Inside Motion: An Ideokinetic Basis for Movement Education

154 Pages·1984·133.236 MB·English

by  John Rolland

J o h n R o l l a n d
INSIDE MOTION:
an ideokinetic basis for
movement education
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© 1984 John Rolland
First Published 1984; Revised Edition Published by Rolland String Research Associates, 1987
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form without
permission in writing from John Rolland
Dedication
To my teacher Barbara Clark who helped me to appreciate the wisdom of the human body,
and to all my colleagues and students who encouraged me with my work.
Acknowledgements
I wish to thank Marsha Paludan and Nancy Topf-Gibson for their suggestions in preparing the
manuscript, and Aat Hougee and Jaap Flier for their constant support of my work.
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C o n t e n t s
Chapter 1 Introduction to the alignment process 3
Chapter 2 Basic mechanical laws relevant to the study of bodily balance 9
Chapter 3 The working process 20
Chapter 4 Balancing the torso 24
Chapter 5 Balancing the legs 68
Chapter 6 Balancing the feet 98
Chapter 7 Balancing the ribcage 112
Chapter 8 Balancing the shoulder girdle and arras 133
Further reading 153
CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION TO THE ALIGNMENT PROCESS
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Mind Body Integration
Mind and body are integrated in daily movement activities. The mind responds to the flow of action
in the body, and the body gives meaningful expression to the flow of thoughts through the mind.
Both aspects of being are inseparably linked in all of our actions, feelings, and thoughts. In spite of
this inherent unity, traditional systems of movement education tend to focus their training exclusively
on the action of the body and ignore the possibilities for developing thought, feeling, and imagination
through movement. By ignoring these aspects, the potential for a more receptive and intuitive form
of education through physical training remains untapped.
The approach towards training presented in this book combines thinking, sensing, and imagining
with the performance of action. It has its roots in the work of Mabel Todd, a pioneer in the field of
postural education. Todd was one of the first teachers to create a systematic method of postural train-
ing which integrated mind and body in the working process. She was both a scientist seeking ob-
jective truths, and a poet searching for the meaning of her work within the total context of human
life. In the early 1920's she published "The Principles of Posture" in which she outlined the basic
concepts of her work. She emphasized the importance of deriving concepts of bodily balance from
scientific rather than social, moral, or personal principles. She used concepts from the fields of me-
chanics, engineering, architecture, physiology, and anatomy to analyze the problems of balance in
the human body. This analysis resulted in the development of principles of bodily balance which,
when practiced by students, led to desirable postural improvements. In 1929 she published "The
Balancing of Forces in the Human Being" which presented the principles of bodily balance in further
detail and outlined the psycho-physical basis of her work. Ideokinesis is the term now used to describe
this process in which imagery acts as a stimulus for developing kinesthetic awareness and producing
bodily change. Todd, from her earliest experiences in postural education, was aware of the power of
the mind to stimulate changes in the body. In her lessons she presented students with concepts of
balance relevant to their postural problems. She translated these concepts into graphic or kinesthetic
images to be thought of as happening in the body, and by using touch, she helped locate the images
in the body. Given the appropriate motivation, sensory acuity, and the power of fantasy, the desired
postural changes occurred.
In 1937 Todd published the book for which she is most well known, "The Thinking Body". In this
book she brought together a wide spectrum of scientific, philosophical, and practical information on
bodily balance in a more concise form than her previous writings. Her final book, "The Hidden You",
published in 1953 presented her basic ideas from a more philosophical and even metaphysical point
of view.
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The basic approach towards working with the body first developed by Todd has influenced many of
those with whom she came in contact. A few of her students have continued to organize, develop,
and refine her basic ideas. Most notable among these are Barbara Clark and Lulu Sweigard. Through
its ongoing transformation by its many practitioners, the work has been kept alive and relevant to
the continuing research in the field of bodily balance and mind-body integration.
Goals of This Work
The basic goal of this work is the improvement of ones physical balance through an essentially creative
learning process that integrates mental and physical capacities. Students learn to both think and
feel their way through the body and in the process release layers of kinesthetic information hidden
there. Since movement is coordinated through the integrated actions of the neural, muscular, and
skeletal systems it is a vital aspect of this work to deal with movement in its entirety. This is accom-
plished by repatterning movement at its neurological source in the brain, first by rethinking and then
by imagining patterns of movement based on scientific principles of mechanical balance. Gradually
as the intended neurological patterns are established, they organize the appropriate muscular patterns
to move and balance the skeletal system in the desired mechanically balanced pattern.
The learning process follows a primarily educational rather than therapeutic model in that it empha-
sizes developing ones own powers of thinking, intuition, and kinesthetic awareness rather than relying
on the power of the teacher/therapist to make bodily changes. Aside from the satisfaction of having
accomplished a great deal for oneself, this work opens the student to an inner world of awareness
and intuition which enriches the process of living.
Mechanical Principles
The application of mechanical principles to the analysis of bodily balance provides the theoretical
basis for the alignment work. All physical structures (including the human body) are confronted
with the action of universal forces. Mechanical principles explain the effects of these forces on the
motion and equilibrium of a structure. By working with these principles, designers can build structures
that are strong enough to withstand the forces acting upon them This balancing of forces produces
a stable state of equilibrium. Similarly, "postural designers" can apply mechanical principles to the
structure of the human body and determine the most efficient use of energy in maintaining bodily
equilibrium both in motion and rest.
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The primary factors affecting the motion and balance of the body are gravity, inertia, and momentum.
In order to achieve a stable state of balance, the body must exert enough resistance to counter the
tendency of these forces to throw it out of balance. The body creates its resistance or counterforce
in two ways: it exerts mechanical force through the material and structural design of the skeleton,
