Alexander Technique Introduction
by Robert Rickover
One of the greatest challenges for an Alexander Technique teacher is to provide a short, meaningful answer to the question, “What is the Alexander Technique?” My own best attempts to do this have sometimes been met with blank stares of incomprehension, even from people who have heard good things about it, or perhaps know someone who has benefited from Alexander lessons.
The answer I give most often these days - and let me confess that is not my own creation, but comes from Dr. Alfred Flechas of Ocala, Florida - is this: “The Alexander Technique is a way to learn how to get rid of harmful tension in your body.”
This is certainly not a complete definition, but it is a good start. Here are a few more short descriptions that help explain in a little more detail what the Alexander Technique is all about:
"The Alexander Technique is a method that works to change (movement) habits in our everyday activities. It is a simple and practical method for improving ease and freedom of movement, balance, support and coordination. The technique teaches the use of the appropriate amount of effort for a particular activity, giving you more energy for all your activities. It is not a series of treatments or exercises, but rather a reeducation of the mind and body. The Alexander Technique is a method which helps a person discover a new balance in the body by releasing unnecessary tension. It can be applied to sitting, lying down, standing, walking, lifting, and other daily activities..." - Carol Prentice, an Alexander Technique teacher in Sacramento, California
Here’s another short description:
"The release of unnecessary muscular tension is vital to our well-being; if our muscles are habitually over-tightened our bodies become distorted, unbalanced and compressed. The Alexander Technique offers a way to let go of such destructive tension by learning to monitor the way we coordinate ourselves in any activity so that we can carry out that activity with ... the minimum of strain." - Timothy Soar, an Alexander teacher in Swansea, England
Most of us after the age of 3 or 4, learn tension patterns that interfere with the natural easiness, balance, support, and freedom of movement we all had as children. These tension patterns of slumping and so-called 'good posture' become so habituated that they feel normal; yet to whatever degree a person has one or both patterns, their movements are limited. The Alexander Technique is a time-tested method of teaching people how they can restore their natural balance, flexibility and ease of movement.
People of all ages and occupations have benefited from Alexander Technique lessons. The Technique also has its share of famous people who have publicly endorsed it - including two Nobel Prize winners and celebrities like Paul Newman, John Cleese, William Hurt, Sting, James Galway and Yehudi Menuhun.* * *
Robert Rickover is a teacher of the Alexander Technique living in Lincoln, Nebraska. He also teaches regularly in Toronto, Canada. Robert is the author of Fitness Without Stress - A Guide to the Alexander Technique and is the Alexander Technique Content Editor for America OnLine, Suite101.com, and OmPlace.com. He is the creator of The Complete Guide to the Alexander Technique Web Site Homepage: alexandertechnique.com/nebraska.htm
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