balance | Gokhale Method Institute

Guest Blog: Woodland Workouts – a great place to test your new-found Gokhale Method skills!

Olly Selway

August, 2013

I like to exercise in the woods. There! I’ve said it. I’ve said it aloud too - so there’s no going back. Truth be told, I’m much happier here among the trees than the squeezing between the pec-decks and stationary bikes at my local globo gym. I even prefer it to pounding the streets or hiking through the fields. In fact I prefer it to pretty much everything. There’s something primal about the woods. It’s not just the smells, the sounds of the whispering trees, the presence of birds and other wildlife, or the dappled sunlight effect that the forest canopy casts on the ground. I think it goes further than that. Read more

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Balanced Walking in Older Age

Esther Gokhale

June, 2021

We assume in our culture that aging will necessarily be accompanied by a loss of height, increasingly stooped posture, loss of muscle strength, and a precarious inability to balance. But is this really the inevitable trajectory? Here we look at why this occurs and focus on how a healthy gait can help us maintain good balance throughout life, including into old age.

Walking sticks and poles help prevent falls but are poor compensation for loss
of natural stability and balance from the feet and buttocks. Unsplash... Read more

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How to Climb Stairs Part 1: Onward and Upward

Esther Gokhale

December, 2022

Eric Fernandez angles his body forward in line with his back leg as he walks up the steps.

Few of us, wheelchair users excepted, pass a day without climbing steps or stairs. Students often ask if posture has any bearing on how best to do this—and the answer is yes! Our approach to pain-free, healthy posture works precisely because it helps you with all your daily activities. This blog post is the first of several containing introductory tips for using steps and stairs. We will focus here on how to power yourself upward.

Steps and stairs—the benefits

If you are looking to maintain or improve your cardio fitness and lower body strength, climbing steps and stairs will check that box. For example, this could be opting for the stairs rather than the elevator at work. Read more

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How To Go Down Stairs (Part 2)

Esther Gokhale

February, 2023

The feet can land well when the legs and body also have healthy posture.

Welcome to our second post on navigating steps and stairs. Our first post looked at how to power yourself up stairs—however, we often hear from our students that their most pressing concern is how to come down stairs. Are you starting to worry that you may need to set up your bedroom downstairs, or find yourself compromised when visiting places with stairs? Perhaps you have a friend or older relative in this position? Is it possible to maintain or even improve your fitness and mobility in the years ahead? “Life exercises” such as descending stairs, done skilfully, can be transformative and can give many benefits beyond getting you where you want to go. Read more

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Freedom from Pain This July 4

Esther Gokhale

July, 2024

Enjoyable physical activity should be with us through all stages of life.

Today, those of us in the U.S. celebrate our nationhood. On July 4, 1776, the Declaration of Independence announced colonial freedom from Great Britain; our history has included the winning of many more freedoms since. In various and sometimes contradictory ways, our society continues to defend much cherished freedoms, and also to aspire to new levels of freedom. Read more

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anti-inflammatory shots

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How to Get and Keep Strong, Flexible, Pain-free Ankles.

Esther Gokhale

July, 2024

Healthy ankles can serve both fashion and function!

We have long ago ditched any Victorian shyness around showing our ankles, thank goodness. In fact, they have become a fashionable part of the body to celebrate with short pants and an ornamental tattoo. But unfortunately for our ankles, the picture is often not so rosy as the years go by… Read more

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Wake Up Your Glutes, They Snooze, You Lose

Esther Gokhale

August, 2024

Man at His Bath by Gustave Caillebotte, 1884.

In surveys of what people find physically attractive in a partner, a shapely butt is often highly rated. Perhaps it’s no surprise, but if you want, there are even apps to help! So, are good-looking glutes all about sex appeal and filling out our clothing in a flattering fashion? While these concerns may be valid, it is also true that well-toned glutes have many other, profound, but less widely recognized attributes. This blog post takes a look at the bigger picture of glute function. You may be surprised to find out just how much your glutes can contribute to healthy posture and a pain-free body. Read more

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Healthy Posture for Better Sleep

Esther Gokhale

October, 2024

A lengthened, supple spine can tolerate even an unforgiving surface, such as this log.

Signs of good sleep include taking less time to fall asleep and not waking up often or for long periods. And although the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM)and the Sleep Research Society (SRS) recommend adults sleep at least seven hours a night,¹ over one-quarter of us fall short of this recommendation.² There are many factors contributing to this lack of sleep, and back pain is certainly one of them. Read more

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