I can walk four miles without losing a beat. Five miles and I need a stretcher. But I hope this will change as a result of a class I’m taking at the Bellevue and Newcastle YUMCAs. It’s called Feldenkrais, named after an Israeli physicist turned movement improvement pioneer.
Becoming an efficient walker is my goal. My classmates are involved for different reasons, for example, preparing to run a marathon, or improving balance to avoid a bone-fracturing fall. Others may want to become better players in a competitive sport, dance more gracefully, or rid themselves of a chronic pain. Teachers say that Feldenkrais can be used to improve any aspect of human movement.
Lessons focus on a single body part, say, a shoulder. What you don’t realize initially is that the single body part you’re working on is connected to every other body part and before you know it, everything is moving, albeit at a leisurely pace. Throughout the session, you are creating new habits of movement to replace old ones that require more effort.
Feldenkrais teacher Irene Pasternack says her life has been transformed by learning to move her body more efficiently. At 40, she had a herniated disc and “I couldn’t make breakfast for my kids and take a shower without having to lie down in between.” These days, at age 53 she can garden all day, cover 30 miles on her in-line skates, and skate a marathon.
I already see small signs of improvement from participating in this class, the most encouraging being that I grew taller this past summer; from one doctor’s appointment to the next, I recovered about three-quarters of an inch I had lost in height. Not bad for spending an hour lying on the floor exploring how my hips and shoulders worked together.
For more information on Feldenkrais classes, contact Anne McDowell at amcdowell@seattleymca.org or 425-746-9900.
Ann Oxrieder has lived in Bellevue for 35 years. She retired after 25 years as an administrator in the Bellevue School District and now blogs about retirement at http://stillalife.wordpress.com/.
