In all, this class has been excellent. Not only will it help me in performance, using the Alexander Technique will help me in everyday activities such as walking, sitting, climbing stairs, and bending over to pick things up. I also learned a ton about the body -- about the anatomy and how different bones/muscles function.

I want to continue to read about Alexander Technique and apply the principles to more of my activities. I find it very interesting how natural our bodies can move.

The hardest thing to remember is that we need to be "aware" of what we are doing and make a conscious effort to think before we move.

Today we took a field trip to the stairs. Being that the Hughes elevator is a dinosaur and slower than a turtle, everyone takes the stairs. This is a lot better for everyone's health. I like taking the stairs and go up and down the four flights at least 5 times, so today's lesson was very applicable. When it was my turn to practice, I "stomped" up the stairs. After Dr. C worked with me, I felt like I was floating up the stairs. All day I worked on this as I went up and down the stairs. I am really hoping will make my daily stair climbs easier and a bit more effortless.

Today we had a guest teacher, Donna, another expert in Alexander technique.. She brought up an interesting way of thinking about posture and energy. The gave the us the idea to think about how earth is full of "liquid hot magma" and that we should think about ourselves as being rooted deep into the earth's core and the energy coming up through us as we stand on the ground. It's an interesting concept to think about and give us energy.

She also worked with a few students who produced incredible results. Very different, from the first time to the second time they performed. First was a flautist. Her tone the first time was weak, didn't sound supported, and lacked energy. The second time, after applying some of the suggestions, was much better. She produced a full sound, and it had much more energy and character than the first time. Quite a difference!

Next, was a vocalist. He sang well the first time, but his resonance and stability improved greatly after he was asked to feel taller and stronger. It's amazing how the mind can make the body respond and how slight changes can make a dramatic difference.