and it exerts living force through the power of the neuromuscular unit. In order to achieve an effi-
cient state of balance, the mechanical force exerted by the skeletal structure needs to be maximized
so that the living force exerted by the neuromuscular unit (human energy) can be minimized. This
is accomplished in the training through the application of mechanical principles of balance to the re-
organization of the living skeletal structure. As the body's design conforms more closely to mechan-
ical laws of balance, the need to exert muscular energy to help maintain its balance is reduced. This
frees energy from the maintenance of balance to the more productive accomplishment of the tasks of
living.
Neuromuscular Patterns: the Source of Postural Habits
Movement and postural habits, learned since infancy, are permanently established in the brain and
the musculature in the form of neuromuscular patterns. These patterns provide the living force nec-
essary to organize, move, and balance the skeleton. Although the outward form of the body changes
as one moves, the underlying neuromuscular patterns remain fixed. Due to this underlying constancy,
a person's posture and movement personality takes on a recognizable configuration. To change ones
posture by manipulating the outward form of the body alone is superficial because it leaves the un-
derlying neuromuscular patterns untouched. Change to the skeletal configuration lasts only as long
as it is consciously held in thought. As one forgets to hold a shape, the posture reverts to the under-
lying patterns. In order to make deep and effective postural changes, the habits have to be repat-
terned at their neuromuscular source. This changes the form of the body from the inside out.
Ideokinesis: a Process of Image to Action
Ideokinesis is the educational method used to repattern the neuromuscular system. It is a process in
which kinesthetic imagery is used to stimulate specific muscular responses. The images are pictures
of action that have been derived from concepts of mechanical balance. With repeated practice, they
stimulate the desired kinesthetic response in the body and eventually lead to a permanent change in
the neuromuscular system. Change occurs gradually and involves: 1) frequent repetition of the ap-
propriate image, 2) the development of kinesthetic acuity, and 3) receptivity to the process of change.
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The process of ideokinesis is very similar to the natural means by which infants first learn to pattern
movement in the neuromusculature. The primary difference is that ideokinesis is a consciously used
tool for learning or repatterning movement skills, whereas the natural learning of movement by in-
fants occurs for the most part without guided conscious effort.
In carrying out a task, it is the intention to accomplish an action or goal which first sets the body into
motion. One is generally aware of this cortical process taking place. However, the specific neuro-
muscular organization determining how the body is to accomplish these goals is a subcortical process
and out of the range of awareness. For example, one might be lying in bed thinking "it is time to get
up", and finally determines "I'm going to get up", and then proceeds to do it. One is fully aware of
having thought about and establishing the intention to get up, but has no awareness as to how the
body was actually organized to carry out this complex neuromuscular task. The link which acted as
a bridge between the cortical intention to act and the subcortical organization of movement is felt-
thought. This form of thinking consists of a "vocabulary" of non-verbal symbols that encapsule the
kinesthetic information abstracted from previous sensory motor experience. One thinks through an
action in this symbolic, felt mode by seeing/feeling it as though it were being accomplished. This
takes place in the imagination but is experienced kinesthetically as though it were occurring in the
body. Imagined action functions as an "instant rehearsal" of movement and helps to establish smooth
transitions between the intent, the organization, and the successful carrying out of one's actions.
Again using the above example, once the intention to "get up" is established, the imagination sublim-
inally rehearses the action in symbolic form, and then one proceeds to get up.
The ideokinetic process organizes action through a felt-image mode similar to that outlined above.
Its value for relearning movement patterns comes from the fact that it can be consciously directed
and at the same time influences the organization of movement on a subcortical level. In this process,
a concept of action, translated into kinesthetic imagery, is introduced into cortical thought. It passes
into the imagination where it is transformed into felt-thought, and eventually stimulates the subcor-
tical organization of a muscular response. With frequent practice of this image to action sequence,
it establishes a neuromuscular pattern which becomes integrated into the individual's automatic
movement behavior.
The following example illustrates how the ideokinetic process could be used to reduce muscle tension
in the body. The appropriate imagery to use might include anything suggestive of a spacious feeling,
a soft texture, or a gently flowing motion, i.e. clouds separating, mist dissolving, a stream flowing,
sinking into foam etc. One of these images which captures the imagination is chosen and then seen
or felt to be happening in the body. By waiting or listening receptively, the body usually responds
to the kinesthetic suggestion with a release of muscular tension. The image or any variation thereof
can be repeated until the corresponding bodily sensation is learned. This indicates that the muscular
pattern has been patterned neurologically and will become an automatic response in the future.
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In order for the ideokinetic process to be most effective, the subcortical organization of the desired
action should not be interfered with consciously. At the crucial point of transforming image to
action it is important to cultivate a receptive state of relaxed concentration and allow it to occur nat-
urally. Initially it takes conscious effort to intellectually grasp a postural concept and to plant the
corresponding image in the mind. However, at a certain point it is crucial to let go of this effort and
instead allow the innate wisdom of the body to make the desired neuromuscular connections. No
amount of conscious willing or imposing can directly reorganize a neuromuscular pattern. Instead it
interferes with and can even block the process from happening. Respect and trust for the body's inner
wisdom is often the key to stimulating the successful transformation of an image into the desired neu-
romuscular pattern. One eventually learns that intellect is most effective as a guide rather than a dic-
tator in bringing about postural change through ideokinesis.
Ideokinesis is essentially a creative process. It requires careful preparation and patient and relaxed
concentration in order for discovery and change to occur. As one becomes deeply engaged in the
process of achieving efficient balance, the imagination stimulates the connections which transform
image into action.
CAPTER 2 BASIC MECHANICAL LAWS RELEVANT TO
THE STUDY OF BODILY BALANCE