AY022 Sitting on the floor with the help of your hands

Source

• Alexander Yanai Vol 1 
• Reel 2, Track 3, Lesson 4
• Duration 37 min.
• For German see AYnmal täglich: Auf dem Boden sitzen mit Hilfe der Hände

Synopsis

• An athletic lesson that starts with variations on 4-points (hands and feet on the floor), inverted flexion, extension, and rotation through spine & hip joints, and finally weighting hands while swinging one (or both) legs forward to come to sit – and reverse to stand.

Lesson Outline

1. Lay on floor scan
2. [Reference movement] Stand and place both hands on floor in front of you. Head is down, knees bent, pelvis in air. Weight is distributed equally on 4 points.
   1. Lift and lower pelvis
   2. Place both hands on either side of right foot. Lift and lower pelvis
   3. Place both hands on either side of left foot. Lift and lower pelvis
3. Stand with hands on bent knees.
   1. Round & arch spine (head & pelvis move)
   2. Turn head to look left. Round & arch
   3. Place hands on floor and continue movement while looking left
4. Same as #3 with head looking right
5. [Reference movement] (#2)
6. Stand and place both hands on floor in front of you.
   1. Sweep hands along floor to arc around right leg
   2. Sweep hands along floor to arc around left leg
   3. Sweep hands along floor to arc around both legs
7. Stand and place right hand on floor outside of right leg
   1. Lift right foot/leg forward by weighting right hand and come to sit with right leg long, left foot standing.
   2. Reverse to stand by swinging pelvis up and back
   3. Movement is quick
   4. There may be a hop between weighted hand and swinging foot if lacking flexibility
8. Same as #7 with left side
9. Stand and place both hands on floor on either side
   1. Take both feet forward to sit by shifting weight into hands
   2. Reverse to stand
10. Repeat #7, #8, and #9
11. [Reference movement] (#2)

END

Focus of Moshe’s Teaching

Throughout the lesson, there are instructions attending to how the head and pelvis move in unison and with relation to the floor. Also, instructions on keeping the neck and the breathing/ chest soft.

Some quotes:

• “These are preparatory movements for another way of standing up and sitting… This lesson involves a way of standing that you rarely see among… [people] that sit primarily in chairs. It is common among people [who sit on the ground].”
• “A free hip joint and a soft back can serve you to the grave.”
• “Slowly, organize your body so your pelvis and head move without stopping. That is the wisdom of this lesson.”
• “All effort should be expressed as action so moving becomes easy.”
• “In any action, when the amount of energy the muscles generate is fully expressed in mechanical movement, there is a wonderful feeling you are doing nothing. This is how humans are designed to live.”
• “A strong back has light, agile legs.”
• “You must do the action without… thoughts of difficulty. The thought that it is difficult disrupts doing any movement lightly.”
• “It is common and simple among people of the East. On Allenby Street in Tel Aviv there are old people who sit on the floor begging for money. You can see them sit or stand up. It is a miracle to watch. Old people, eighty, ninety years old do it while you wonder how because it looks so beautiful.”
• “Do not make any efforts in your chest that express preparation for an effort rather than the actual work.”

Related ATMs

• See Theme Standing

Resources

• Audio recording by Sharon Starika at: http://sharonstarika.com/workshops/online-workshops/weekly-classes/mid-back-thoracic-spine/

Share Your Insights (ideas, principles, strategies, experiences, …)

• I couldn’t do it in one go, had to make several attempts to go through the whole lesson. one group of muscles in between the ribs of maybe T9-T10 (on the back) went into spasm, I could feel the spasm only when resting on the back. – travelsheep Jan 9, 2014
• The lesson contains uncharacteristic editorial errors, missing words etc. Contains elements of 4 points, combined with cat and crow, polishing the floor. But the aim is to hop from all fours to a sitting position! There is a reference to ‘Allenby street’ which is where the Great Synagogue in Tel Aviv stands, with beggers who sit / stand and perhaps inspired this lesson. The acts of four points, of moving the pelvis away from the floor, and the final movements of coming to sitting with a hop with either one or both hands on the floor are demanding. It all has to do with body positions and the pelvis having enough room, where the hands are and giving the pelvis space to move away. See also Quest Washington workshop and Amherst (?year 2) hamstring demonstration by Moshe on Steve Rosenholz. Compare with AY159, which Youtube reveals as being the Jiujitsu move ‘standing up in base’. (B. Parsons)
• This is a very athletic and challenging lesson, even though I am quite flexible and relatively strong and agile. I could not bring both legs forward at the same time. I eventually could go up and down on each side, but only after playing with many variations. Once I thought of lifting my rear to stand up, rather than weighting and pushing through the swinging foot, the timing changed, and it became much more possible. (Anita Bueno)

 

Disclaimer: This site is for sharing information about Feldenkrais® Awareness Through Movement® lessons. The information included on this site is for educational purposes only. Nothing on Feldy Notebook should be construed as an attempt to offer medical advice or treatment. All contributions to this website are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike 3.0 License. Do not add any copyrighted information to this website. Feldy Notebook is sponsored by Kinetic Inquiry.