openness

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.

Reflecting on this later, I realized that the precise and technical breakdown of gait pattern that I had given him was far superseded by his “aha moment”—not only had he found an abbreviated way of pulling many technical aspects of gait together, but he had also articulated and embodied an important emotional aspect of natural human gait.

Of course, learning breakthroughs don't always happen this way, but it was a profound lesson in how desirable it is to be on the lookout for emotional cues that can evoke, conjure up, and breathe life into technical instruction.

Roleplay, theater, and imagination can help us to conjure new patterns and feelings in our walking.

In the upcoming second edition of my book, 8 Steps to a Pain-Free Back, which is due for publication September 1, there are some changes to the Glidewalking chapter that reflect this discovery. The original walking chapter is not “wrong”; it provides deep and helpful insights into healthy human gait. Its detail is forensic, and the choreography precise. But over the years we have found ways to make the technicalities of glidewalking more accessible and experiential for our students.

A sneak peek at a new cue for glidewalking, from the new edition of 8 Steps to a Pain-Free Back.

Even in the Gokhale®Foundations, the core six-lesson face-to-face offering to learn the Gokhale Method®, where the technical components of healthy walking necessarily occupy much of the lesson time, we like to use imaginative cues from animal gait, walking tall, finding steadiness, and sometimes dancing a simple Samba.

Alumna Deb Claire, who is legally blind, talks about her newfound confidence in walking having learned the Gokhale Method.

In the Advanced Glidewalking course, where all students are alumni and have already somewhat digested the basics of healthy gait, we not only deep dive into the more complex technicalities of walking, but come Session 5, we experiment playfully and more freely with emotional and associational cuing. We explore feelings of strength, balance, relaxation, dignity, openness, interdependence, and more. With each exploration, students deepen their understanding, practice, and access to natural human gait.

We have found that music is a powerful way to augment this immersive experience. Carefully chosen music can help our students tap into positive natural emotional landscapes. As an example, the opening theme music to Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey (from Thus Spake Zarathustra by Richard Strauss) enables students to feel their innate power and strength—we invite them to experience that in a glute-enhanced walk that also uses the inner corset and longus colli deep neck muscles, giving a profound sense of support.

Turn up the volume and take a walk to this magnificent passage of music and cinematography. Who would not be uplifted by it?

Over the next few days, I urge you to tune into, and play with any emotional connections you can feel with your walking. And this Valentine’s Day, consider exploring my very favorite emotion as you take a walk—a sense of connection and love of all that surrounds you—walk with your heart.

Our next Advanced Glidewalking course starts Monday, March 31, at 10 a.m. Pacific Standard Time. If you are an alumnus, consider joining your fellow Gokhale Method alumni on this exciting journey of walking techniques and self-discovery.

I recently took the six-session Advanced Glidewalking course with Esther and Doreen, and it was fabulous, a deep dive into the mechanics and spirit of walking… I’d been introduced to glidewalking about 10 years ago when I took Gokhale Foundations, and have been using what I learned there ever since (I’m a daily walker). Still, there was more to be remembered and more to learn and integrate. Esther and Doreen… inspired us with music and helpful images when we were getting caught up in thinking about too many details at once. My walking has improved greatly since the course; more gliding, softer landings; and I have the tools to keep improving. Definitely a worthwhile experience! A great big thanks to Esther and Doreen!
Julie Reichert, October 2024

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