weight bearing line. We stand on a foot but the foot has five weight bearing lines. This page seeks to discover and feel each weight bearing line of the toes and foot (feet). a. Roll feet outward. Roll your feet so that the outside of the feet are on the floor and then raise your pelvis (Figure a). Feel the contact and forces. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. b. Roll feet inward. Roll your feet so that the inside of the feet come into contact with the floor (Figure b). Raise your hips and pelvis. How does this feel? c. Weight bearing lines-5. Imagine you are walking along a tight rope (one for each foot). Imagine the rope aligned through the center of your heel and the center of your smallest toe (5th metatarsal, 5th toe) on each foot (Figure c). Raise your pelvis while standing on your imaginary tight rope with weight through 5th metatarsal, 5th toe and heel. How did you go? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. d. Weight bearing line-1. Stand on your imaginary tight rope using your biggest toe, 1st metatarsal and center of heel (Figure d). Lift your hips with your feet aligned with the weight through the first toe and metatarsal. Repeat this process for each of the five weight bearing lines - digit 5 through to digit 1. e. Weight bearing lines-1-5. Stand on all five toes, metatarsals and heels of both feet. Imagine that you now stand on five tight ropes per foot (Figure e). Five weight bearing lines per foot.

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bridging - finding feet3 - weight bearing lines - walking the tight rope

a. roll feet outward

c. weight bearing along the line of the 5th toe and metatarsal

b. roll feet inward

d. weight bearing along the line of the 1st toe and metatarsal

e. all 5 metatarsals-toes5 weight bearing lines

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bridging - finding feet4 a. 50-50. Raise your hips from the floor a comfortable distance several times (Figure a). Normally, the heel and ball of feet take equal weight i.e. 50-50 on each foot. Figure a illustrates a 50-50 contact pressure for the ball of the foot and heel. Figure a also shows a distribution of the pressures on the heel and ball of foot. Weight is shown to be more centered over the second metatarsal for the ball of foot (metatarsal heads). Heel pressured is shown as centralized. b. 100% heels. Lift your toes from the floor and raise your pelvis and hence 100% weight on the heels (Figure b). This is perhaps what walking on stilts may feel like. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. 100% toes/ball of feet. Raise your heels from the floor so that the weight of the legs comes onto the balls of the feet (Figure c). You will want to slide the feet closer to your hips. Now the weight of standing is supported 100% on the balls of your feet and toes. Lift your pelvis like this and feel the pressure on the ball of the foot and the forces through the leg. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. From this raised position, roll on the ball of your feet to feel each metatarsal head taking weight- i.e. roll outward to feel the fifth toes taking weight, then roll to the big toe. Roll to feel weight through each metatarsal head- 5 to1. It is possible to vary the amount of weight on the feet versus the heels from 100 to zero percent. d. 80-20. Raise your pelvis from the floor with 80 percent of the force at the heels and 20 percent at the balls of the feet (Figure d). Repeat several times. Rest. e. 20-80. Raise your pelvis from the floor with 80 percent of the force at the balls of your feet and 20 percent at the heels (Figure e). Repeat several times. Rest. Variations. Try 60-40 and 40-60. Variations:All of these exercises can be performed with a small roll of the pelvis. This is the first motion before raising the pelvis. There is still the effort of pushing the legs to begin the lift and there are still the contact pressures and forces. All of these feet positions of finding your feet1-3 can be performed during walking. Very minimally repositioning your feet out for 10 steps for each variation is enough to feel for differences.

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bridging - finding feet4 a.

60% heels 40% ball of foot

b. raise toes from floor

c. raise heels from floor

100% toes

100% heels

e.

d.

80% heels 20% ball of foot

20% heels 80% ball of foot

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bridging - finding feet5 - “clawing toes” a-b. "Clawing" toes. Curl your toes as if trying to pick something up with your toes or as if you were a bird perched on a tree branch (Figure a-b). Repeat this many times. Rest. c. Claw smaller and smaller. Claw your toes gradually reducing the movement to smaller and smaller motions until there is almost no movement (Figure c). Clawing is a common habit of feet and it is a good thing to get to know this motion. Reduce the motion to smaller and smaller and slower and slower movements. This requires greater awareness and control. Individualize the clawing. Bring your attention to just one toe as you claw the whole foot. Sense your big toe on one foot only while clawing the whole foot. Go gently and smaller and smaller. Then bring your attention to the second toe as your claw the whole foot. Repeat for all five toes on each foot. Rest. d. Unclawing the toes. Clawing the toes is followed by an unclawing of the toes- each is equally important to your attention (Figure d). Pay attention more to the unclawing and lengthening and separating of the toes as you repeat this motion. So claw a little and then unclaw. Feel the lengthening of the toes. Encourage this lengthening and also separating of the toes. Maintain contact of the toes and feet with the floor throughout the process. e. Claw your feet a little and raise your pelvis from the floor (Figure e). How does that feel? Stand and walk like this. Would you want to walk around all day like this? Try one foot clawed and one at neutral. Stand and walk with both feet clawed or one foot clawed. What does this feel like? How small a clawing of the toes does not interfere with stance or gait? Is any amount of clawing imperceptible or tolerable?

