Improv and Hands On: Day Three

DISCUSSION:

The reading we had for today from our book was about body mapping.

Here's a quick summary of body mapping that came from the book: "Mapping refers to one's own idea and experience of structure, movement, and size. Body maps can be conscious or unconscious, but they always govern how we move. Body maps often deviate from the reality of anatomic structure; even then, they govern how we move."

So we talked about what body mapping means to us, and I just want to review some of the ideas that were mentioned.

Body mapping is learning how to move in your body. Everyone's body is different, and everyone holds different tensions. If you're trying to move according to someone else's body map, your movement is going to become restricted, and possibly even harmful and painful.

Body mapping is using information gained about the anatomy of the body to move from a correct place. Understanding that there are several very deep muscles will help to move from real places, instead of only trying to move superficially.

It is an understood concept that the brain and body work together. Without a brain, you can't move your body. But the question is...are we really allowing them to work together? As we gain new knowledge about how the body works, are we really applying that information to our movement? There was a quote from the reading that I loved that applied to this: "Correcting your body map...requires conscious thinking and a willingness to change."

I personally can relate to this. Through my learning in somatics, I have such a greater knowledge of how I should be using my body, and what I can do to be more efficient. But actually applying those principles is what makes changing so difficult. Once I start to dance, or even just move on a normal, daily basis, I automatically slip into bad habits. It's something you really have to focus and concentrate on.

One principle that has really rung true for me is to only use what you need. Nothing more, nothing less. In my previous dance training, I was always told to "pull up", or "tighten your center". Those put restricting forces on the body, and used way more tension than is ever necessary!

Something else I thought was interesting today, was when our teacher mentioned that people who grind their teeth at night tend to hold much more tension from their jaw, down their neck, and even in their shoulder region.

I'm a teeth grinder. If I don't grind, I know I definitely clench. And my neck and shoulders are a huge area of tension for me. I can always tell that I'm super restricted in that area. So I'm going to see if there's anything I can do about that teeth grinding business.

HANDS ON:

We did The Walk that we did last class again, with having a partner help our awareness to our head and neck relationship. It's amazing how much repetition can help ingrain something in my brain and body. So we continued with that, and then discussed where we are now with that exercise.

One of my classmates mentioned that she's understanding the relationship better, and can feel the energy flow better. The image she used was a water fountain with a ball on the top: she can feel the energy going through her body, and then her head just rests on top with simple ease.

Then we did an exercise (again with our same partners) where we sat in a chair. First, we just stood up, and our partner watched to see what kind of relationship our head, neck, and back had during the process. We did it a few times, and they saw how disconnected we were. So we sat down again, where our partner again helped us with our awareness of our head/neck relationship. It was interesting, because at first it was kind of painful trying to sit with correct alignment in those particular chairs, just because of the slope the seat was designed with. But then, as we lengthened, and became more at ease, it wasn't quite so bad anymore.

Anyway, from there, they helped us stand up. Just a simple movement, just forward and up. None of this "I'm going to jut my chin out as far as it will go, and then hope the rest of my body will follow" business. In fact, we even made our teacher tear up a bit, because apparently standing up with more efficiency was that beautiful. Who knew?

From there we did a relaxation segment. We just laid down on our mats with a book under our heads, and our teacher came around and helped us maintain that healthy head/neck relationship. Then we laid there for probably 7 or 8 minutes, and just pondered on what we've talked about today.

I actually ended up feeling a little bit frustrated. While I'm in class, or when I'm studying for this class on my own, everything makes sense, and I can feel my body making the changes it needs to. But then as soon as I start dancing, or I simply start living my normal life, all of those changes just go out the window. I want so badly for these changes to stick, and to be able to apply these principles all the time. I'm really hoping that I'll be able to find the connection very soon.