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40. Releasing the Upper Body 2 1/19/04
“When you start to assert control over any bodily process, the effect is
holistic. The mind-body system reacts to every single stimulus as a global
event; to stimulate one cell is to stimulate all.” Deepak Chopra M.D. Ageless
Body Timeless Mind. Pg. 85
*****
This session follows the same format of a previous session for releasing the upper body. The difference in this session being how the hands and arms are moved to address different groups of muscles of the upper body.
Below are some instruction and pictures for releasing the muscles of the upper body. By introducing the gentle expansion and contraction of muscle groups with a repetitive movement a releasing action starts to take place in the muscles of those areas being moved. A releasing action refers to a shaking or trembling that may be gentle at first and then increase as you do this repetitive motion. By allowing the trembling that the body presents, as you are doing the motion, many releases will occur. These results are usually a feeling of more openness in the chest and a freeing up of the shoulders and arms.
This session is mechanical in nature, yet the results will be there. I will eventually discuss a more intuitive type of working in later blogs, but getting familiar with what are releasing type of somatics that the body presents helps before going into the intuitive type of work. Also if you are working with others this makes it simple to present to another.
Start by lying down with the arms extended out to the sides as in the first picture. Do one minute of easy full breathing that reaches all the areas of the upper body. Also while you are working with the exercise be aware the breath, while being soft it is also expansive and fills the spaces of the upper body.
Then bring the hands up slowly until they touch. Then return to the starting position relaxing the arms on the way down and again bring the hands up slowly.
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As you repeat this for the
length of the session that you set, 20 minutes is recommended, you will start to
feel a tremble in the muscle of the chest, (pectorals) and eventually in to the
arms. The longer that you persist at this session a momentum will build that
reaches
different muscles groups of the upper body and subtler releases can occur.
Generally the results are discernable when you get up and feel the body. You may
be able to note a change in the body by looking in the mirror before and after.
In many systems designed to stretch muscles, the idea is to make the muscles longer and more relaxed by different stretches. This session provides another way of accomplishing this, and I will add, is more enduring since you are restoring length to muscles that may have developed tensions over many years of conditioning. If you are involved in physical sports of any kind you may find this type of session can help performance as well as relaxing and rejuvenating us after playing any active sport.
There is much to say about what we think of as being in good condition, or what needs to be done in order to get into good condition and stay in good condition, which I will write about in the future. Suffice it to say the more you understand your structural alignment and how to bring that about the more you will be able to access the natural grace and dignity of your body.
“Human subtlety will never devise an invention more beautiful, more simple
or more direct than does Nature, because in her inventions, nothing is
lacking and nothing is superfluous.” Leonardo da Vinci, painter, engineer,
musician, and scientist (1452-1519)
Peace.
Posted by harmon at January 19, 2004
Comments
BREATHING IS GOOD, OXYGEN IS GOOD
Note change of e-mail
ksnodgrass@stny.rr.com
Posted by: Kelley Snodgrass on January 19, 2004
Dr. Kelley good to hear from you. thanks for the email update.
The inner and outer merge with each expansion, the wisdom is then passed on with each contractive wave of each breath. The unifying presence of breathing in and feeling non-separation, of what is popularly called the inner and outer, can dawn in a simple, easy fashion. It is what is.
Posted by:
Harmon
on January 19, 2004
Keep me posted on postings- the alignment techniques herein have helped me tremendously with "diagnosed" neuro-muscular problems and generally brought about a new level of awareness about my body. As relates to the last posting - Ken Wilber and ITP- this knowledge has completely changed my approach to swimming (which I do regularly) - where the regulation of breath, counting of laps is now more consciously a meditative process - also strokes like breast stroke become an alignment exercise - with extension of neck, chin tuck, opening chest, etc. Maybe I can write a more complete description later - for now just saying thank you and your postings are completely relevant to my current reality. Peace.
Posted by: Scott Williams on January 19, 2004
Scott
Will keep you posted as entries develop. Swimming is a wonderful whole body exercise. I found that when I started to work with breath and alignment I actually felt lighter or more buoyant in the water and was able to float with out effort. I have found that water is an interesting medium to do body work in, where you can let the body go in to motions or activity that would otherwise be held still. I look forward to any writings you may present. Peace
Posted by: Harmon on January 20, 2004
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