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bridging - finding feet5 - “clawing toes” a.

b.

c. clawing

d. unclawing

e.

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“bell hand” a. Place your right hand on a flat surface (table if you are sitting and the floor if on the floor) (Figure a). b-c. Slide your finger tips on the floor toward your palm (Figure b). As you continue to slide the fingers, the palm will rise from the floor. Reverse the motion of your fingers to bring the palm flat to the floor again. Repeat several times. Notice the motion of the fingers and metacarpal bones. The metacarpal are the long fingers bones of your palm. Notice how the fingers and metacarpals adduct and abduct toward and away from each other. Hence as you raise the palm you might notice the fingers and metacarpals coming closer together. As you lower the palm to the floor these bones may spread. Rest. d. The raised palm form the shape of a “Bell” (Figure d). Continue and perform the motion with both hands simultaneously. Go gently and slowly.

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“bell hand” a. Lay open right hand on the floor

b. Slide fingers and thumb toward palm & simultaneously raise your palm.

c. Continue to slide fingers & raise palm.

d. Bell shaped hand = Final shape of fingers & palm.

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“ball bearing hand” a. Lie on the floor with your right arm out to the side and your right hand relaxed and open on the floor with your palm up (Like in Figure a.). Imagine a small ball, like a steel ball bearing on the base of your right index finger. Gently and slowly straighten your right index finger so as to roll the imaginary ball from the base of the finger to the tip of the finger. Go gently and distinctly. Feel the imaginary ball roll along every millimeter of your finger to the end. Reverse and roll the ball from the tip back to the base of your index finger. Repeat several times. Rest. b. Roll the imaginary ball along your middle finger from base to the tip and back again (Figure b). Repeat several times. Rest. c. Roll the imaginary ball along your fourth or ring finger (Figure c). Repeat several times. Rest. d. Roll the imaginary ball along your fifth digit (Figure d). Repeat several times. Rest. e. Roll the imaginary ball along your thumb (Figure e). Repeat several times. Rest. f. Roll the imaginary ball along all five fingers to open your hand and then return(Figure f). Go gently and slowly. Repeat several times. Rest.

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“ball bearing hand” a. Roll imaginery ball along index finger from base to tip

b. Roll ball on 3rd finger

c. Roll ball on 4th finger

d. Roll ball on 5th finger

e. Roll ball along thumb

f. all five fingers, open hand

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SITTING SI

T

TI

N

G

sitting1 - neck-trunk coordination a. Looking up & down with the Neck only = “Hinging Neck” Sit forward on a chair with your back away from the back of the chair (Figure a). Look up toward the ceiling and down to the floor. Repeat several times. Notice how you do this. What joints move to allow this movement of your head? Rest. b. Looking up & down with the Trunk. Interlace your fingers and bring both hands behind your neck (Figure b). Bring your elbows forward toward each other to a comfortable place. Keep your elbows and nose aligned and look up so that the head and arm move together as one unit. What do you feel? What does your neck do? What does your spine do? What can you feel in your rib cage? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Now look down in the same manner. Alternate, once look up and once look down. Begin with a moderate size movement and then gradually go smaller and smaller with the motion - i.e. reduce the excursion of the eyes and head (See arrows in Figure b). See how small you can go. For example, find a spot on the wall in front of you and have the movement of your head and arms scribe only one inch on the wall. Rest. Interlaced hands behind the neck creates a constraint on the neck. The hands brace the neck and inhibit movement of your neck muscles and neck joints especially if you make this your intention and do actually limit neck motion. The head is now raised and lowered by movement of your back including the upper, middle and lower back and pelvis- i.e. the length of spine all the way down to your pelvis and tail bone. You can feel this easily by paying attention to these body segments and gently allowing them to participate in your movement (Figure b). Most movements of the head are directed by our gaze- i.e. where and what we are looking at. The eyes lead and the head, neck, body, arms and legs follow. There is always some coordination of the head-neck and the trunk. Neck action and function always have some trunk action and function to match. Without this coordination and connection a “Hinging Neck” syndrome occurs (Figure a). This is one major cause of neck pain. It is best to think fo the entire length of spine from head to tail bone as supporting the head, i.e. functionally, the neck has 24 vertebrae.

