The Secret to Using Your Body

Finally the regular book is out! You can buy it here – The Secret to Using Your Body (paperback version)

Yes, you can print it. Remember, you usually only need two pages at a time.

Contact me and I will help you or send you a copy by email.

The Secret to Using Your Body will help you put into practice the idea that movement and posture are not a series of different positions or activities (sitting, standing, walking, bending, playing sports), but actually a continuum of one thing that remains remarkably similar no matter what you are doing. This knowledge will help you stand taller, improve the way you move, feel more space within your body and less excess tension, and allow you greater access to your intrinsic strength, agility and stability.

The Secret to Using Your Body presents a unique experiential exercise for learning the basic concepts of the Alexander Technique. The exercise is cumulative and designed to be learned over a period of weeks or months. Even though the exercise gets longer as you learn it, the time needed for each practice session can remain the same. Once you learn the exercise and understand how it (the exercise) works, you may decide that simply thinking about it is enough or you can choose to continue practicing it however you choose for reinforcement or greater insight.

You can benefit on the first day. From the beginning to the end, the exercise asks you to take a few minutes to think about your body in a new way. Many people find that even just taking that time is beneficial. But every day you approach the exercise will also give you an opportunity to change how you experience your body. Everyone is different, but if you take your time and use the exercise as a chance to experience something new, and follow the instructions, your opportunity for gaining lasting benefits will grow with each practice session.

Yes, you can contact me if you have any questions and I would also look forward to hearing about your experience.

Private lessons are the traditional route for learning the Alexander Technique, but still many students wish they had something more tangible like a book with an exercise. Even with a teacher, learning the Alexander Technique is ultimately about what the student does on their own. The Secret to Using Your Body doesn’t replace Alexander lessons, it is simply another option that you can use with or without lessons or classes.

I am a big of fan fitness exercising and lifting weights, but everyone knows people with good posture who never exercise and others who exercise but still have poor posture. There are also more pleasurable and more effective ways to improving posture and movement than pulling your shoulders back and your tummy in as many fitness trainers recommend. These methods make you more stiff, impede breathing, increase internal tension, and feel uncomfortable. The Secret to Using Your Body can actually help you get more out of your fitness exercises.

Ultimately, the Alexander Technique, and this book, is a tool for self-discovery and breaking habits. Habits of posture and movement are part of the fabric of your life, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be changed. Indeed, habits are one of the few things in our lives that we can change. But it will take some patience, willingness and desire. Maybe the relief of your posture-related pain, the desire to improve your golf game, or even your appearance, will encourage you to keep at it.