Postural Issues

In Alexander, we prefer to think of good use in terms of poise rather than posture, which tends to emphasise something rather fixed and static. Nonetheless, we all recognise examples of both good and bad posture when we see them. Aside from being ungraceful, poor posture may be associated with all manner of aches and pains and health troubles,and often reflects issues such as low self-esteem and lack of confidence - symptoms which very often disappear when the underlying causes of postural imbalance are taken away.

During lessons, we learn to stop imposing these unnecessary strains and pressures on ourselves, and instead cultivate an even distribution of muscle tone where no one part of the body is overworking at the expense of any other, unduly tightening up in some places and collapsing in others. When things are working well there is no real feeling of the need to exercise to keep in shape - the subtle ongoing movement that takes place when the body is unfixed has an energising and sustaining effect in itself. For this same reason, the feeling of needing to relax and unwind is less necessary - when the whole body is involved in what we are doing on an ongoing basis, the requisite levels of tension required to provide support feel quite natural.