Alexander Technique with Bridget Barr

This popular course will run again at Prince Henry’s Grammar School in Otley starting in September. We will explore gentle ways to improve posture and reduce effort and strain in everyday activities. You will learn the benefits of focussing on your whole self rather than only on the parts that you are troubled by, how the way we think can affect how we move, and much more

This link provides more information, including how to book https://www.learnalexandertechnique.info/alexander-technique-group-sessions-yorkshire/

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions

This practical course offers the opportunity to explore gentle ways to improve your posture and reduce effort and strain in everyday activities. You will learn the benefits of focussing on your whole self rather than only on the parts that you are troubled by, how the way we think can affect how we move, and much more https://www.learnalexandertechnique.info/alexander-technique-group-sessions-yorkshire/

If you suffer from back or neck pain and live near Otley, my weekly class at Prince Henry’s Grammar School starting on 21st September could be just the thing for you. More details are available here https://www.learnalexandertechnique.info/alexander-technique-group-sessions-yorkshire/

All the training I have done during the pandemic has shifted my thinking about the Alexander Technique. That and all the new technology available meant the time was right for a new website. Many thanks to Katja at PC Harmony in Harrogate for the design. Comments welcome. https://www.learnalexandertechnique.info/

I am offering a session on ‘Improving your walking with the Alexander Technique’ at this year’s Otley Walking Festival. It’s on 27th June in the evening and it’s free. 7 of the 12 places are already taken, so you want to join us, best let me know sooner rather than later.

Here is an excellent article discussing the connection between mind, body, posture and stress, including the effectiveness of the Alexander Technique. Thanks to my colleague Gerry Andrews for sharing it initially.
https://elemental.medium.com/how-the-physical-body-holds-mental-tension-fab4e4fcb48f

How the Physical Body Holds Mental Tension The connection between mind, body, posture, and stress

Risk assessment complete, QR code generated and lots of safety measures put in place ready to see clients in person again. Looking forward to seeing some of my previous clients again and some new ones too. Very excited. Do get in touch if you would like to make an appointment.

This newly published book describes the Alexander Technique approach to strength and integrated movement that I have been training in recently. It’s jam-packed with pictures and explorations to try out with lots of ideas, some familiar and some new. I especially like that the author, Penelope Easten, embraces the complexity of movement. The result is a long and, at times, hefty read, but there is an honesty about it that is so often absent in the current drive for quick, simple solutions that promise amazing results but rarely (if ever) deliver.

If you are interested in building strength that makes everything you do feel easier, my latest blog explains how the Alexander Technique could be just what you need. You can read it here https://www.learnalexandertechnique.info/improving-strength-with-the-alexander-technique/

Improving Strength with the Alexander Technique - Learn The Alexander Technique Strength training can leave you feeling sore, tight, heavy-legged or lighter, springier and livelier depending on your approach. Here’s my thinking on the subject.

A couple of questions have come up whilst chatting to people about my previous post.

Q. Will you still be teaching online?
A. Yes, this approach works well online because without me to guide movements, clients have to figure out how to move in ways that are unfamiliar to them and this makes their learning more powerful.

Q. Strength and tone seem like a very different focus for the Alexander Technique. Where do the principles of the more traditional Alexander Technique fit with this new approach?
A. All the principles that make the Alexander Technique so effective are still there, including:
• Improving the whole self rather than fixing individual problems
• The importance of quietening the nervous system to reduce unnecessary tension
• Attention to width and depth in the body as well as length. More space = more effortless movement

Blog post to follow with more details

If you want to improve strength and tone, the Alexander Technique is unlikely to be the first thing that comes to mind. And yet, these are some of the things that a new (to me) approach to the technique offers. As someone who puts a high value on staying fit and active into old age, I know that maintaining strength and tone is essential. Not surprisingly then, it didn’t take me long to start learning the approach with Penelope Easten, a teacher who has already had a significant influence on my teaching. I shall be writing more about this in the days/weeks to come; if you want to know more before then, feel free to get in touch.