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Compiled and Edited by Graziella Leone
Feldenkrais Practitioner
Functional Integration Practice
Table of Contents
lntroduction ......................................................................... 5
How to Use This Book ........................................................ 11
CAVEAT ............................................................................... 13
The Elusive Obvious ........................................................... 17
Rolling of the Head ............................................................. 21
PRACTICE #1- Observing and Rolling the Head ............ 24
PRACTICE #2 - Head and Legs Relationship ................... 29
PRACTICE #3 - Head and Shoulder Relationship ........... 34
PRACTICE #4 - Head and Eyes Relationship ................... 37
PRACTICE #5 - Watching People Moving ....................... 39
Feeling the Skeleton and Lifting the Shoulder .................. .43
PRACTICE #6 - Feeling the Shoulder Blade .................. .47
PRACTICE #7 - Lifting the Shoulder .............................. 50
PRACTICE #8 - Feeling the Shoulders as the Person
Moves (Triangle Arms) .................................................. 53
PRACTICE #9 - Turning the Head and Lifting the
Shoulders ....................................................................... 57
Rolling of the Head, Moving the Eyes ................................ 59
PRACTICE #10 - Head and Eyes Relationship - A Deeper
Look ............................................................................... 61
PRACTICE #11- Head and Eyes Relationship ................ 65
PRACTICE #12 - Head, Tongue and Eyes Relationship .. 67
1
Moving the Arm and Lifting the Hip .................................. 73
Introduction ................................................................... 73
Lengthening the Arm ..................................................... 75
PRACTICE #13 - Lengthening the Arm ...................... 82
Feeling the Pelvis ........................................................... 87
PRACTICE #14 - Rolling the Head, Lifting the Shoulder
and Tilting the Pelvis ................................................. 95
PRACTICE #15 - Rolling the Head, Lifting the Shoulder
and Tilting the Pelvis ................................................. 98
PRACTICE #16 -Chest as Japanese Lantern ............ 100
Visual and Tactile Observation ............................... 100
Bringing Together ........................................................ 103
PRACTICE #17 - Lengthening the Arm and Lifting the
Hips ......................................................................... 103
PRACTICE #18 - Turning the Head, Lengthening the
Arm, and Lifting the Pelvis ...................................... 106
PRACTICE #19 - Lengthening the Arm with Different
"Prospective" .......................................................... 108
Lengthening and Pushing the Legs .................................. 109
PRACTICE #20 - Lengthening the Arms Pushing on the
Foot - Observation ..................................................... 118
PRACTICE #21 - Lengthening the Legs ......................... 125
Observing People in Standing and Push the Ribs
Together ........................................................................... 129
Lengthening the Arm Above the Head ............................ 143
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Functional Integration Practice
Lengthening both Arms Above the Head ......................... 153
PRACTICE #22 - Lengthening the Arms ...................... 158
PRACTICE #23 -Arms and Legs Relationship .............. 161
More Practice!. ................................................................ 163
PRACTICE #24 - Observation ...................................... 164
PRACTICE #25 - Feeling the Scapula and the Rib
Cage ............................................................................. 166
PRACTICE #26 - Feeling the Spine .............................. 167
PRACTICE #27 - Prayer Lesson .................................... 169
PRACTICE #28 - Lifting the Shoulder and Tracing the
Sternum ....................................................................... 172
PRACTICE #29 - Feeling the Pelvis while They Roll Fists
and Pelvis in Sitting ..................................................... 173
PRACTICE #30 - Feeling the Pelvis while They Roll Fists
and Pelvis Lying on the Floor ....................................... 176
PRACTICE #31- Lengthening the Leg ......................... 178
PRACTICE #32 - Lengthening the Leg and Lengthening
the Arm ....................................................................... 181
PRACTICE #33 - Observing Hand on Head Going for a
Ride .............................................................................. 184
A bit of History about Awareness Through Movement
(ATM) and Functional Integration (Fl) .............................. 189
The Contradictory Thinking .............................................. 195
Healthier Habits ............................................................... 197
3
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Functional Integration Practice
Introduction
Things work better
when we are choosing them,
rather than being compelled
Tonus represents our mood
(Dr. Feldenkrais)
There are two aspects of the work of Dr.
