The inner constelation. Draw an imaginary line from one toe to each hip. Draw an imaginary life from each hip to each shoulder. Divide the body by half side to side and front and back. Repeat the drawing of the lines to the front and back and side and side of each hip and shoulder.… Read More Notes from Class: The inner constelation
Drawing the blade can be a martial art like Japanese 居合 or a simple task we perform while preparing a meal for the family. Lets play with drawing in particular so we can better integrate it into the work. Place the knife in front of you and close your eyes. Take it in one hand… Read More The draw
RELAX is a horrible word. Most times we tense up when we hear it or think it because we add more activation without intention. Let us take another road and that will make all the difference. Let us make natural tension our friend. It serves a purpose and keeps us upright. It can be a… Read More Notes from class: moving tension
It is easy to focus on something out of the norm. Notice the everyday things so your vision is not guided but floating. Look forward and tense and relax different parts of your face. Note how tension and relaxing affects your sight and exhale to let go of excess. Place one hand in front of… Read More Notes from class: Sight and body movement
Your leg is caught by your opponent and you try to pull it back. Your arms are caught by two tall smelly guys in an alley and you try to squirm free. You are caught first in your mind. Let us reverse engineer this paradigm into something that works a shorter route with less derailment… Read More Captured in your mind
We walk and look in lines as we are taught. We naturally walk and see in arches and the hold the horizon and gravity has on us amounts to a great lever on our movement. Here are a series of plays to release the hold we manifest from our perception of the horizon and gravity.… Read More Notes from class: Horizons
Take a sturdy stick and ten paces of clear ground. Crawl back and forth using these variations to clear tension and build good movement all over. Guidelines: Keep breathing. Let the breath make the pace of movement Relax your eyes. Let yourself see what your body is showing you. Avoid making noise. Noise is garbage… Read More The stick crawl
It is as easy to forget ourselves as it is easy to wake up. Here are a progression of work to wake up our shoulders hips and spine and bring about greater freedom and health in movement and in thought. Let your breath lead the movement in both tempo and depth. Start standing with your… Read More Notes from class: Spinal Freedom
We are told to relax all the time. That usually does the opposite as we try to relax and create even more tension and disharmony within. Let’s play with tension instead of making it the enemy and learn to move it to our side. Do this: Start standing and tense a part of your body.… Read More Working with Tension
