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Week 5 Summary: Thought, Movement, and Energy

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Alexander observed that muscles only contract when they receive a message from the nervous system. In other words, all voluntary movement begins with a thought. Once the signal has left the brain, it cannot be changed. The only way to create different movement is to change the thinking that designs it.  

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The Technique trains us to become aware of these thoughts and to redirect them. When our thinking changes, our movement changes too. This prevents us from being trapped by habitual patterns and opens new choices for action.

Alexander also noticed that people often use too much energy. Sometimes this happens in a specific way, such as using more effort than is needed, or by involving muscles that cannot help with the task. Other times it happens in a general way, where unnecessary effort spreads throughout the body.

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The principles of the Technique remind us that our body, mind, and emotions are inseparable. Our use affects all aspects of our functioning, and to improve functioning we must improve use. This involves recognising end-gaining, practising non-doing, directing the primary control (head, neck, and back), and becoming more aware of how our goals and intentions shape our coordination.

 

Michael Gelb summarised Alexander’s insights into seven operational ideas: use and functioning, the whole person, primary control, unreliable sensory appreciation, inhibition, direction, and ends and means. These practical ideas remain the foundation of applying the Technique in daily life.

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Takeaway

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Movements are designed in thought before they are carried out. To change a movement, we must change our thinking, not just correct the body.

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