The Head is a “Penthouse”, perched atop 24 Vertebrae, a Pelvis & Legs for support and movement.

c-d. Look right & left with your Eyes & Trunk. Bring your interlaced hands behind your neck to brace the neck and prevent neck motion. Look to the right a little and then to the left (Figure cd). What allows you to turn this way? What happens in your rib cage? Is the pelvis and low back involved? To look right, push your left knee forward. Repeat to the left. Rest. Notice how you sit now. page 145

sitting1 - neck-trunk coordination b. eyes, head and trunk neck supported

a. neck only = “hinging neck”

look up & down

gradually reduce excursion of eyes & head

look right c.

look left d.

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sitting2 - squat to sit a. Squat straight down. Stand up and place your feet a comfortable distance apart. Squat down about 1/3 to 1/2 of your full range of squatting. Keep your heels on the floor. How do you do this? Notice where do you bend- at the hips, knees, ankles and spine? Do you squat keeping your back upright (Figure a) or do you allow your pelvis to translate backward (Figure b). Deliberately squat straight down such that your hips stay directly above your ankles (Figure a). b. Squat, butt out. Recall the image of an Olympic Weight Lifter squatting with a heavy weight on the shoulders. Squat like a weight lifter. At every stage of bending into the squat let your pelvis be translating backward i.e. butt out (Figure b). Keep your eyes looking straight ahead and keep your chest up. Feel what happens in your back between your shoulders blades? Can feel this part of your back becoming any straighter? Repeat several times. Rest. Notice how you sit now. c-e. Squat to sit. Now stand about one foot from a chair (Figure c). Squat down slowly bringing your pelvis back and down toward the chair. Keep going slowly deliberately until you feel your pelvis come to “land” on the chair. So, no plopping down, instead it is a gentle controlled placement of your pelvis on the chair. Finally, sit and then straighten up. Feel how it is to sit like this. To stand from here reverse the sitting down process. Lean well forward over your knees then lift your pelvis from the chair in the exact reverse of how you arrived there. Repeat several times like this without sitting just touching or beginning to land and then coming off again. Now sit down through a squat and rest on the chair like this. How does this sitting feel? Sit as you might normally sit. Is that different from squat to sit? f. Squat arms out. Squat to sit in the same way but keep your arms up at shoulder height as an aid. Arms up, keeps the body's center of gravity forward and prevents falling to sitting. Go as slow as you can and gently place the pelvis down on the chair. Squatting this way (Figure b) is the preferred way by weight lifters because it optimizes the organization of the spine for maximum strength and minimum strain (Adams & Dolan 1997). The kyphotic curve of the thorax (rounded upper back) and the lordotic curve (arch of low back) of the lumbar spine both flatten and approximate toward a straight line. The spine approximates toward a straight line, like a column of bricks stacked on top of each other with minimal angle between each level. This is the optimal shape in which to take maximum weight with minimum strain. Hence it makes a good way to sit.

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sitting2 - squat to sit a.

b.

d.

c.

e.

f.

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sitting3 - anatomy of good sitting a. Squat to sit . Squat to sit and then stand from this position several times. Squat to sit and stay sitting at the front of the chair. b. Translate good posture back and forth. Slide your pelvis from the front of the chair to the back of the chair (Figure b). Keep the same shape of your spine- i.e. simply translate your pelvis and whole self to the back of the chair. Hence you can sit to the back of the chair in the upright manner in the same way you sit at the front edge of a chair. This ideal position can be performed at any place on the chair. The ideal position is squat to sit or sit to the front of the chair i.e. ideal sitting, is sitting in a manner such that you are ready to stand. Avoid placing the middle or upper back onto the back of the chair. Good sitting avoids the lumbar or thoracic spines coming into contact with the back of the chair. Good sitting posture is not a fixed position but one which we can move around very easily. c-e. How to use the back of a chair. Another way to reach good sitting is to sit well back on the chair and into the crease of the chair. Begin by sitting on a chair. Bend forward as far as you can in sitting (Figure c), then slide or translate backward until the hips and pelvis are firmly embedded into the back of the chair (Figure d) and then finally straighten up (Figure e). Notice the shape of your low back and the support provided by the back of the chair. This position is exactly the same as squat to sit (Figure a-b). This is a good way to get into ideal sitting in a car seat.

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sitting3 - anatomy of good sitting a. squat to sit

b. arm-trunk coordination = optimal motion

only chair contact = pelvis (sacrum)

