Meditation is often misunderstood as sitting still—holding oneself upright, maintaining focus through effort, striving to get it “right.” But the Alexander Technique offers a different approach. What if sitting is not a fixed position; what if it is a dynamic experience of balance, breath, and natural support?
When we stop trying to control posture and instead allow ourselves to be fully present, the body begins to reorganize itself—not through force, but through ease.
No Effort Required—Trusting the Body’s Natural Support
Good posture doesn’t come from holding yourself rigid or pulling your shoulders back. It emerges when your bones recognize their support, allowing the muscles closest to the skeleton—your deep, ‘red-meat’ muscles—to work efficiently without unnecessary tension. These inner muscles are designed for stamina, effortlessly keeping your wobbly head balanced atop your curving, springy spine. No extra effort or strain is needed.
This is the way nature intended movement. Consider animals: a cat at rest does not brace itself against the ground, nor does it artificially straighten its back or tuck in its chin. No self-respecting mammal works against itself this way. So why should we?
Releasing Habitual Holding—Letting Go Instead of “Fixing”
We often believe that stillness requires control—that sitting in meditation means holding the body in a particular way. But the Alexander Technique teaches us that real balance comes when we let go of habitual holding, rather than adding more tension.
Pushing your shoulders back, forcing your spine straight, fixing your chin in place—these are habits of effort that do not create ease. In nature, there are no straight lines; everything moves in curves, spirals, and waves. When you stop trying to “correct” yourself and instead allow support to flow through your system, you begin to experience the freedom of natural balance.
Gravity as a Supportive Force
Rather than seeing gravity as something to fight against, the Alexander Technique encourages us to recognize it as our ally. Gravity is not pulling you down—it is offering a foundation upon which you can rest. And just as gravity supports you downward, an equal and opposite force allows you to expand upward effortlessly.
Sitting becomes less about maintaining a position and more about receiving this natural flow of support. Your spine lengthens—not because you straighten it, but because it is free to expand in all directions.
The work is about not-interfering with nature. Staying present to the subtle hints and clues from our body-awareness and redirecting ourselves back towards support and ongoing balancing.
Wholeness—Resting Up, Resting Down
Meditation is not just about breath or awareness; it is about fully being in the body—front, back, sides, upward, downward, inside and outside – all together.
Instead of tightening into position, try allowing movement even in stillness. Let the breath move through you, let your bones settle into support, let your mind follow the ease of your body.
Stop trying. See what happens when you simply allow. Experience what it’s like to be lighter, freer, more naturally present.
Words can only offer an idea of this experience. But just as swimming can’t be fully understood by reading about it, Alexander’s principles must be felt. Give yourself the opportunity to explore what effortless balance truly means—for meditation, and for life.
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