Blog | Gokhale Method® - Primal Posture™ for a Pain-Free Life

Running: Part 1: Introduction

Esther Gokhale

December, 2021

As little children we would break into a run without a second thought—it was fun! Pexels

Welcome to our first blog post in a new series on running. This series is designed to be useful to beginners and would-be beginners, as well as seasoned runners and everyone in between.

Running is primal

Running was a defining feature in our development as a species. We are built to run. As children, almost all of us enjoyed this facility. You may believe that you are too injured, too old, or too uncoordinated to consider jogging—and you may be right—but I would still like to invite you to bring running onto your radar as something to work towards. Read more

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cardiovascular health

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Home Exercises Part 4: Low Planks

Esther Gokhale

November, 2021

Plank develops muscular strength and coordination to align, support, and protect your spine.

This is our fourth blog post in the series where we put popular exercises under scrutiny to examine how they stack up—or not—against the principles of healthy posture. Here we are looking at “low plank,” a whole-body exercise that particularly develops abdominal strength and trunk stability.

Our model for the photographs is Eric Fernandez, our Gokhale Exercise teacher who teaches the Gokhale Method in the Philadelphia area. Read more

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Old Family Portraits Are a Great Posture Tool: Part 3: Hip-hinging in Small Bends

Esther Gokhale

November, 2021

A girl playing croquet bends forward slightly (detail, right foreground). Kiddle

The healthy posture and positive change that antique images can bring to modern people are potentially transformational. In Part 1 of this series we looked at how learning from old photographs can benefit our upper body posture and in Part 2 the lower body. Here we are going to focus on what antique portraits can teach us about small bends. The historical paintings for this post come from collections associated with Leland and Jane Stanford, famous for their business acumen, political influence, railroad building, and later, philanthropy as founders of Stanford University in California. Read more

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Gokhale Method Success Story: Michael Ram

Michael Ram

October, 2021

I developed excruciating lower back pain in 2001. I was a tennis player, downhill skier, and a marathon runner. I was also under a lot of financial pressure in a stressful job as a consumer class action lawyer.
My doctor diagnosed me with a herniated disc at L4-L5. He said that a piece of my disc was sitting on the nerve. I tried everything to stop my pain but nothing worked. In January 2002 I underwent a laminectomy which removed some of the vertebral bone next to the herniation to make room for the nerve root. Read more

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Spinal Cord Stimulator

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Home Exercises Part 4: Head Rotations/Circling

Esther Gokhale

October, 2021

In traditional cultures the neck remains upright and long. It is capable of carrying the weight of the head and additional loads without injury.

This is our fourth blog post in the series where we put popular home exercises under scrutiny to examine how they stack up—or not—against the principles of healthy posture. In this post we are looking at head rotations/circling, an exercise that is often suggested to ease stiffness and mobilize the neck.

Neck pain—causes and solutions

Although not often considered in physical fitness and exercise regimens, the neck frequently becomes a problematic area for people in our culture. At that point, we look to mobilizing, stretching, and strengthening exercises to alleviate pain and stiffness. Read more

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Old Family Photos are a Great Posture Tool: Part 2: Lower Body

Esther Gokhale

September, 2021

1-2-3 Move participant Linda Grande shares a photograph of her grandparents, taken around 1916, who emigrated from Sicily and met in Brooklyn. They both show beautiful posture, including outward pointing feet.

Rediscovering ancestral posture can be fun! In our online 1-2-3 Move program we have had several “Show and Tells” during which participants share old family photographs. The inspiration for healthy posture and positive change that these pictures bring to their descendants, as well as to the online community, is powerful.

In Part 1 of this series we looked at the upper body. Here we are going to consider what our forebears can teach us about healthy alignment for the lower body—specifically, what needs to happen with the pelvis, legs, and feet. Read more

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nestling of the pelvis