sit on the front of the pelvis

c. bend bend well forward

d. translate slide hips back into crease of the back of the chair

e. straighten straighten to feel sacrum only supported by the chair

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sitting4 - pelvic movements in sitting Good sitting not only includes something of an ideal position but also movement. One difficulty with sitting is not only sitting too much and in a bad position but also sitting too still. This page defines and illustrates two basic pelvic movements in sitting. a-b & e. Sitting on your tail bone. Sit to the front of a chair (Figure a). Bring the palms of your hands under your pelvis. Sense the bones on the bottom of the pelvis. These bones are called the sit bones or anatomically, the ischial tuberosities (Figure f). Roll your pelvis backward to sit on the back of your sit bones, i.e. slouch to round your back. This is sitting on your tail bone and the rear of your sit bones. Repeat the backward roll of the pelvis without the hands under your pelvis (Figure b). c-d & g. Sitting on the front of yourself. Roll your pelvis forward to bring the front of the pelvis to the chair i.e. sit on the front of your sit bones (Figure c-d). You can have your hands under your pelvis as in Figure c or do it with no hands (Figure d). What happens to your back? What happens to your height and neck shape? e. Sitting on your coccyx (tail bone). Figure e illustrates slouched sitting for the pelvis. The weight of the body is on the back of the pelvis, back of the sit bones and on the tail bone or coccyx. f. Sit bones and pubic bone. Figure f shows the sit bones of a pelvis (solid shading) and the pubic bone of a pelvis (lighter shading). g. Sitting on the front of your sit bones. Figure g illustrates pelvic position when sitting upright. The weight of the body is distributed across the length of the sit bones and pubic bones. h-i. Hitching your hip. Sit on a chair or stool. Shift your weight from your right hip to your left maintaining upright sitting (Figure h). You also think of lifting the right hip or right sit bone from the chair. Repeat this same weight shift but this time to the right and lift your left hip. Then alternate, once left once right. Continue and go smaller and smaller.

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sitting4 - pelvic movements in sitting a.

b.

e.

c.

d.

g.

f.

sit to the back of the sit bones & on the coccyx h.

lift right hip or right sit bone

“sit bones”

pubic bone

sit to the front of the sit bones & on pubic bone

i.

lift left hip or left sit bone

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sitting5 - side bending on a chair a. Hitch pelvis up. Sit on the edge of a chair or stool so that your left hip is on the chair and your right hip hanging off the edge of the chair- place your right foot out to the side away from your body and chair (Figure a). Raise the right side of your pelvis upward to the ceiling and then lower it back down to horizontal (Figure a). Think of your belt level and raise the right side of the belt toward the right shoulder or ceiling. b. Hitch pelvis down. Gently begin to lower the pelvis below the horizontal (Figure b). Repeat several times. Notice the movement of your right side- low back and rib cage. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. a-b. Alternate. Once raise the right hip then lower the right hip. Here is a clear example of how much the pelvis can move as the base of the spine. The pelvis is not a rigid immobile base to trunk function. It is a very power and mobile base. c. Shorten the trunk. Bring the right hand over the top of your head (Figure c). Bring your head and right elbow down toward the right hip so as to bend the trunk to the right (Figure c). As you lower the head and elbow, raise the pelvis on the right (Figure c) and then return to neutral. Notice the motion of the rib cage now in tune with the pelvic movement. The diagram shows an abstract functional image for the rib cage- i.e. a hoped spring. The entire trunk pelvis, spine and thorax- acts together to shorten or side bend in unison. d. Lengthen the trunk. Lower the pelvis on the right and raise the head and elbow to reach toward the ceiling so as to lengthen the right side (Figure d). Go gently to begin. As the motion becomes more comfortable and safe feel the limits of motion of the pelvis and head. Push the pelvis toward the floor and push the head and elbow toward the ceiling. Follow the coordination of the motion of the pelvis, head and trunk. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. The entire trunk pelvis, spine and thorax- acts together to lengthen or side bend in unison. c-d. Alternate, side bend left, side bend right. Once raise the hip whilst lowering the head and elbow, then lower the hip and lengthen the elbow toward the ceiling. Notice the alternating 'C' shape of the spine- a 'C' shape to the left and then a 'C' shape to the right. Repeat sitting on the right hip. The right and left sides of the trunk (pelvis-lumbar spine-thorax) alternately shorten and lengthen. This is trunk side bending or lengthening-shortening. This alternate action of the spine is reminiscent of the fish and reptile and indeed remains a component of human walking.

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sitting5 - side bending on a chair a.

c.

b.

d.

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sitting6 - hand to foot a. Hand to outside of knee. Sit to the front of a chair with your left hand resting to the outside of your left knee (Figure a). b-c. Slide your left hand down the outside of your left leg toward the ankle (Figure b). Go gently and a little a time. What do you feel in your hips, pelvis and spine? Repeat several times. Rest. Continue and slide the hand as far as comfortable down the outside of your leg toward your ankle. d-e. Slide your left hand down the inside of your left leg. Bring your left hand to the inside of your left knee. Slide your left hand down the inside of your left leg from knee to ankle. f-h. Slide your left hand down the inside of your right leg. Bring your left hand to the inside of your right knee (Figure f). Slide your left hand down the inside of your right leg. Repeat several times. What do you feel in your hips, pelvis and spine? Rest. i. Slide your left hand down the outside of your right leg. Place your left hand to the outside of your right knee (Figure i). Slide your left hand down the outside of your right leg from knee to ankle. Repeat several times. What do you feel in your hips, pelvis and spine? Rest. Repeat all steps with the right hand beginning on the right knee.

