hanna somatics

Somatic Personal Training

Whatever you do – whether it’s painting, sitting at the computer or sitting in meditation; often, the result is that muscles habituate and get stuck in uncomfortable patterns. The body’s reflexes also affect the musculature, subtly yet profoundly. A criss cross neuro-muscular patterning occurs.

Somamotion is rooted in Thomas Hanna’s groundbreaking approach – which has roots in the Alexander and Feldenkrais methods – to neuro-muscular training, a self-empowering technique that subtly balances the body and connects up the disparate parts.

Contemplative exercise: a key that can, from our very core, unlock “Functional Fixedness.”

Somatic training’s intention? To assist and empower you with the ability to release muscular tension patterns. Not only is this work appropriate for general well-being, it is also beneficial for both chronic and acute muscular complaints.

Everyone can benefit, from young skaters to mature golfers, dentists, hairdressers, and computer technicians. Each has a particular body stance and, over time, particular muscle strain-fixation.

Technique – Gentle Yet Dynamic

Moving and Sensing – two sides of a coin. A Sensory Motor Feedback Loop – Function to Structure – Movement to Change

Focused Action creates parallelism of thought and movement. This improves neuro-muscular communication which in turn improves muscular control.

Understanding of this body dynamic is gained naturalistically as you are guided through a series of movement patterns. These are progressive in nature and within one’s comfort range, and take you through and out of muscular tension.

To Pandiculate: “To stretch oneself as on awakening.” – Medical Dictionary

“Pandiculation is a way of waking up the sensory-motor cortex. It is a sensory-motor action used by animals to arouse the voluntary cortex by making a strong voluntary muscle contraction in order to feedback an equally strong sensory stimulation to the motor neurons.” – Thomas Hanna Ph.D., Somatics Magazine, 1990

Sessions

I offer the following types of sessions:

Individual:  Personalized, interactive hands on resistance exercises.

Semi-Private: Assisted exercises suitable for small groups, great for partners.

Classes: Verbal instruction, yoga class format.

In any of the above session formats, one receives clarifying insight into one’s particular muscular configuration. Of course, individual sessions are very potent and address individual needs in a profound way. I also offer custom programs for the work place environment and for meditation retreats.

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