Glidewalking

Tomorrow will be the Fourth of July, or Independence Day in the US. It is the national day when US citizens celebrate the 1776 Declaration of Independence from Great Britain. Today I invite you to travel back in time with me to look at a well-known work of art that commemorates that historic event.

Over the decades that our students have gotten out of pain by learning the Gokhale Method®, it has become clear that healthy glutes are essential in this. Well-functioning glutes hold the key to unlocking many poor postural habits, and contribute to better biomechanics and movement. Good glute function will often solve pain and enable healing in apparently unconnected areas of the body. Let’s take a look at some of the common, and sometimes surprising, aches and pains that respond to our glute training…

Rob Buirgy reached out having sustained a multiple fragment compression fracture of his T12 vertebra (in the middle of the back). Despite being in a body brace afterwards, having already followed the Gokhale Method for a couple of years, Rob’s instinct told him that our method would be able to help him regain an active life. More recently, he has also fully recovered from a whole knee replacement. In this blog post he explains how healthy posture set him up for success… —Esther Gokhale

Some years ago I had a student who had difficulty engaging his glutes and leaving his back heel down while walking. I had guided him through my usual toolbox of techniques and principles, but this piece still stubbornly failed to land. All of a sudden something dawned on him, and he exclaimed, “Oh, it’s a jaunty walk!” and proceeded to do exactly what I had been trying to teach him with an additional spring in his step.

In keeping with Claudia’s wishes we are not going to use any photographs of her in this blog post. We are always happy to respect our contributors' wishes for privacy. We are very grateful for Claudia’s generosity in sharing her personal posture journey, and are sure that you, our readers, will appreciate it too.

In 2014, at age sixty-four, I began to experience pain in my left hip that eventually became quite debilitating. For the first time in my life, I went to a chiropractor, which resulted in relief that lasted a couple of years. By 2015 I had consulted first one, then a second orthopedic surgeon, who recommended a hip replacement due to osteoarthritis. 

first class w/Esther; it makes sense! I watched the DVD, stretchsitting and glidewalking... it seems that I have a problem with engaging the gluteus muscle, particularly on the left side (where my pain is)... and with the coordination of squeezing/tightening the muscles with the steps...

i've started the stretchsitting since I've got the book, last Saturday... am I fooling myself, or truly my back pain is subsiding... looking at the pictures Esther took today, I wonder if my hunch/hump will ever diminish...