How to Wake up before you get up

Waking Up vs. Getting Up
Waking Up as an Awareness Game
Moving in your Chair as an Awareness Game
Neck, eyes and toes and the delight of Now?

When you wake up in the morning, how could you activate your awareness and ease before you get up in your body?

Here’s a quick and easy way:

Movement One: Move your head easily right and left.

Breathe and enjoy this.

Feel/ sense the back of your head moving on the bed.

Feel/ sense your neck moving.

Always go less rather than more.

Always go slow rather than fast.

Always go with ease rather than effort.

Do this eight times.

Smile.

Rest.

Later we can add on sensing the right leg, right arm, left arm, left leg as part of this.

For now though:

ROTATE YOUR HEAD EASILY RIGHT AND LEFT AT LEAST EIGHT TIMES.

Are you doing this sitting or standing, too?

If yes, good.

If no, great, and ….do it.

The neck is integral to survival of the human species. For millions of years, those who could pay better attention side to side survived far better than those who couldn’t.

Smile.

Movement Two: Eyes fixed, right and left with your nose

With eyes open or eyes closed, look straight ahead, and keep your gaze fixed there, as you rotate your head right and left.

Rotate it less far.

Rotate with more ease and slowness and pleasure.

Sense and notice the difference in your nervous system as you rotate your head with out the automatic and very useful synchronicity to your eyes.

Again, at least eight times. Perhaps twelve.

Rest and smile.

Again, do this in bed third thing in the morning, or do it right now.

Movement Three: Head one way, eyes the other

Again rotate your head, perhaps even more slowly now, and even less effort, and more enjoyment.

AND AS YOU ROTATE YOUR HEAD TO THE RIGHT, ROTATE YOUR EYES TO THE LEFT.

AS YOU ROTATE YOUR HEAD TO THE LEFT, ROTATE YOUR EYES TO THE RIGHT.

This may be hard, or a little crazy making.

Do smaller movements with both the head and eyes.

Again, humans who had coordinated head and eyes were the ones happiest and most likely to survive.

Breathing deeply and easily while you do this will help this new and non-habitual movement become part of your life. 

Rest. Smile. Feel yourself in the bed, or in your chair or standing. Wherever you are, feel the upgrade to your nervous system and to your YOU by using your awareness to move with attention, ease and delight.

Movement Four: Moving toes right and left with your head

Time to add on the feet in you are in your bed.

Leave the eyes out of the equation for a bit. More your head right and left, very slowly and with a lot of awareness, ease and delight.

As you move your head right and left, move your feet, the toe part, right and left as if they are windshield wipers.

Head right, toes right.

Head left, toes left.

In bed this is extremely relaxing and clues in your mind and awareness to the top of you and the bottom of you, and gives you a feeling of the fullness of you.

If you are sitting: Same. Rotate on the heels of your feet, toes right as your head goes right, and toes left at your head goes left. In sitting this does’t activate your hip as it does in bed, and that’s okay: you are still speaking out your attention to the toes and the neck at the same time.

Movement Five: Head one way, toes the other 

Toes right as your head goes left.

Toes left as your head goes right.

In bed the activates the whole spine in a very subtle way.

In sitting this activates the who brain in a very pleasant way.

Smile and rest.

Movement Six: Head one way, eyes and toes the other 

Toes left. Head right. Eyes left.

Go slowly. It’s as if your eyes are following your toes.

And then, slowly, slowly, breathing and delighting:

Toes right, Head left, Eye right (as if following your toes)

Do this a bunch of times. At least twelve.

Go slowly until it’s a charm.

Movement Seven: Easy — head and toes and eyes all the same.

Head and eyes and toes left.

Head and eyes and toes right.

Feel the fullness of you.

Feel your spine.

Feel the ease in your neck.

Soften your breathing.

Feel both arms and both legs and the fullness of you.

Smile.

Enjoy this.

Good.

Now you are ready to stretch a bit in bed and get up.

Or, now you are ready to get back to your computer and be more full and amazing in your life.

Hint: if you have done this from the sitting up world, you might want to take a walk before you get back to texting or to the computer or whatever your regular day commands.

If you found this from a link on Facebook, I’d suggest skipping Facebook for the next couple hours in favor of being present in your body.

Enjoy. 

Working with Special Needs Children, or High Performers: The whole person, not the "problem"

When I was 55 I took a weekend workshop in the Feldenkrais Method.®

I knew and loved this work. It had helped me with back and shoulder issues for years and I always recommended it go someone who had a movement issue.

