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YOUR MOVE page 69
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The key concept is becoming
aware of one's movement, which
means thinking and doing.
"I believe that the unity of
mind and body is an objective re-
ality," Dr. Feldenkrais wrote in
Mind and Body. "They are not
just parts somehow related to
each other, but an inseparable
whole while functioning. A brain
without a body could not think:
at least, the continuity of men-
tal functions is assured by cor-
responding motor functions."
But does it work?
The Feldenkrais Journal is re-
plete with testimonies of
changed lives, like one report in
the Winter 1991 issue. Written
by Feldenkrais practitioner
Frank Wildman, it's the story of
Ann, who had sustained a terri-
ble knee injury which had be-
come infected.
"Her knee was now excruci-
atingly painful," Dr. Wildman
writes. "The infection was
spreading to other parts of her
leg. She could no longer step on
her right foot. ..."
Using games and breathing
exercises, Dr. Wildman began to
work with Ann. He introduced
her to specific exercises and vi-
sualization. Ann began to real-
ize she could control the pain in
her knee.
"We re-created a map of her
body so that rather than having
all of herself feel stress and pain,
especially her knee, she now had
a body that felt good almost
everywhere," Dr. Wildman
writes. "Ann no longer hurt —
she simply had a sore knee."
In the end, Ann was able to
walk. Her physician was so im-
pressed he called to ask the in-
evitable, "How do you pronounce
the name of this stuff, again?"
And to think: it all started
with a knee.
Moshe Feldenkrais was work-
ing in England when an old knee
injury, sustained during a soc-
cer game, began acting up.
Years earlier Dr. Feldenkrais
had set out to fix the problem,
reading everything he could on
physiology and anatomy. Then
he stepped off a curb and all the
pain came back.
The issue, Dr. Feldenkrais re-
alized, had been his failure the
first time to concentrate on the
entire body.
"I was like every other idiot
who fixed a part and didn't look
at the whole system," he said.
He began to study his own
body and the movements of oth-
ers, such as how they walked
(quickly? gracefully? with head
held high? shoulders back?).
This became the roots of the
Feldenkrais movement.
Dr. Feldenkrais was born
May 6, 1904, in Russia. At 14,
he left with friends for Eretz Yis-
rael. He worked odd jobs in Tel
Aviv and became interested in
self-defense programs, like ju-
jitsu, as a way of protection
against Arab attackers.
In 1928 Dr. Feldenkrais
moved to Paris, where he earned
a doctorate in applied physics at
the Sorbonne. After graduating,
he worked in nuclear fission
with Professor F. Joliet-Curie,
winner of the 1938 Nobel Prize,
and as a member of France's Na-
tional Committee for Scientific
Research.
All that came to an end in
1940, when the Germans in-
vaded France. Feldenkrais bi-
ographer Garet Newel recounts
that Moshe's sister, Malka, who
also worked with Joliet-Curie,
knew something was wrong the
day the Nazis, searching for
Jews, called everyone from the
lab into the courtyard. She
•
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o get a taste of what it's
all about, here's an ex-
ample of an introductory
Feldenkrais exercise.
First, stand with your feet about
18 inches, or shoulder-length,
apart. Hold your left hand in front
of you Turn the arm and body to
the left as far as possible, with-
out feeling any discomfort. Make
a mark mentally of how far you
were able to stretch.
Next, return to the center.
Slowly begin moving your arm,
still outstretched in front of you,
to the left, At the same time,
move your head and eyes to the
right.
Return again to the center,
then repeat the movement a
maximum of 10 times.
Now, select an object directly
in front of you, While'Reeping your
eyes on the object, gently turn
your arm to the left and your head
to the right. Return to the center
and repeat this exercise no more
than 10 times.
For the last part, repeat the first
part of the movement, turning
your arm and body to the left. You
may be surprised to see how
much farther you are able to
move.
When you have mastered the
left side, try the right. But this time
just imagine it all. Did your flexi-
bility improve this time, too? I
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