Notes on the Alexander Technique

High Heels and Poor Posture
Victoria Beckham has been having Alexander Technique lessons due to her poor posture from years of wearing high heels. This tips the pelvis forward and makes the back muscles have to work a lot harder. But I hope that 3 year old Suri Cruise does not become a trendsetter for kids in the States as she is already wearing heels - slipping over in them too. This is a total postural disaster for a child with growing bones and muscles.
16 December 2009

Texting
Many people bend their heads down to look at their mobiles. I fear there may be a condition called "mobile phone neck" soon as our heads are very heavy - about the weight of 5 bags of sugar. Instead, we can bring the phone up to our eyes to save strain on the neck and spine.
16 November 2009

Tongue Twisters
The tongue is actually a muscle and we tend to be habitual in the way we talk and use our voice with was Alexander's great discovery. It can be fun to play with tongue twisters to exercise the tongue and mouth. Here are some to use:

• That bloke's back bike brake-block broke
• Girl gargoyle, guy gargoyle
• A proper cup of coffee from a proper copper coffee pot
• She stood on the balcony inexplicably mimicking him hiccupping, and amicably welcoming him home
• A tutor who tooted the flute tried to tutor two tooters to toot. Said the two to the tutor: "Is it harder to toot or to tutor two tooters to toot?"
• Lesser leather never weathered wetter weather better
• Give Mr. Snipe’s wife’s knife a swipe
• Sixish. Sixish. Sixish
• A fat thrush flies through thick fog - particularly hard for London accents!
• She was a thistle sifter and sifted thistles through a thistle sieve

Roger Federer - great postural use
As well as now holding the record of 15 Grand Slam titles, Roger Federer has also reached 21 consecutive Grand Slam semi-finals and he says "it shows how consistent and injury-free I've been". He is an excellent example of good natural postural use and it should not be underestimated how this has helped him keep in such good order. His head neck back relationship is excellent and he has great natural width across the shoulders. He also wastes no energy between shots. When sitting between points, he sits upright in a very balanced way, not slumping or hanging his head - both of which put a strain on the back. In essence, he has great poise and bearing that is a joy to watch.
7 July 2009

Gripping
Many people have a tendency to grip things too hard. For example, when you are cleaning your teeth, notice if you are gripping the toothbrush too much and see if you can use less effort. The same question can be asked of many things: holding a pen to write with, a knife and fork, a reading book, the car steering wheel. Observe the tension that builds up in the shoulders, arms and neck when gripping too hard and see if you can do less.
25 March 2009

Glasses - on and off
When people put on a pair of glasses/spectacles, they often nod their head down. The same for taking them off. Instead, without holding the head and neck rigidly, they could lift the glasses up to place them on their ears and lift the glasses up first to take them off the ears.
24 February 2009

The Computer Mouse
When you are using the computer, notice if your hand or finger stays positioned on the mouse even if you are not using it. Is your finger poised to click at any moment? If so, this can be keeping tension in your muscles, particularly the muscles of the hand, arm, shoulder and neck. Instead, see what it is like to rest your hand on the desk or on your lap, turning it upwards.
6 November 2008

Stopping for a Moment
As you are reading this, take a moment to look away from the computer, ideally out of the window. Notice all the different colours that are around. Don't forget to breathe. Hopefully, by looking around and relaxing and stopping for a few seconds, you may have even taken a deeper breath automatically.
27 October 2008

NHS trial on back pain
The results from a major NHS trial have finally come through today to show that the Alexander Technique has a significant effect on lower back pain. A team from the universities of Bristol and Southampton compared the effectiveness of massage, exercise (mainly 30 minutes of brisk walking or the equivalent) and the Alexander Technique in 579 patients with back pain. Those who had received 24 lessons in the Alexander Technique reported 18 fewer days of back pain over four weeks compared with those who had been taking exercise alone, according to the study published online by the British Medical Journal today. This has generated a lot of press and has been a top news item on the BBC news as well as getting attention from all major newspapers.
20 August 2008

Not reacting
We are very quick to react to things, such as answering the phone as soon as we hear it ringing. One top tip is to count to 3. This gives us a chance to quieten our reaction and have a thought about ourselves and our bodies. Another example of this is when a child is crying and wants to be picked up. By counting out loud "one, two, three", the child knows it will get attention after the pause and the parent or carer gets a moment to think about themselves first and to be less tense, thus not putting themselves at such a risk of hurting their back.
28 July 2008

The eyes
Our eyes can hold tension, particularly when looking at a computer screen for long periods of time. One thing to help soften the eyes is to remember to use the peripheral vision from time to time. Every 20 minutes or so, look at something further away, out of the window if possible. Be aware of everything you can see - to the sides, above and below our "normal" way of looking at something. It won't all be sharp but it gives the eye muscles a break. Try to make sure your neck keeps free and doesn't stiffen or tighten as you look out.
23 June 2008

Olympic Gold for FM Alexander
At the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Great Britain's rowing coxless four team won gold. Two of these four had been having Alexander lessons. Rowers spend many hours training - lifting weights and rowing. The muscle shortening that can occur sometimes leads to injuries such as fractured ribs. They also pull their heads back when lifting weights which then interferes with the length and strength of their back. On the river, rowers' misuse can be very poor, with chronically collapsed spines through bending at the waist and tightening the abdominal muscles rather than pivoting forward using the hip joint. Colleagues, Caroline Chisholm and Patrick Pearson, spent many hours teaching 9 members of the rowing squad Alexander principles such as how to be more attuned to changes in muscle tone. They learned ways of relaxing in a thoughtful way which could then calm their immune system and discovered how to inhibit, or stop, harmful habits and reflexes, enabling them to make longer and more powerful strokes.
16 June 2008

How much do you know about the human body?
I've come across a great page on the BBC website where you can learn more about the body. It's interactive and you can drag and drop different bits of the body - eg bones, muscles, organs - onto a torso and see how well you know what goes where. Click here to discover more.
2 June 2008

Connection between physical and emotional problems
An article in the Times appeared a couple of weeks ago looking at how there is more to the Alexander Technique than bad backs and poor posture. Please click here to read more.
5 May 2008

What a lot of weather we're having
We seem to be having a lot of weather at the moment. With frequent rain showers and cold spells, the temptation can be to hunch our shoulders up, pull our arms around us and tuck our heads in. Does this make any difference to how cold or wet we get? Often not. But it does make a difference to our posture and tightness in the body.
1 May 2008

Up or Down
We tend to think downwards quite a lot. We may be lost in thought, looking at a computer screen, cooking or eating, reading or writing, or looking after children. Often, this thinking makes us "pull down" or collapse. As an experiment, try thinking about the space above your head. This is literally just a thought. Nothing to do. No need to tip the head back. Just a thought about the space above your head.
21 April 2008

"Should" versus "Could"
We use the word "should" a lot but I do not find it to be a very inspiring or empowering word. It seems a way of telling ourselves off or giving us yet another thing to do. But surely this just makes us a bit more tense and tightens our neck. I prefer "could". This is a lighter word, full of possibility. So when an Alexander pupil says something like "I should do more lying down", the idea of "I could lie down more" makes for a much more inviting prospect.
17 April 2008

© Tanya Shoop 2009