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sitting6 - hand to foot a. b. c.

d. e.

f. g. h. i.

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EYES, HEAD & NECK

eye movements1- ‘look up, look down- eyes only’ a. Look straight ahead. Sit in a chair and look straight ahead. b. Look up, eyes only. Keeping your head still look upward with your eyes. Feel the eye balls move in their head socket. c. Look down, eyes only. Keeping your head still look downward with your eyes. Again feel the eyes moving as you look.

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eye movements1- ‘look up, look down - eyes only’ b. eyes only looking up

a. eyes looking straight ahead

c. eyes only looking down

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eye movements2- ‘look up, look down- eyes & head’ a. Look straight ahead. Sit in a chair and look straight ahead (Figure a). b. Look up, eyes & head. Look upward with your eyes and allow your head to move as appropriate (Figure b). Bring your eyes and head back to look straight ahead again. Repeat several times. c. Look down, eyes & head. Look downward with your eyes and allow your head to move as appropriate (Figure c). Bring your eyes and head back to look straight ahead again. Repeat several times. d. Head up, eyes stationery. Keeping your eyes looking straight ahead, tilt you head upward (Figure d). Feel your head move around your still eyes and gaze. e. Head down, eyes stationery. Keeping your eyes looking straight ahead, tilt you head downward (Figure e). Feel your head move around your still eyes and gaze.

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eye movements2- ‘look up, look down - eyes & head, head only’

c. eyes & head looking down

b. eyes & head looking up

a. eyes looking straight ahead

d. head up, eyes straight ahead

e. head down, eyes straight ahead

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eye movements3- ‘eyes left, eyes right’ a. Look left, eyes only. Sit in a chair looking straight ahead (Figure a). Now look to your left with only your eyes. Prevent the head from moving at all. Look back to the front and then again to the left. Repeat several times. Rest. b. Look left, eyes & head. Look you're your left and allow the head to move appropriately (Figure b). Repeat. c. Head left only. Whilst looking straight ahead and keeping your gazed focused straight ahead to the front, turn your head left (Figure c). Eyes remain stationery and your head moves alone. Repeat and rest. d. Eyes & head move opposite. Whilst turning your head to the left, look to the right with your eyes. (Figure d). Your eyes and head move in opposite directions. Go small and slow, make it comfortable. Repeat all of these movements looking to the right. That is, begin with just your eyes looking to the right, then add the head. Third you can keep your to the front whilst the head goes to the right.

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eye movements3- ‘eyes left, eyes right’

a. eyes only look left head remains stationery

b. eyes & head left

c. head only, left eyes remain stationery

d. head left, eyes right

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From Picasso 1930- L'Acrobat

ADVANCED & VARIOUS

rolling fists1 - supine a. Roll arms downward. Lie on the floor on your back with your knees bent and your arms placed out from your sides to shoulder height (Figure a). With your palms up make a gentle fist. Begin by rolling both arms downward and back to rest (Figure a). Repeat several times. What do you feel in you shoulder blades and rib cage? Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. b. Roll arms upward. Bring your arms up again, make a gentle fist and roll the arms upward (Figure b). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. What do you feel in you shoulder blades and rib cage? Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Raise hips & roll arms upward. Roll both arms upward and simultaneously raise your pelvis from the floor (Figure c). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Notice the interaction between the line of the arms (right hand to left) and the line of the spine (head to hips). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. d. Raise head & roll arms downward. Roll both arms downward and raise your head from the floor (Figure d). Observe the combined motion of rolling the arm and raising the head. c-d Alternate: raise hips-roll upward, raise head-roll downward. Once raise the pelvis from the floor as your roll the arms upward and once raise your head as you roll the arms downward (Figure c-d-c-d). Repeat several times. Rest on your back.

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rolling fists1 - supine a.

b.

c.

d.

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rolling fists2 - sitting a. Roll arms downward. Sit to the front a chair or a bench. Raise both arms to the side to shoulder height and make gentle fists (Figure a). Roll both arms downward and let your head tilt and look downward and then return to looking straight ahead (Figure a). Feel the movement in your spine and rib cage. What happens along the back and front of your self? Is there movement of the pelvis on the chair? Go gently smoothly and find a timing between the rolling of the arms and the movement of the spine and pelvis. Repeat several times. Rest. Notice how you sit now. b. Roll arms upward. Raise both arms again to shoulder height with gentle fists and roll both arms upward and look upward and back to neutral (Figure b). Feel what happens in your back all the way down to your pelvis and contact with the chair. Repeat several times. Rest. Notice how you sit now. a-b. Alternate. Once roll the arms down and look down and once roll the arms up and look up. Repeat several times. Rest. Notice how you sit now. c-d. Roll one arm up & one arm down. Raise both arms as before and roll one arm down while you roll the other upward (Figure c-d). Look to the hand that rolls up. Reverse and repeat several times. Rest. Notice how you sit now. e-f. Reach with rolling arm. As you alternately roll one arm up and one arm down, look and reach with the hand that rolls up (Figure e-f). Alternate like this from side to side. Repeat several times. Rest. Notice how you sit now. This entire process can be repeated in standing. This exercise is the quintessential theme for persons suffering from RSI. This exercise clearly shows the relationship of arm to trunk to legs. Arms belong to the body and not just to the shoulder.