Feldenkrais:
(D
Awareness Through Movements (ATM) =
exercise lessons guided by a Feldenkrais teacher.
These are done mostly on the floor, but can be done
also standing or sitting.
@
Functional Integration (Fl) = individual
work. The basis of Fl is having a sensitivity about
working with others and that sensitivity is an
extension of what we learn working with ourselves in
ATM.
5
Introduction
That is why the training starts with ATM and it
will always be with us.
Our consciousness, our awareness is
inextricably tied to the awareness that we have of our
body; our body kinesthetic sensory awareness.
For all of us this kinesthetic awareness is not
only extremely limited, but limited in ways that we
don't understand.
During ATM we will look at one particular thing,
that is constant: how our brain changes /learns.
• How we create the conditions by which our
brain can change (habits of a lifetime that can
change.)
• Then: how can we extend this understanding to
helping others?
The Paradox of Change
The desire to change creates resistance
⇒ It makes improvement more difficult
We succeed not trying to succeed. Instead of
trying harder and pushing, be engaged and interested
in your internal feelings and sensations.
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Functional Integration Practice
In fact Dr. Feldenkrais knew the Weber-Fechner
law, the law of just noticeable differences regarding
vision, smell, hearing or kinesthetic sense; that is how
much of a difference is needed to notice a difference.
Therefore Dr. Feldenkrais developed the idea of
doing less, of reducing the effort
The more effort => the less is our ability
to perceive a difference
That1s how our nervous system works, by
perceiving differences.
Weber-Fechner law of just noticeable
difference states:
The just-noticeable difference between two stimuli
is proportional to the magnitude of the stimuli (and
the subject1s sensitivity)
=> the smaller the stimulus the more subtle the
differences we notice!
Let1s say that for light is 1:200. So if you have
two hundreds of light bulbs on you need to switch off
7
Introduction
two of them to notice the difference. If one of them is
turned off you will not notice that is darker.
The interesting thing is that this ratio never
changes. In general each person has the same ratio,
although someone's sense can be sharper: blind
people can have a sharper hearing, so a musician for
example.
By learning/training one can alter (improve)
her/his ability, and that's exactly what we are doing
here: we are developing our kinesthetic sense, that is
our perception of muscular work.
For the major part of us, the kinesthetic sense
is not developed: it is required the basic key stones we
have to accomplished (walk, run, jump) and then
socialization becomes the most important thing, i.e.
very soon in our life we make a distinction between
our impulses and what the society expects from us
(not necessary negative): to act and to move in a
certain way.
All the extra effort we unconsciously use all the
time (and that is unnecessary) represents the way we
contorted ourselves to fit the society (the way we
adjusted to trauma/difficulties). The anxiety to fit the
rules of the society emotionally creates a boundary to
possible feeling I can have=> it directs me!
Dr. Feldenkrais said that tonus (that is the level
of muscular contraction) and mood are the same
thing!
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Functional Integration Practice
The state of the muscular system represents my
emotional state!
The ability to distinguish these sensory
differences comes easily for some area and less easily
for others.
In the areas of ourselves that we are familiar
with, to which we orient ourselves, we have a high
sensory acuity. The other areas are almost as if they
didn't exist: these "black holes" are related to our
development both physical and philological and
emotional.
During the ATM one can perceive more effort
making small movement than larger one, this is
because one can sense the evenness making that
movement. One can then improve and feel where can
reduce the effort!
We want to create the condition in which our
nervous system can learn: less effort means higher
kinesthetic sensory acuity.
Sensory acuity means the ability to sense and
feel differences and to sense and feel ourselves.
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