Articles in Posture
One of the problems of trying to achieve ‘good posture’, or ‘perfect posture’ is that these terms imply rigidity. Some Alexander Technique teachers attempt to avoid the word posture altogether, calling it the ‘P’ word.
One could learn to have ‘good posture’ in a few minutes, especially if you think of military posture. Military posture is standing up as straight as possible, with your stomach in, chest out, chin tucked in, shoulders back…
…The Alexander Technique is the good news. I teach, show, and coach almost everyone who comes to me how to use the computer without injury. If people are in pain already I teach them how to stop injuring themselves, and the steps to take to allow the body to heal. You could try it right now. See if you can notice any neck tension. It’s there, though you may not be able to sense it at this point. You can learn to let these muscles go. If you release your neck muscles, your head will rotate forward, and move up. You could think this way: I want my neck to be free so that my head will move forward and up. This ‘forward’ business doesn’t mean forward as in your face moving towards the screen…
The stresses and strains of modern living, combined with the ubiquity of the computer, cell phone, blackberry etc., seem to draw us in, collapsing us forward and down and giving us one version of bad posture . (Another version of bad posture would be sitting up rigidly straight. That doesn’t work because it won’t be maintained, and it’s not helpful to add extra tension. Sitting or standing up straight usually means military posture.)
So as not to smash our faces into the screen, desk, or floor…
What are you doing right now as you’re sitting and reading this? I’ll assume you’re sitting and reading right now.
If you are sitting, where is your face? I mean, is it poking towards the computer screen? A clearer way to think about this is that you’re poking your neck towards the screen; your face is going along for the ride. We tend to poke our necks forward and down; compressing. The muscles in our necks are working harder than necessary. It would be better…
The Many Moods of Trip
Great picture, right? We Alexander Technique Teachers go on and on about good use, poise, ease, but you know what? These kids’ habits haven’t been formed, and they’re having a blast. …
One area people ask me about most concerns computer posture. We tend to collapse down in front, poking our necks, faces and upper chest towards the screen. Sound familiar? Feel familiar? How about right now?… What we want is for our necks to be free of excess tension, so that our head can move up. Tension shortens our neck, bringing the head back and down. We want the head to move forward (rotationally) and up. A simple way to achieve this forward rotation is to slightly, slowly lower your nose, while the crown of your head moves up. At the same time…
1. Head in the clouds; feet on the earth. Think of the opposition of your head moving up, while your feet are releasing down. If you’re sitting, think of your head moving up and your …
Alexander Technique lessons in New York City, 2009, have a lot in common with the Alexander Technique of the early 1900’s. Slumping and slouching are still alive and well…
There have probably been 5000 articles written with the title ‘Your Mother Was Right’, when it comes to posture. The articles imply that mothers tell their children to ‘sit up straight!’ and that’s a good thing…or is it?
‘P‘ words seemp to have have an important and prominent place in the Alexander Technique, precisely why there’ll be a pot-pourri of p’s permeating and peppering this perfunctory post.
It’s plausible to think the Alexander Technique is about particular positions, poses or appearances but more precisely…