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rolling fists2 - sitting

a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

f.

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rolling fists3 - kneeling a. Stand on left knee, right foot. Continued from the previous pages. Stand on both knees to begin. Bring your left foot to standing from this position so that you now stand on your right knee and left foot (Figure a). Bring your arms up with the left arm over your left knee and your right arm above your right foot. The left arm is rolled up and the right arm is rolled down. b. Reach forward. From figure a, reach forward with the left arm (Figure b). The right arm follows the left i.e. both arms reach forward. Feel the weight shift on your knee and foot. What happens at your hips? c-d. Reach backward. Reverse the direction of reach. Reach backward with the right arm leading. Roll the right arm upward and left downward and look to the right hand (Figure d). Feel the weight shift on your knee and foot. What happens at your hips? Repeat forwards and backwards. Reach with the arm rolling upward and the eyes follow the reaching hand. Rest. Repeat with the right knee down and the left foot standing. The right arm will begin facing forward over the right knee. The arm is rolled down and directed backward over the left foot. Alternate reaching forward and backward.

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rolling fists3 - kneeling a.

b.

c.

d.

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hand to knee a. Hand on thigh. Lie on your back with your knees bent and your right hand on your right thigh (Figure a). b. Slide hand to knee. Slide your right hand along the thigh toward the right knee (Figure b). Notice what happens to your shoulder, shoulder blade, spine and ribs. Go gently. Rest. c. Slide hand, raise head. Slide the right hand toward the knee and allow your head to come off the floor (Figure c). What happens in your low back and pelvis? What happens along the length of your spine? What happens to the front of your self? Rest d. Slide hand, raise chin. Place your right hand on your left thigh and reach toward the left knee (Figure d). This time slide the hand with the head remaining on the floor (Figure d). Let only the chin come upward and let the head tilt backward to allow for more reach with the hand. Notice the upper back at the junction of the neck and back- can you feel it rise from the floor. What happens along the length of your spine? What happens in the low back and pelvis? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. e. hand to knee mechanics. This exercise clearly illustrates the sense of vector and forces in movement (Figure e). Reaching with the arm in the downward direction toward the knee results in an upward force from the hip joint, through the pelvis and low back and finally along the mid and upper back. This same force continues on through into the neck. Force vectors along bony segments are a natural occurrence during movement. The human nervous system monitors these force vectors in motor control. hence they motion parameters of motor control. These parameters can be consciously perceived, studied and enhanced.

Force Vectors along skeletal segments = Motion Parameter of the Brain.

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hand to knee

a.

b. slide hand, chin up

c. slide hand, raise head

d.

e.

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hand to foot1 a. Hand to knee. Lie on your back, bend your knees, place your right hand on your right thigh and slide the right hand toward the knee letting your head tilt and pelvis roll (Figure a). Feel what happens between your hip and shoulder joints. b. Foot to knee. Place the sole of your right foot on the instep of your left foot (Figure b). Gently slide your right foot along your left shin toward your left knee. Repeat several times. What do you feel in the hip joints, pelvis and back? What do you feel in your abdomen? If you can reach your left knee with your right foot rest it there. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Rest foot on knee. Bring your right foot on your left knee (Figure c). d. Slide right hand- knee to foot. Bring your right hand to your right knee (Figure d). Slide your right hand from the knee toward your right foot (Figure d). What happens in your shoulder and chest? What happens along the length of your spine? What happens to the pelvis and low back? Repeat several times. If you can reach your right foot do so and feel your foot. Reach only as far as is comfortable. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. e. Hand to foot. The foot comes away from the floor as before in the direction of the left knee and beyond. The two hands reach toward the right foot. Take a hold of your right foot if you can. Take a hold anywhere along the lower leg if you can't reach the foot. Let go and return the foot and arms to the floor. Repeat several times. Feel what happens in your back. How does the contact with the floor change? Are there any vertebrae more prominent in your awareness? Leave the head down. Rest. f. Hand to foot mechanics. Reaching for the foot in this manner requires the trunk to flex or round (Figure f). The shoulders raise from the floor and the upper back also flexes. The pelvis raises from the floor and rounds. The middle to lower back pushes into the floor. Hence all trunk segments participate and again force vectors occur along the length of the spine.