I thought it was great stuff.

AND, after the weekend workshop I realized: THIS COULD BE ABOUT ME!! I  felt and moved as if I were ten years old again.

This was an invitation to a four year training, which I enhanced with a doubled up first year of training with a man who combined Zen and Feldenkrais.

Then I discovered Anat Baniel, whom I think has advanced what is already one of the most amazing systems on the planet.

Another 4 years.

So 9 years of training and I know this:

I am so lucky to WORK WITH THE WHOLE HUMAN, NOT THE PROBLEM.

A high level musician or a special needs child come in.

They have a brain.

They can learn.

A rock can’t learn, a tree can’t learn, a car can’t learn.

Many “body work” systems treat the person as a car, with a wheel or carburetor that needs to be fixed.

In the Anat Baniel and the Feldenkrais system, we are working with a whole person, whose brain and hence whose life can change.

The change happens a number of ways, and a simple version is the change comes from using these three essentials of radical listening:

Deep presence

Non-habitual options

Connection

So, an autistic boy who answered “Not Quite” to every question was not fixed, by being told his answer was wrong or nonsensical.

I looked at him in presence, connected with him by touch, and played with non habitual wordings.

How about

Not not quite

Not quite quite

Not not quite quite quite

At first he was confused. Then delighted. He started to hear what he was saying and realizing that there were other choices in the world.

And a child with a tight/ spastic fist, from cerebral palsy.

To fix, would be the pry the finger loose and massage or something.

This is nice, but, not any use to the brain.

But, slowly playing with a little little movement in the thumb and then the pinkie and going slow enough the child can feel the difference.

Moving the whole hand in a way that connects to the back and elbow and shoulder.

Moving the hand in many patterns, many options, all with tons of presence and searching for opening up connection in the child’s brain between that hand and other parts of the body…

This is transformation for the whole person.

Works just the same with the highly skilled fingers of the best violin player or pianist in the world.

Cheers

Chris

skipping

have you tried skipping lately?

did you realize you could skip differently than the
usual two times left foot
two times right foot

play with it

3 right and 2 left
3 left and 2 right
3 each

4 left and 2 right and so on

go slowly
a weird instruction for skipping
but do

and take lots of walking rests

enjoy

Balance Two, for You

Stand near a wall>

Decide which foot is your stable foot,
and which your free foot

Stable is usually right for left handers, and left for right
Free is usually right for right handers, and left for left

Lift one foot

That one's your free foot

Stand a foot and a half or so from the wall,
adjust so that you feel moderately or a lot comfortable
leaning the top of your head into the wall

Use your hands for support if need be

ONE
Bring your free foot behind your stable foot,
so that it is on the opposite side that it usually is
and
both feet are pointing toward the wall

Shift your weight very slowly from right to left
and then back
Many times
Feel the transition as if 10%, 20%, 30% in one foot
as the weight gets more very gradually

Enjoy this
and notice how different it is to have the weight to your left side
on your right foot
and
the weight to your right side
on your left foot

Rest
by gently pushing to upright
and leaving the wall to walk around a bit

TWO
Everything as in One
same foot behind,
and now shift the weight from heels to toes
and back

Many times

Rest with your head on the wall

Now, do a circle of weight distribution:
Left heel, left toes,
Right toes, right heel
Many times,
and
then
reverse the circle

Now the longer rest, standing and walking

THREE:
Put the free foot in front and across to the other side
again, both feel pointing to the wall

and do the three stages from above;

Left and right

Front and back

Around the circle in both directions

Stand and walk for a rest

FOUR:
Take your stable foot behind the standing foot and to the opposite side
and
do all three

then rest and stand and walk

FIVE
Take your stable foot in front of your free foot and to the opposite side
and
do
all three:

Right and left
Front and back
Around the circle in both directions

Rest by walking and stay out of normal actions for awhile

Take a walk outdoor is you can,
though it's cold this time of the year most places

Balance: a movement lesson

This is fun for all
and especially useful for people who are getting older,
who have fallen, or been in an accident,
or had a stroke,
and wish to improve their balance.

There will be one today,
and another tomorrow.


