What happens if you treat your body as a tube?
What happens if you treat your body as a stretchy tube? Your body straightens out, that’s what happens.
So what am I talking about? Imagine your body from the tops of your legs to the top of your head as a tube. You’d like it to straight and long, wouldn’t you? In fact it bends and sticks out in places making you shorter than you’d like. Your belly sticks out and so does your neck — and your upper back has a stoop.
What would you have to do to a straight tube to make it bend like that? On the in-side of the bend, the tube would either buckle or splay out sideways. That’s because you have less space vertically so the material of the tube has to either squash up or spread out horizontally.
What about the outside of the tube. That would be either stretched very thin or narrow down at the bend. That’s because you have to make the material of that part of the tube cover a greater length. To do that, it must become either thinner or narrower.
What I’ve just described is exactly what happens to your body.
Let’s take, for example your lordosis (sway back). Don’t have a sway back? Try putting your hand on the small of your back. Notice how it’s hollowed out? It’s not called the small of your back for nothing. And what’s on the other side, in front, why that’s your protruding belly, my friend.
Let’s do an experiment
Let’s see what we can do about your sway back and your protruding belly. If my tube analysis is correct, then your sway back is too wide and your protruding belly is too narrow. Let’s see what happens if you use your power of thought to encourage that to change.
For this is to work it’s vital that you don’t deliberately try to do the things I’m going to ask you to think. Just think them, imagine them, intend them but don’t do them.
Let’s start with the belly. I want you to think of it opening out and spreading sideways. Yes, I know, that’s exactly what you don’t want to let it do but bear with me and try the experiment.
Sit on an upright dining chair for the experiment. Don’t lean back in the chair. Now, as your belly spreads sideways, so your sides are able to move backwards a little. And the small of your back is able to narrow and firm up. So think of all that happening: your belly spreading sideways, back and around to your lower back which narrows and firms up.
Do you notice something? Do you notice how you’re beginning to sit taller? Feel your back. Notice how it’s flattened itself. Feel your belly. That too has flattened itself a little. Hallelujah!
A final word of warning
If you’d like to repeat this experience, make sure you don’t try and do it. It won’t work. It won’t work because you’ll do all wrong things. Instead, repeat the experiment exactly as I’ve set it out.
Let me know how you get on.
Personal Coaching by Philip Pawley
If you want to get the best kind of help, come to me for an introductory lesson in Liverpool.
If you’re too far away, then the next best thing is to get personal lessons and advice from me online at Repoise.com, my on-line school. (Both far-away and local pupils use Repoise).
In more detail:–
If you’re in Liverpool (or can get to Liverpool)
- There’s nothing better than individual lessons. My practice is at 37 Hope Street, Liverpool L1. Ring me on 0151 708 6172 to book an initial consultation and first lesson. (Leave your number so I can get back to you).
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If you’re short of funds, you can still have first class training from me — though it will require a little more work on your part.
The thing to do is have an individual, in-person lesson just once a month. That will entitle you to also get regular on-line lessons from me through Repoise. That way, you have the best of both worlds: in-person lessons and very regular, even daily, on-line Personal Coaching by Philip Pawley from me. That’s a real bargain because Repoise costs the equivalent of three lessons a year to everyone else.
Ring me on 0151 708 6172 if you want to arrange this.
- I occasionally run group lessons. If you’re interested in these, go here for details.
If you’re further away and can’t get to Liverpool
- There’s still nothing better than individual lessons. Here’s where you can find a teacher near you in the UK or elsewhere
- I suggest you also get direct day-to-day guidance from me by joining Repoise.
If you’re having plain Alexander Technique lessons from someone else, you still need to discover the Smiling Back Method of the Alexander Technique. You’ll get a lot more out of your lessons when you do.
Next: Getting rid of your hunchback
Dear Philip,
I have a granddaughter who will be 18 in November. She has had some AT lessons at Chethams Music college. She plays a cello and has had some back problems probably associated with tension and a desire to always give 100% to whatever she does. As part of her 18th present I wonder if it would be possible for me to give her a printed version of your articles on the web. If I print them as they are there will be rather too much repetition of the protocol instructions. Will the articles ever be in book form?
I look forward to hearing from you.
Love to you and the family,
Elsa
Dear Elsa,
It’s lovely to hear from you again.
I am indeed planning a book based on the Tube Principle. That project is under way. The e-book is due out on the 1st July.
I also plan to compile a booklet of the semi-supine articles. This second one will be a free bonus for subscribers to my newsletter. I’m not sure about the other articles at the moment. I think they probably will get compiled and published eventually. (Too much to do and too little time to do it all in).
Take care of yourself,
Philip
interesting stuff! I’m a Dutch Feldenkrais and Mindfluness practioner (and a Pharmacist as well). Aparts from that I’ve been studying Alexander Technique on my own and by means of a series of private lessons…my experience with AT is that’s a little compulsive: noticing patterns, inhibiting these patterns and directing yourself to more length and width…and the directions are two dimensional…Feldenkrais work is more three dimensional but sticks to bone positions and muscle activity…for instance: the sway back position is due to shortening te back and lengthening the front (so too much muscle action in de back muscles and too much strech in the belly)…the solution: think of lengthening the back and shortening the froing (vertical dimension).…
And your solution: don’t think of bones and muscles but in stead of tissue…
Do I understand well that you always think of widening and softening the convex side? for instance in the foot the muscle tension is in the convex part (upper part) but in the small of your back by most people the muscular action is in the concave side…
kind regards! looking forward to your book!
Bas
Bas,
I won’t reply in too much detail here because I also answered the email you sent me. You’ll find most of your first impressions are just that: first impressions. I would like to say that worrying too much about directions (either classical or Tube Principle) at this stage is not very helpful. You need to look first at the basics: the nature of habits. Then you need to look at the head-neck joint. Then you need to look at breathing and at balance. Then you need to look at how your Demented Mechanic spoils everything and what you can do about it.
Only then is it a good idea to think much about directions and the Tube Principle.