Allelujah Arms
By Javier Padilla
Overview:
This has been one of the most interesting/amusing exercises we have done in class. This is one of the first exercises where I could feel what was happening in my body right away. The shoulder blade sliding, the rib cage expanding, the collar bone moving, everything was present and I was able to pinpoint exactly what they were doing. The "hurt so good" pain of the pinky ball really gave me an idea about how much we over use the muscles in that area.
The Uneven Reveal:
After going through the exercise once and reaching both hands to the ceiling laughter filled the room. The awkward, uneven and totally unbalanced lengths of our arms seemed to be the most perfect visual metaphor of what our lives had become. Never did a more accurate, physical image resemble the confusion and awkwardness of my personal well being. I actually looked the way I felt.
Finishing the exercise:
After doing both sides and resembling a human being not constructed by Frankenstein, the lightness and freedom in the arms was extremely new. The tension and weight before was unnoticed until having this new sensation in my body. Allowing gravity to takes its course when we would drop and suspend was dramatically changed. Dropping and suspending didn't become a muscular task anymore. For the rest of the day my body actually felt more in-sync. This exercise gave me another way of analyzing my body and inhibiting it.
Fin.
Javier this is great. It really makes me think of an AT principle called "faulty sensory awareness." For years we have been used to the arms feeling and moving a certain way and taking it for granted and when given a new sensation it feels so foreign or alien that it is hard for the body/mind to comprehend. It sound like for you the sensation was so positive that you will be seeking this change. Remember that though the pinky ball made magic, it is just knowing where your joints are and how things move that changes your "use" and give ease to the body. Great work.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to add that after missing the day of class in which everyone learned the arms exercise, I came home that night and Javi taught it to me. I was stressed out at the moment I came home (grad school is stressful, dontcha know), and the activity had a profound effect on me. My shoulder tension has plagued me as long as I can remember and I try all the time to ease it. This exercise gave me a feeling of ease in my shoulders that translated into the rest of my body. What a lovely way to spend an evening.
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