One:
Stand near a wall, about a foot and a half away,
( You can adjust this)
and putting your hands on the wall,
and then
bow a bit forward
so that you can press the top of your head into the wall

Rest here a bit
and feel the weight of you going up from your feet
through your spine
through your skull
into the wall

After you are comfortable,
begin to shit your weight from your right foot
to your left foot
back and forth,

Rest

Now shift your weight left and right
Very slowly
with a lot of pleasure and attention
and

as you shift to the right,
raise your left heel and rotate your left foot to the right
and
rotate your pelvis to the right,
and
rotate your head to the right, so your nose is pointing to the right.

and as you come back
bring your head to the middle
and both feet on the ground

and as you go to the left
raise your right heel
and rotate that foot and hip to the left
and rotate your nose and head to the left

if you can do this with your arms dangling down,
fine

if you need to keep your hands on the wall steadying you
that's fine too

many times,
at least 12
as many as you like

go for each time feeling slightly different
and each time more awareness of a new part of
yourself
and each time
a deeper sense of ease and pleasure

rest, but slowly using your hands to stand upright,
and walking around a bit


TWO;
You are going to do everything you did in the more
complicated version,
except that your head is going to go
the opposite way of the rotation of your hips
that is happening from the weight shift
and raising your heel

so:
rotate your pelvis to the left
by raising your right heel
and rotating your hip and leg to the left,
and
as you do this
(slow, slow, slow, slowly, slowly)
take your head and nose to the right

and easily slowly gently reversing this
so that as your pelvis goes to the right
with your left heel raising, and your left leg and hip rotating,
your head goes to the left

this won't be easy
and
if you go slowly enough
with enough attention,
will profoundly reorganize your nervous system
to balance far better in gravity

rest as above,
coming off the wall and walking around


THREE:

This is a fuller version of the second part of ONE

with your right hand on the wall, and your right hand dangling down,
and the top of your head on the wall,
rotate to the right by lifting your left heel,
rotating your hip,
turning your nose and head to the right,
and this time
the nose and eyes will be following the loose right hand, and arm,
which will rotate up to shoulder height to the right

then reversing down and the other way:
the hand will come down
and up to the left
the right heel will raise
the hips and leg will rotate to the left
as the head and nose and eyes follow your hand

back and forth
many times,
slowly
gently
pleasurably
with ease and
breathing
and discovery
and grace

rest as before by walking around

FOUR:
The same as above with the other arm
as the pendulum that goes side to side
followed by your eyes and nose

enjoy this,
really
slowly
completely
easily
slowly
gently

breathe
breathe
breathe

Take it easy for 10-30 minutes after and let this integrate

Naps and walks are the best integration
Good

Back, toes, spine, pelvis, neck and nose: an easy wake up play

MOVEMENT ONE: ON THE BACK

1.   Lie on your back, with legs comfortable, and head slightly supported so your neck is a continuation of your spine

Rotate your feet, right and left.
Gently. Easily. Many times.
Feeling this in many places: your ankles, your legs, your hip joints, your pelvis, your spine
Feel this as pleasure, ease, awareness and discovery

Rest
In all rests, scan your body for ease, pleasure and differences from earlier.

2. Bring your left arm across your face so that the crook of your left arm is over your forehead>
Slowly move the left arm right and left so that your head moves left and right, so that your nose rotates left to right.
Feel this as ease and pleasure, and notice as much of yourself as you can.

Do this many times, each time with a slightly different awareness focus.

Rest.

3. Have the left arm as in 2. And move your feet and arm

a. Many times with the head and the feet going the same direction>

Rest

b. Many times with the head and feet going in opposite directions>

Rest

4. Do all the above in 3.b, with the eyes going opposite your head and the same direction as the feet.

Breath . Notice. Enjoy.
Many times.

Rest. Get up and walk around as part of your rest.
And, JUST ENJOY being in your body.
This can be the end of a mini lesson, or, add in the next

5. As much as you wish, do all the above with the right arm.

Remember: no moves that are painful.
less is more.

Good.

Movement #6: More Chair Fun. Left and Right, plus...

Sit in in a chair>
Breathe
Notice your relationship to gravity
Mull over how long it has been since you've been aware that you are in gravity all day
Breathe smile
Feel what feels good
Feel what doesn't feel so good
Smile

One:
Lean down between your legs and reach for the floor
Easily
Don't strain
Go as far as easily

Two:
Lean to the left with your head
Come back to the middle
Do this many times
Let your weight come onto the left side of your pelvis
Your left "sit bone" ( Sitz bone as it were, but we'll just call it
the left side of your pelvis)

rest a bit
feel your body and breathing and
relationship to gravity

Three:
Lean to the left again
and
each time you do, take your left hand
down the left side of the chair towards the floor
Come up, slowly, enjoying
the touch on the chair
Do this many times, easily

Rest

Now test how leaning down toward the floor
between your legs feels
easier
further
more pleasurable

how could you make it more pleasurable?

