Using the CDs

Lessons on CD means that the Feldenkrais Method^® can be available to anyone, at any time. 

• A low cost way of doing Feldenkrais

• Do the lessons at your own pace

• Easy to follow instructions and lessons 

• Stop whenever you want, or repeat sections easily

• Listen wherever you want

• Use in the comfort of your own home or bed.

The CDs are like having a certified Feldenkrais practitioner on tap, wherever you happen to be.

What to do before you start

Set aside half an hour of quiet uninterrupted time.  Wear loose, comfortable clothes that allow you to move freely.  Remove glasses and shoes and any cumbersome jewellery. Don't eat a full meal for an hour or so before a lesson, much as you would need to do for any form of physical activity.

You don't need any special equipment or place.  Each CD indicates where you can do the lesson:  eg, lying on the floor, sitting in a chair, even standing.  For a floor lesson, have a clear space with a thick rug or mat to lie on.  For some lessons, you will need a folded towel to put under your head for added comfort.  If you are bed-ridden, several of the lessons can be done in your own bed.

Note:  If you need special attention or advice due to an injury or recovery from surgery, for example, first contact your nearest Feldenkrais practitioner for a private Functional Integration lesson. If you are in the care of health professionals, please consult them before doing these lessons.

Listening to the lessons

When you are ready, start the CD.  Listen to the Introduction which begins each CD - if you are familiar with Feldenkrais, you can skip it in future.  In each lesson, I will guide you through a sequence of gentle physical movements, alternating with pauses of quiet rest.

The rest periods between the movements are as important as the movements, because they bring you to a state of profound repose, while allowing effortless learning to happen.  During the rests, your nervous system assimilates the new information.

Each class is carefully structured to reveal something new and fascinating about yourself and help you gain greater self-awareness and more options for action.

• Always interpret directions in relation to your own body, not to gravity.   So 'above your head' always means the same thing, no matter whether you are sitting or lying.  

• Take things easy. Don't effort or strain.

• Be gentle with yourself.  Do less.

• The smaller the movement, the greater the awareness.

How often should I use them?

Do only one lesson at a time and stay within your own range of comfort.  Listen to yourself.  Take care of yourself.

Sometimes it's better to leave a day or two in between lessons, to give your nervous system time to experience and integrate the changes. You will eventually learn how to use your senses to discover the lessons that work best for you, and when you would want to do them.

For example, after a day of bending and weeding in the garden, you might like to lie on the floor and put on the Intelligent Reaching CD. This would prevent soreness and aches in your neck and shoulders the following day! Likewise, you could do the CD before you start gardening and find that you move more efficiently during the actions of gardening.

If you've had a long period of keyboard work you could put on Are You Sitting Comfortably? to iron out the sense of tension in your lower back and neck.

That's the beauty of this Method^®. It is both restorative and preventive in terms of wear and tear and over-use.  Please enjoy my CD lessons, and be kind and gentle to yourself.  I would love to hear your experience of using the CDs - please email us.

How will I feel after a lesson?

After your very first experience of the Feldenkrais Method^® whether a hands-on session, or an ATM lesson on CD, you may feel that you stand taller, or feel a little lighter. You may find yourself performing everyday movements with less effort and greater ease and pleasure, such as walking, bending forward to pick something up, or turning to reverse the car down the driveway. Your breathing may be fuller, freer. Your neck may feel long and free. The possibilities are as endless as your individuality.

And why 'lessons'? Because you do actually learn through doing them (as opposed to physical exercises, where you just do them to keep fit).  But please don't let the word lessons put you off, or make you think they are hard work.  Nothing could be further from the truth! 

The lessons are gentle, fascinating and also fun.   Above all, they don't hurt, because you do them at your own level of ability.  You do only as much or as little as is comfortable for you.   

Practical Feldenkrais   Email: info@practicalfeldenkrais.com