Photo by Egor Myznik
November 11, 2022
Understanding Sitting through the Feldenkrais Method®
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From the Editors
Americans spend more hours per day sitting than anytime in history and similar trends can be found around the world. In addition to the health consequences of this sedentary activity, many people have little understanding of how to sit comfortably. Feldenkrais® practitioners help their clients cultivate the skills and self-awareness that are necessary to create an upright sitting posture that is supported by the skeleton rather than a backrest.
Once sitting is more functional this posture can become more dynamic, a source for potential action rather than just a static position. In this issue, four Feldenkrais practitioners share their unique perspectives on how to wake up the vitality of your sitting. Taro Iwamoto celebrates the benefits of sitting on the floor. Nick Strauss-Klein shares practical advice for improving sitting in a chair - or a car seat! Pamela Beets describes how a rider uses their ‘seat’ to communicate with a horse. Shari Lee invites readers into a creative exploration to improve sitting through movement and the imagination.
Jane, Joe and Seth
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Should We All Be Sitting on the Floor More?
An Interview with Taro Iwamoto, GCFPCM
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This month Seth Dellinger interviews Taro Iwamoto about the benefits of sitting on the floor and how to get down there if it's been a long time since the last time you tried!
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About Taro:
Taro Iwamoto is a movement coach with backgrounds in Feldenkrais Method®, athletic training, physical rehabilitation, and various martial arts. He specializes in helping people go from feeling overwhelmed, confused, and frustrated about not knowing their own body to feeling connected from the inside out and moving comfortably so that they can navigate through the world with confidence, comfort, and authenticity.
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Building Better Sitting Habits, Even In Your Car
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Photo by Why Kei
By Nick Strauss-Klein, GCFPCM
For many people sitting and driving — two of our most common activities — are frequently challenging, or even painful. As a Feldenkrais® teacher I’ve noticed that most of my students who find sitting uncomfortable have the idea that if they could just find the “right” chair and the “right” way to sit in that chair they would be able to engage in sedentary activities for hours without moving.
I’ve been there, too. As a college student I was studying to become a concert pianist. My planned career required me to sit on a piano bench for 3-5 hours a day. I was rarely comfortable, but I hunkered down in the one position I knew, accepted the pain, and got my practice hours in.
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About Nick:
Nick Strauss-Klein has studied and taught the Feldenkrais Method® since 2000 in New York City, Baltimore, Minnesota, and Israel. His website, The Feldenkrais Project, offers free study to thousands of monthly listeners in the form of live class recordings, edited with the home user in mind. He has led thousands of hours of classes and workshops at premier health clubs and fitness centers in Manhattan and the Twin Cities, Minnesota.Since 2009 he has been the director of Twin Cities Feldenkrais, LLC in MN, USA.
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Photo by Sergiu Valena
By Pamela Beets, GCFPCM
Horses and riding are my lifelong passion. One of my first memories of horses was sitting on my neighbor's horse as a very young child. Every time my parents tried to take me off the horse I would cry! There was an immediate electric connection between the two of us. As a child all I wanted was to sit on that horse, and riding horses is all I have wanted to do ever since. I have been riding since I was 9 and, with my own horses, I often trail rode over 50 miles a week, which is many hours of sitting in the saddle. So of course when I think of sitting, I think of sitting on a horse.
I was first introduced to the Feldenkrais Method® at a Linda Tellington-Jones equine clinic. I was intrigued and began my Feldenkrais Method training in 1987. My practice began to develop working with people who had serious injuries and wanted to recover their ability and reduce pain and discomfort. Many were equestrians. With my background in riding and horses I understood the desire to ride and the movement necessary to ride and focused on sessions that were specific to riding.
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About Pamela:
Pamela Beets is a Feldenkrais® practitioner with three decades of experience. She specializes in working with equestrians at all levels as well as their horses. She has worked with Linda Tellington-Jones, the creator of Tellington TTouch® and also studied with Sally Swift, founder of Centered Riding®. Pamela has worked with Olympic medalist equestrians and presented The Feldenkrais Method and TTouch® to groups and organizations including the Colorado Holistic Nurses Association, Colorado State University Veterinary Holistic Students, Rocky Mountain Dressage Society & The International Certified Horsemanship Conference.
If you would like to find out more about Pamela and the ways that she could help you please contact her via email: 2bewell@ecentral.com
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Kayaks, Horses and Chairs . . . Oh My!Sit Dynamically for Comfort, Power and Adventure!
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Photo by Christian Bowen
By Shari Lee, GCFPCM
In this article I’ll share with you some ideas to enhance your self awareness and some steps to help you sit more comfortably and improve your performance in athletic and recreational activities that involve seated positions.
My own experience of injury and chronic back pain resulted in my inability to participate in the adventuresome athletic activities I’d built my life around. My determination to reclaim my life led me to become a Feldenkrais® Practitioner, an ergonomic consultant and to develop and lead Feldenkrais Retreats and Eco-Adventures throughout the world to help others develop their skills and regain the confidence to fully participate in life!
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About Shari:
Shari Lee is a Feldenkrais® practitioner with nearly three decades of experience who combines her love of the outdoors and adventure with her teaching. A former professional ski and windsurfing instructor, today she is a wilderness guide and naturalist, leading sea kayaking, hiking, rafting and canoeing trips in Alaska and Norway. Shari offers diverse Feldenkrais® programs, retreats and eco-adventures throughout the world that combine freedom of movement with the beauty and healing power of the great outdoors. Her website is https://www.feldenkraisjourneys.com/
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- Shari Lee is offering her Crystal Seas & Manatees Retreat in Florida February 19-25, 2023. Visit her website for updates.
- Check out Nick Strauss-Klein’s checklist of dynamic sitting principles.
Click here to read.
- Dynamic Sitting and Chair Clock, an Awareness Through Movement® lesson from Nick Strauss-Klein Click here to listen.
- Taro Iwamoto demonstrates the benefits of sitting on the floor in this video - and how to adapt to floor sitting if you're not used to it. Click here to watch.
- An Introduction to Easy Sitting, an Awareness Through Movement® lesson from David Zemach-Bersin. Click here to listen.
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