Awareness Through Movement Guidelines

How to do Feldenkrais Awareness Through Movement Exercises

The main aspect to doing these exercises is to keep them gentle and relaxed.

This enhances the capacity of your nervous system to notice fine distinctions and learn new ways of being organized. In fact we call these Awareness Through Movement exercises: 'Lessons'.

They are usually done lying on the floor. This releases many of your habitual holding patterns within the field of gravity and frees you up for new patterns to be developed. You are guided through very specific movements designed to both free up movement and help you to become aware of how you move: hence the term: Awareness Through Movement.

The following points will enhance your experience and results. You don't have to do each of these Awareness Through Movement processes for each repetition or phase of the lesson, just attend to them periodically as you feel like it:

• Do slow gentle repetitions
• Stay well within your range of movement
• Visualize the movement before you physically engage in it
• Put your mind inside your body - preferably the skeleton - as you do the movements. Can you sense particular parts of your body in movement. This is very useful for any Feldenkrais lesson.
• Unless otherwise directed, repeat each movement 12 - 20 times if easy. Then have a short rest and do another series of repetitions.
• With each movement there are often points of attention provided - sensing what parts of the body are involved and such like. These direct your nervous system for optimal results.
• If an aspect or a particular part of a lesson is challenging, difficult or tight do it with your imagination.
• Do each movement slowly - very slowly.
• Remember you are working through the nervous system - not the muscles.
• Slow movement releases tension.
• Occasionally see yourself walking or doing your normal activities as you are resting during the exercises. This brings your enhanced capacity into your everyday ability.
• Have regular rests. Remember, these are to enable your nervous system to remain focused and aware rather than for your muscles.
• Wear loose comfortable clothing.
• Pay particular attention to the jaw and your breathing. Keep everything relaxed and loose. This can be challenging when the particular Awareness Through Movement lesson is focusing on the legs for example.
• Do the movements well and your nervous system and your skeletal structure will become well organized.
• If your mind begins to wander, consider leaving the exercise and coming back to it later.
• You still get great benefit from the exercises if you are not focused or if you are tired.
• You can take individual aspects of any Awareness Through Movement exercise and do them in isolation. This is good for 5 minute versions of the exercises. A great way to continue deriving the benefits from the method throughout the day.
• There is no 'use by date' with the exercises. You can do any one of them any number of times, for the rest of your life and continue to benefit from them.
• The more awareness you bring to the exercise the more you gain from it.
• The more you do the Awareness Through Movement exercises the more you are able to bring awareness to them.
• It is OK to be slow but don't go fast or you are not allowing your nervous system maximum opportunity for you to benefit from the exercise.
• Do the Awareness Through Movement exercises on a reasonably firm surface. The benefits can be limited if you do them on too soft a base like a mattress.

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