The Alexander Technique is often misunderstood. It’s not about exercises, posture training, mindfulness, massage, manipulation, or meditation. So, what exactly is it?
Understanding the Alexander Technique
The Alexander Technique is a holistic system designed to restore optimal health by addressing the mind-body unity. It helps individuals stop interfering with their natural postural mechanisms and consciously restore themselves from unhelpful movement and behavior habits, fight-or-flight patterns, and other detrimental tendencies. By doing so, it enables people to perform and function at their best—mind, body, and muscles working together harmoniously.
The Core Principle
At its core, the Alexander Technique is about changing your thinking to change your body and behavior. It operates on the principle that our mind and body are interconnected. Unconscious habits can hold us back, making us stiff or keeping us stuck in the same patterns. Through Alexander’s discoveries and his incredible Technique, you can learn to release these habits and discover new paths to flow, ease, and freedom.
Thinking, Not Moving
One of the fundamental aspects of the Alexander Technique is the exploration of “thinking, not moving.” This means that before making any physical movement, we focus on our thoughts : to Not do our habit, to optimise our physical selves, not micro-managing our movements and restoring natural ways of being and doing to achieve our goals whilst taking good care of ourselves at every step. By changing the way we think about our movements, we can influence how our body responds. So by changing the way ‘the whole of us is’ our symptoms can get addressed through the systemic lens.
Thinking and Choosing
The next step involves “thinking and choosing.” This is about making conscious choices regarding how we restore ease, then how we move and be our full selves. Instead of reacting automatically, we learn to stop/refrain from reactivity and choose a more beneficial way of using our mind-body.
Thinking Indirectly
“Thinking indirectly” may sound confusing, but it’s crucial. It involves using our consciousness to indirectly influence our whole state. For instance, rather than trying to force our body into a certain posture, we think about lengthening and widening and gently unfurling back to our full height and width, which indirectly improves our posture and reduces tension. Alexander discovered that attempts to ‘do better posture’ actually increased tension and strain. So we work indirectly, and from the whole of us, AND then the parts.
The Importance of Lessons
While it’s possible to grasp the basic concepts and principles of the Alexander Technique through reading and self-study, lessons with a trained teacher—either online or in person—are essential for your best outcomes. A skilled teacher can provide the necessary feedback and guidance to help you recognize and release unconscious habits, allowing you to experience the benefits more fully. As a Society of the Technique of the Alexander Technique, I have a 3 year, full-time training which includes anatomy and physiology, hands-on work, and best theory and practice.
The Benefits
By integrating the Alexander Technique into your life, you can:
- Enhance Performance: Whether in sports, music, or everyday activities, you can perform with greater ease and efficiency.
- Reduce Pain and Tension: Many people experience relief from chronic pain and tension by learning to move more freely and naturally.
- Improve Posture and Balance: Rather than forcing yourself into a rigid posture, you’ll develop a balanced, dynamic posture that supports your natural alignment.
These are the fundamental basis for all subsequent movements and activities.
Conclusion
The Alexander Technique is a powerful tool for improving your overall well-being by addressing the interconnectedness of mind and body. It’s about changing your thinking to change your behavior and physical state. Through this technique, you can release unhelpful habits and discover new ways of moving and living with ease and freedom. To fully benefit from the Alexander Technique, seek lessons with a trained teacher who can guide you on this transformative journey.
If you’d like to have a chat and see if this is the best approach for you, book a call now https://lucyascham.com/whats-on/ and I look forward to speaking you and guiding you on your next step.