Four:
Again,
lean to the left
and lower your left arm along the chair towards the floor,
and leave it as near as it goes,
don't push it,
and let it come forward and backward
moving your head back and forth as it to follow the arm

Five:
Put your left hand over your head and hold your right ear with your left hand
In this configuration
a) Rock to the right side of your pelvis
b) Let your ribs go to the right
c) Gently pull your head to the left

So this time you are leaning left
but with a shift to the right side
of your pelvis

Do this many times, gently,
feeling the curve in your spine
and
enjoying it

Rest

Try our reaching for the floor again

Six:
As in five,
but now
when you get all the way to the left with your head
do the "cat and cow" we've done in earlier lessons,
that is
( all while curved left and sitting on the right "sitz bone"
have your
belly go out
roll forward on this right side of your pelvis
arch your back and bring
your head back a bit

then
roll back on the right side of your pelvis
pull your belly in
bring your tilting head a little forward

go back and forth like this

rest
test for the floor reaching
rest more

Seven
get up and walk around
notice differences side to side

Eight:
If you want,
do this sequence on the other side

Movement #5: Waking up our back, in a chair

One: Sit comfortably in a chair
Notice what you notice about what it is like to sit in the chair
Your spine
Your ribs
Your head
Your breathing
Smile,

Now
Lean forward as if to reach the floor between your legs
Don't strain
Notice as you lean, how far you can easily go.
Do this twice

Rest:
Which means simply sit and breathe and look around
the room or yard or beach
Find a thought of something you are grateful for

Good

Two:
Put your hands, one over the other on your chest
Let the hands sink as your ribs and sternum go down toward the floor
Then come back to upright, feeling the sternum move
Do this a number of times, paying kind and easy attention to your ribs

Now, to help the hands and sternum go lower
Let your belly come in and
Roll back on your pelvis

Do this combined belly, sternum pelvis motion
a number of times,
Down and back to upright

Make each time easy and interesting
and see if you can notice just a
little bit more than the last movement

Good

Now,  reach down toward the floor as in the beginning
Notice any difference in range AND in ease

Rest

Three:
Hands on sternum again
Begin to lift the sternum with your hands
and come back to neutral
Do this a number of times

Now, to help the lifting,
Roll your pelvis forward in your chair
and let your belly soften and come forward

Sternum
Pelvis
Stomach

All three as you rise in your sternum and come
back to neutral

Good

Smile
Think of a gratitude
Lean down for the floor again,
Looking for ease, range and awareness
and
Pleasure

Rest

Four:
Put your hands under the opposite armpit
Combine both up and down with the ribs,
This time allowing the head to raise and lower
slightly
You'll know which way

So ribs down
Stomach in and back
Pelvis rolling back

and then up
and then

Ribs up
Stomach soft and forward
Pelvis rolling forward

Breathe easy
Do a number of enjoyable times

Smile
Stop
Think of another gratitude

Reach for the floor again
Notice pleasure
ease
range
parts of your back and neck and ribs and pelvis
that participate in this
Smile

Rest

Stand up and walk around, feeling any ease in your movement
and increase in height in your standing

Good

Work, a happy word, with son, in LA, the "valley"

i was lucky enough in my younger years
thirties and forties and some of fifties
to mainly do what i call
"real work"

I moved my body and brain
and a hammer or saw
or wheelbarrow,
I build decks, put in French doors,
remodelled, built small outbuildings,
put in amazing gardens that included bizarrely wonderful fences,
combines fruit and vegetable and flower beauty
and to cap it off created the three acre core
of what has become the five acre
public garden, the Sonoma Garden Park

whoopee for me?

who knows,
and then I learned this and that
about how to be relaxed and happy in any body
and yesterday I was out with my son, who is 36,
and we were digging the holes and mixing the cement
for what's going to be on Thursday an amazing
and shade producing and plant holding and
space defining trellis arrangement

and I was dead tired after
and so was he
and we ate a lot
and conked out easy
and

life is good

( this is in LA, the valley, where it gets
hot in the nineties in the day,
sort of like Austin,
but no humidity and no bugs,
and unlike Austin
gets to a cool low seventies high sixties
at night,
and as we worked late yesterday,
pulling out cords and lights to work by,
no mosquitoes,
and we finished,
tired,
body tired,
and this was something we co designed,

and building something real
with a grown child is
a great
gift to one's life

i hope it happens  for you


,,,,
Chris)