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hand to foot1 a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

f.

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hand to foot2 a. Right hand on thigh. Lie on your back with knees bent and your right hand on the right knee (Figure a). b. Hand to knee- knee to hand. Raise your right foot from the floor to bring your right knee over your abdomen (Figure b). At the same time slide your right hand along your right thigh toward and beyond the knee. Repeat several times. What do you feel in your pelvis and low back? Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Hand toward ankle. Repeat this motion and begin to straighten your knee as you bring it over your abdomen (Figure c). The hand slides along the lower leg toward the ankle. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. d. Both hands to ankle. Repeat this again using both hands either side of the right leg (Figure d). What happens in your abdomen, low back and pelvis to do this motion? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Repeat with the left leg.

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hand to foot2

a.

b.

c.

d.

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hand to foot3 a. Hands to foot. Bring both hands to grasp your right foot or anywhere toward the ankle along the lower leg (Figure a). This page follows the previous two pages and is best explored after these previous pages. b. Straighten knee to ceiling. Take a hold of your right foot (or anywhere along the length of your shin or foot as comfortable) with your right and left hands as in figure a (you can also do this with one hand-right or left), and begin to straighten your right knee toward the ceiling (Figure b). Notice what you feel in your back- what parts presses into the floor and what parts raise from the floor. What do you feel in your abdominal wall? Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Push hands & foot to ceiling. Take a hold of your right foot or lower leg with both hands and straighten the knee as before. In this stretched position push your feet and hands toward the ceiling by lifting the pelvis and shoulder from the floor (Figure c). In step b it is possible to straighten the knee using mostly the hip and shoulder joints. Step c demands the use of the trunk. With the hip and shoulders at a limit, the trunk then can flex to take the feet and hands closer to the ceiling. d. Rock up and down. Bring your hands to your right foot. Stretch to the ceiling as in step c. Remain in this position and begin to rock up and down along the length of your spine (Figure d). The back is rounded like a rocking chair- rock along this shape. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. e-f. Rock right & left. Begin as in step d. Rock the arms, legs and body to the right (Figure e) and then to the left (Figure f). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. Repeat with the other leg.

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hand to foot3 a.

c. b.

d.

e.

f.

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side bend in sitting a. Rest on your right elbow. Sit on the floor with weight on your right elbow (Figure a). Knees are bent to the right with your left knee near your right foot (Figure a). Place your left hand over your head with finger tips reaching the top of your right ear (Figure a). b1. Left elbow to pelvis. Tilt your head to the left so that your head comes toward your left hip and back to neutral (Figure b1). Repeat. What do you feel along the length of your spine and along your sides? What does your pelvis do? Repeat several times. Rest. b2. Pelvis to left elbow shorten your left side. Continue to tilt your head to the left and back. As your head comes toward your hip let your pelvis come up toward your elbow (Figure b2). Repeat several times. Rest. c. Lengthen the left side. As you then tilt your head to the right let your pelvis roll away from your head (Figure c). Repeat in this way alternating bending your spine once to the right and once to the left (Figure b-c). Repeat with your left leg straightened- feel the trunk drive the leg.. There are many motion parameters to bring attention to in this exercise. Observe what happens to your sides: 1. Thorax opening and closing. What does your rib cage do? Can you sense your rib cage as a large spring alternately bending left and right or opening and closing? 2. Lengthening and shortening of your sides. What happens to the length of your sides? Notice that when the right side becomes long the left side shortens. Observe lengthening and shortening of your sides. 3. Translation of your middle. Think of the middle of yourself on the right translating toward the floor and the middle of yourself on the left translating toward the ceiling (Figure b-c). 4. Pelvis leads the motion. Observe the motion of the pelvis as rotates left and right. In fact, for several times make the pelvic action the driving force of the motion rolling as close to the head as possible and as far from the head as possible. 5. Head and pelvis. Observe the head and pelvis relations, i.e. observe the head and pelvis moving smoothly opposite and then together in the same direction. 6. Whole self. Can you sense all of these parameters at once? d-e. Repeat the same motion with your weight on your right hand and a straightened elbow (Figure d-e). Rest. Repeat to the opposite side i.e. weight on your left elbow. Again, as previously stated, human walking involves side bending as a critical motion (Inman et al 1981, Chan et al 2006) which becomes exaggerated and most evident when ascending and descending stairs (Krebs et al 1992). page 181

side bend in sitting a.

b1.

c. b2.

d. e.

