Articles about Alexander Technique

What is the Alexander Technique

The Alexander Technique is an intelligent way to solve body problems. Many people are mystified by their own back pain, excess tension, or lack of coordination. They often see problems in their joints or muscles as structural, unchangeable. As an Alexander teacher, I hear clients say things like, "I ... [read more]

Alexander Technique - Taking the Pressure off your Body

“Stand up straight!” “Pull your shoulders back!” As children, we were told to have good posture. Yet we were seldom taught effective ways to accomplish this. Indeed, we were often not even told just what “good posture” is. The consequences of this information gap can be seen all around us: stiff ... [read more]

On Coming to Terms with the "P" Words

The "P" word? You know -- posture. As a physical therapy (PT) student some 15 years ago I was taught to evaluate posture based on observing the relative positions of key anatomical landmarks -- ear over shoulder over hip. Only the professors used the appropriate scientific names -- "external auditor ... [read more]

What Happens in an Alexander Technique Lesson

When I speak to new students before their first lesson, I find they often have questions about what will go on during the lesson, and about the teaching process itself. What to Expect For a start, you don’t remove your clothes, nor is any kind of special clothing required -- although as table w ... [read more]

So what's different about the Alexander Technique

At a recent workshop, someone raised the ‘killer question’: ‘So what makes the Alexander Technique different from Yoga, or Pilates or Osteopathy?’ The list might have gone on to include Feldenkrais, Chiropractic and a variety of body therapies. Clearly Yoga, Pilates and Osteopathy etc. are all q ... [read more]

Fitness for Life with The Alexander Technique

To achieve a high level of fitness for life sounds like hard work - and not just from a the physical point of view. Many fail to maintain fitness because, and let's be honest, exercise routines can be boring! Where is the fun in doing the same exercises week in week out. Yes there are many who do st ... [read more]

Alexander Technique - Better Posture, Better Health, Better Life

Alexander Technique In brief A self-help therapy in which people are taught postural and physical skills to improve usage of their own body and eliminate unnecessary stress and tension. Background and History The creator of this technique, Frederick Matthias Alexander, was an Australi ... [read more]

How to Find an Alexander Technique Teacher

There are several thousand Alexander teachers worldwide. Most of them are members of one or more professional societies that publish teachers lists and basic information about the Alexander Technique. If you are fortunate enough to live in a city that has more than one teacher, you might want to ... [read more]

Most of Us Live on Autopilot

We really are creatures of habit. You’ve heard it said, but have you ever really thought about what it means to spend so much of your waking life on automatic? We are a collection of our habits to such an extent that we are not fully present to ourselves during much of our lives. Most of us don’ ... [read more]

Getting into The Zone with The Alexander Technique

Have you ever attempted to perform a simple act and completely failed? From completely mistiming a shot to losing balance at a crucial moment, the outcome may have fallen short of our intention and expectation. In contrast there are times when everything goes just right, every act is carried out to ... [read more]

Fitness - The Quality Factor

Summer is traditionally a time for renewed interest in fitness activities. But these days our enthusiasm is often tempered by a growing uneasiness over the benefits of exercise. Increasingly, we hear concerns voiced on the effectiveness of certain fitness programs. "Are health clubs risky?" "H ... [read more]

Alexander Technique for the Choral Singer

POTTED ALEXANDER F.M. Alexander (1869-1955) was an actor who suffered from recurrent hoarseness and breathing difficulties. Having unsuccessfully tried the medical treatments available at the time, Alexander studied by himself, over a period of seven years, in a three-way system of mirrors to find o ... [read more]