yoga

I'm so glad the course went well for you! Yes, tucking the pelvis opposes what we teach to be the normal anteverted position for the pelvis. In my experience, most pilates teachers do teach a tucked pelvis (which they may call neutral).  Joe Pilates himself had a nicely anteverted pelvis and I have run into at least one school of thought within pilates where they teach a more normal pelvic position. So if you like pilates (and I do like their focus on strengthening), look for a teacher who will work with pelvic anteversion. If you like your teachers and they are open to new ideas, you might consider presenting them a copy of 8 Steps. Or referring them to the Youtube video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yYJ4hEYudE Recently, with the popularity of pilates, yoga teachers have been influenced by pilates to offer yogalates, pilayoga, etc. Even regular yoga classes have been influenced to include some pilates-type directions including a tucked pelvis. This is a problem! Yes, you asked a big question! I think I need to make a DVD to answer your question...begin with the hero poses, don't round or sway your back in any pose, leave your feet bean-shaped, make sure your knees and feet point the same direction especially when you bend your knees, leave our neck elongated,...

[quote="Esther"] Yes, you asked a big question![glow=red,2,300] I think I need to make a DVD to answer your question...[/glow]begin with the hero poses, don't round or sway your back in any pose, leave your feet bean-shaped, make sure your knees and feet point the same direction especially when you bend your knees, leave our neck elongated,... [/quote] Please!  Make a DVD!  I love yoga AND your book and am having a hard time connecting the two.

I just got asked to make one with someone who distributes them - I think I will say yes.

Please do make a DVD! Several of my friends bought the book after hearing of my experiences but have problems translating the book instructions to actual physical changes. A DVD or even short video clips would be great! [quote]don't round or sway your back in any pose[/quote] What about cat pose or cobra pose or child pose? What about spinal twists?

I want to join the request for a dvd to accompany the book. The book is very good and I often feel it is working for me but I lack some guidance specific to my body and habits. Even better - how about coming to teach in Israel?

Cat pose: tricky to do this well. If your back is swayed to begin with, you don't want to sway it further. If your ligaments in the upper back are over-stretched to begin with, you don't want to further distend them. If your L5-S1 disc is compromised, you doln't want to tuck your pelvis. It is very beneficial to work your ribcage backward and forward the way a Samba dancer would. The long and short of it is, do what feels good, but don't push your weaknesses. Cobra pose: I teach people to do baby cobra pose. Go as far as your L5-S1 curvature allows (very little on most people; a lot on Iyengar), and don't get into swaying your back. Child's pose: here is the forward curvature is mild and spread over a lot of the back, so if your back is healthy and feels good with this, it is fine. I prefer modified child's pose with the lower legs about hip width apart and running parallel, the butt up in the air, the forehead on the floor, the arms outstretched on the floor beyond the head and the back deliciously stretched. Twists: also tricky. You want a small amount of curvature spread evenly throughout the spine. Nothing drastic concentrated in a small stretch (often T12-L1, the first place coming from the lower spine that is able to twist).

[quote="orag"] I want to join the request for a dvd to accompany the book. The book is very good and I often feel it is working for me but I lack some guidance specific to my body and habits. Even better - how about coming to teach in Israel? [/quote] A DVD to accompany the book will happen - we have to raise more funds for this to be practical. Israel sounds like a great destination. Help make it happen by spreading the word. The place we gather requests for the course is here: http://www.egwellness.com/instruction/gokhale_method_intensive.html#city_form

Thanks for the detailed explanation about the yoga poses, I'll try and see if I can do them like you describe. As for coming to Israel: How many people need to sign up for you to come?

I just want to add my voice to encourage you to create a DVD. I think you are talking about a DVD with modified yoga poses, but I also feel a DVD of the 8 Lessons would be really important. For many of us, it's easier to learning seeing things performed and also being able to follow the audio rather than read, put the book down, and then have to remember and apply. Your work is so very important. I've had almost no pain in my lower back since simply allowing myself to antevert my pelvis. Before that I had lower back pain every day. And I haven't even started the lessons! I keep wondering how more people can learn about this very important difference in what you teach. It's a shame that people spend time and money on an approach (tucked pelvis) that isn't the best, natural, effective approach. I wonder if a good grant writer could persuade NIH to fund some research to compare the approaches. Sorry for the rambling -- I just think your approach is so important!

[quote="yonat"] As for coming to Israel: How many people need to sign up for you to come? [/quote] It takes 16 people (two groups of eight) to facilitate our teaching away from home. When we're teaching away from home, we offer the intensive version of the course over three days. We'd love to come to Israel!

Dear happyback, I'm glad you're doing so well - that's wonderful to hear! Yes, I agree it is very important to get this message out to as many people as possible. You are quite right to think that a study is an important piece of the picture. You'll be happy to know one of my students, very happy with the results she experienced from the work, donated money to facilitate a pilot study at Palo Alto Medical Clinic. Haleh Agdassi, MD, a physiatrist at PAMC, is going to be the principal investigator, the study will investigate the effect of the Gokhale Method 101 course on chronic low back pain and is scheduled to begin in September. If the results are positive, that will be the time to approach the NIH. They will need to see some preliminary evidence before they consider granting money to study us. One step at a time.

[quote="Esther"] Dear happyback, I'm glad you're doing so well - that's wonderful to hear! Yes, I agree it is very important to get this message out to as many people as possible. You are quite right to think that a study is an important piece of the picture. You'll be happy to know one of my students, very happy with the results she experienced from the work, donated money to facilitate a pilot study at Palo Alto Medical Clinic. Haleh Agdassi, MD, a physiatrist at PAMC, is going to be the principal investigator, the study will investigate the effect of the Gokhale Method 101 course on chronic low back pain and is scheduled to begin in September. If the results are positive, that will be the time to approach the NIH. They will need to see some preliminary evidence before they consider granting money to study us. One step at a time. [/quote] Good news!

More about the study -- I just started another topic about trying to do two opposing approaches at once (PT and Gokhale approaches) and the need to choose one. It occurs to me that it would be important with the study for people to not continue with other exercises and stretches (except for aerobic exercise and such) while participating in the study. I'm sure you'll think of this, but just wanted to add that thought. People like me may be reluctant to give up something they are already doing!

[quote="Esther"] It takes 16 people (two groups of eight) to facilitate our teaching away from home. When we're teaching away from home, we offer the intensive version of the course over three days. We'd love to come to Israel! [/quote] Great, 16 people sounds completely doable. I'll start asking around.

yonat, if you are arranging a course in Israel, I'm definitely in and would ask around trying to find more people to come. please let me know. ora.gavriely at gmail dot com