The Power of Pausing AKA Inhibition

When it comes to moving well it's not so much about what you do, but what you prevent from happening. As F.M Alexander put it, "If you stop the wrong thing, the right thing does itself

It's an idea that goes back many centuries, embedded into the teachings of Taoism. It's what Aldous Huxley called a Perennial Truth. Coincidentally Huxley was a big supporter of Alexanders work having taken private lessons with him and immortalised him as the doctor in his book Eyeless in Gaza. But I digress ...

 

After millions of years of evolution a good deal of your movement potential is baked in, needing only freedom to experiment with movement in your early years to release it. This is obviously an idealised position that doesn't take into account congenital considerations or subsequent injury or disease, but even there it's possible to maximise what availability is present by preventing undue reaction/tension. 

 

But it's not just about movement, it also speaks to your stress response and your ability to manage stress. And not wishing to sound too pedantic, stress is verb, not a noun! 

 "Everyone is always teaching one what to do, leaving us still doing things we shouldn’t do." F.M.Alexander.

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