Don’t Stand Up Straight

Five Alternative Posture Tips Based on the Alexander Technique

by

Leland Vall
Certified Alexander Technique Instructor
New York, NY

What is your idea of good posture? Responses I hear all the time include standing up
straight, standing with “good alignment” and imagining a string pulling your head up.
This question is important for improving postural habits because clarifying your
understanding is the first step toward feeling more comfortable in your body. The
following posture tips rely on the intrinsic structure and dynamism of the body and are
based on the Alexander Technique. They won’t change your posture on their own, but
they might help you think differently about your body.

1 Don’t stand up straight.

What do you think of the
plumb line alignment image
shown here? It often seems
right at first, but most people
eventually say it feels stiff and
that it doesn’t relate to the
flow of movement in actual
life. It also lacks any
suggestion for transitioning
from standing straight, to
moving or other positions.

2 That string is misleading.

Many people suggest thinking of a string attached to the top of the head. Again I wonder
how this relates to movement and the countless positions we use where we are not
standing straight up. Where does the string go when you bend? But mostly I don’t like
the idea of something outside of my body holding me up, even as a metaphor.

3 Posture and movement are inseparable.

People often think of posture in a static sense but really the body is never static. It is
more accurate to think of movement and posture as a single idea. Your posture goes
with you everywhere and does everything that you do.

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4 Try thinking of your body as a self-powered fountain.
It may seem like a stretch, but more than a fixed
structure, the body is an event that is taking place.
Think of your body, with its heartbeat, breathing, and
chemical/electrical reactions flowing—the body, like a
fountain of water, is a structure in continuous creation.
As you are reading this, try thinking of your body as a
light and pulsating fountain of water coming up from the
chair. Of course water bends so movement and position
shouldn’t matter. Do you feel a little lighter, and a little
taller?

5 Try thinking of your body as a standing wave.

A standing wave that sometimes forms in the mouth of a river is another internally
dynamic water image. It is especially useful for thinking about bending. In the images
below, the bending movement even looks like a wave. Try bending while thinking of
yourself as a wave. Look for the feeling of buoyancy with the wave even as you get
closer to the floor.

Conclusion
How you perceive your body is fundamental to how you experience and use it. You
might think of your body as something that you have to lug around or that causes pain.
I like to think of the body as an event that creates itself every moment with its countless
processes. Whether or not we realize it, these processes are also a powerful influence
on how we stand and move. Instead of trying to fit to an outside model of posture, you
might find it easier to think of posture and movement as part of the natural internal flow
of the body.

Leland Vall, M.AmSAT is a certified Alexander Technique instructor based in New

York. He is the author of The Secret to Using Your Body and he teaches individuals and
groups how to improve posture and to breathe, move, sit and stand with greater ease
and strength. Find out how to feel better every day and for the rest of your life at
www.freeyourneck.com.

www.freeyourneck.com Page 2 of 2 ©2010 Leland Vall