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hip and trunk coordination a. Slide foot to side. Stand on your hands and knees (Figure a). Slide your left foot to the left across the floor and back again (Figure a). Notice what happens at the hip joint and spine. Repeat several times. Rest. b. Bring head and foot to side. Slide the left foot to the left and bring your head around to look over the left shoulder to see the left foot (Figure b). Feel what happens along the length of your spine. Repeat several times. Rest. c. Slide both feet to side. Bring your knees and feet together and slide both feet to the left (Figure c). Repeat several times. Rest. Repeat to the right. d. Both feet & head to side. Slide both feet to the left and look at the feet (Figure d). Then slide the feet and head to the right. Alternate side to side. Repeat with the other leg.

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hip and trunk coordination a. one leg slide to side

b. head turns with one leg slide to side

c.

d.

two legs slide to side

head and two legs

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walking on hands and knees a. Stand on your hands and knees (Figure a). Your hands are directly beneath your shoulders. Your hips are directly above your knees. b. Raise left knee. Raise your left knee from the floor by raising your left hip toward the ceiling (Figure b). Notice that the toes stay on the floor and can push into the floor to help raise the knee. Think of raising the left hip toward the ceiling- directly straight up toward the ceiling.. Notice what happens at the hip joint, pelvis and spine. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c. Raise right hand & shoulder. Raise your right hand from the floor by lifting your right shoulder toward the ceiling (Figure c). You can think of raising the right shoulder toward the ceiling. The whole arm lifts from the floor and the elbow stay straight. Observe what happens in your back. Repeat several times. d. Raise shoulder and left hip simultaneously. Raise both the right shoulder and left hip simultaneously (Figure d). Feel what happens between your right shoulder and left hip. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. This is walking on your hands and knees or at least it is the trunk action of walking on your hands and knees. If as you raise your hand and foot you then take a step a forward with these limbs you are walking. Repeat with the right knee and left shoulder. Then actually walk on hands and knees. Feel the motion of your trunk as you walk. Recall watching a big cat stalk and animal and how the shoulder blades protrude with the advance.

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walking on hands and knees a.

b.

c.

d.

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weight bearing hand and foot a. Stand on left hand and foot. Lie on your back with your left knee bent (Figure a). Place your left hand palm facing down on the floor and figure tips pointing toward the feet (Figure a). b. Push with left foot & leg to raise left hip. In this position, push down with your left foot and raise your left hip a little (Figure b). Think of raising the left hip to roll onto the right hip. Lift and roll the left hip several times. The knee must stay vertical i.e. it remains still and does not tilt. Observe what you feel in your left leg and hip. What happens in the spine? Feel the connection from the foot, through the ankle, knee and hip then into the spine. c. Push with hand & arm to raise left shoulder. Begin in the same position as in a-b. Push with the left foot and raise the left hip but now also push with the left hand and raise the left shoulder (Figure c). Push equally with the left hip and left shoulder. Continue and gradually extend the motion. Begin to bring the back of your head around and toward the left heel as you extend the motion (Figure c). So push with the foot and roll the hips, push with the hand and roll the shoulders and roll and slide you backward under your left shoulder. Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. d. Bring head back under left shoulder. Repeats steps a to c. At the same time bring your head further backward under your left shoulder and toward your left heel (Figure d). e. Weight bearing on hand, arm, leg and foot. You are weight bearing through both the hand and the foot. Each limb pushes against the earth. Notice what happen between the left hip and shoulder. Notice the force along the length of the spine. Notice the connection along the entire length of the skeleton hand through spine to foot (Figure e). There are all three skeletal segments weight bearing - the foot and leg, the hand and arm and the spine. f. Trunk extension. Observe also the extension of the trunk and neck as the head rotates and slides around toward your tail bone (Figure f). You can bring your attention to the head and tail bone relationship- everything in between is extending and arching along this entire length. Your head and neck extend along with spinal extension. Here is a example of the united functional behavior of the spine- the head extends with the neck and back and not just the neck. Notice the front of yourself getting longer as the back shortens.

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weight bearing hand and foot a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

f.

c. c.

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“dead bird” a. Side sit with weight on left hand. Sit on the floor with your knees bent to the left and weight on your left hand (Figure a). Bring your right hand to be in front of your face at 6-8 inches from your nose (Figure a). Let your right hand hang so the wrist is relaxed and the arm then looks like a “dead bird” or a “broken wing” and hence the name of this lesson. b. Look and twist. Side sit as in Figure a. Keep the head, arm and hand as one unit so as you twist and look around to the left. Your right wrist remains in front of your nose (Figure b). Repeat several times. Rest on your back. Notice the contact of your back with the floor. c-d. Look left and right. Sit again and place both hands on the floor near your left thigh (Figure c). Look to the right turning your head and shoulders and back (Figure c) then to the left (Figure d). e-f. Look up, look down. Look up to the ceiling (Figure e) and look down to the floor (Figure f). What do you notice in your back to look up and down in this position? What happens along the front of your self? What happens along the back of your self? What does the pelvis do?

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“dead bird” a. b.

c.

d.

e. f.

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