In addition to practices like tai chi, qigong, and yoga, another tool dubbed the Feldenkrais Method may aid in improving alignment, alleviating pain, and soothing other physical concerns. According to the Feldenkrais Guild of North America (FGNA), the Feldenkrais Method is a type of somatic education. Somatic therapy uses the first-person perspective of the mind-body connection to work with “the living body in its wholeness,” according to the Somatic Movement Center. In other words, somatic education is “learning about the body from the inside out,” says Emily Stein, a FGNA-certified Feldenkrais practitioner in Chicago. The Feldenkrais Method focuses on discovering how your body moves. It is often done in a group setting, as well as one on one, with an instructor. You make extremely slow and introspective movements throughout, interpreting the teacher’s instructions for what feels best and most intuitive to you. “It’s about the power of self-study to improve your body’s functionality,” says Stein. As the FGNA explains, it “uses gentle movement and directed attention to help people learn new and more effective ways of living the life that they want.” If you haven’t experienced the Feldenkrais Method or don’t know what it looks like, the FGNA has a short introductory video that will help you visualize this somatic mind-body therapy. There are numerous potential benefits to practicing the Feldenkrais Method’s mindful movements, from pain management and better balance to improved performance in arts and athletics. Here are some ways that using Feldenkrais may help you find deeper healing by identifying constrictive movement habits and creating conscious, practiced adjustments.
1. May Help Manage Low Back Pain
According to Lincoln, Nebraska–based certified Feldenkrais practitioner Andy Belser, people will often come to see him with a specific pain concern. “Once we get to know the person, we’re able to help them get to a deeper understanding of that problem,” he explains. “And that problem is often simply a habit of using your body in a certain way.” Per research (PDF), the Feldenkrais Method aligns with similar goals as physical and occupational therapy, in that it teaches you to become aware of, and consciously tweak, movement habits. Awareness through movement, which is a specific type of the Feldenkrais Method, guides you to move differently in ways that don’t cause pain, potentially alleviating that discomfort. In one trial published in 2020 in Clinical Rehabilitation, researchers found that of a group of 60 people in Iran with chronic low back pain, those taking Feldenkrais Method classes twice a week for five weeks improved quality of life and lessened disability, compared with a control group who practiced home-based core stability exercises. Separate research found that Feldenkrais improved interoceptive awareness (the ability to respond to internal sensations), too. Earlier research noted in the study found that Feldenkrais may help improve a sense of control and management over pain, which may diminish pain sensations. The mind-body approach also activates muscles in the core to support the back and helps people learn about their body’s own biomechanics and how to create pain-free movement patterns, the authors point out.
2. May Help Improve Balance and Reduce Fall Risk
Balance is important at any age but especially for older adults. Three million adults age 65 and over go to an emergency room every year for falls, and falls account for over 34,000 deaths in this age group, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s 2019 data. That’s one reason why balance training can be so critical. When compared with control groups in a meta-analysis of seven studies, authors found that the Feldenkrais Method helped boost balance in aging adults, improving measures like timed up-and-go and reach tests, both of which require static and dynamic balance and can predict one’s likelihood of falling. In addition, lower performance on a timed up-and-go test may indicate sarcopenia, a loss of muscle mass and strength that occurs with aging, according to one study. And older adults who have sarcopenia have also been shown in research to be at a greater risk for falls. Though more high-quality research is needed, the authors of the meta-analysis on Feldenkrais concluded that the Method may be useful for balance training and that it is a well-suited tool for people specifically at risk for falls. A more recent meta-analysis reached similar conclusions. Three of four trials found that adults performed better on a timed up-and-go test, and older adults reported better mobility and gait (walking patterns), less fear of falling, and better quality of life. These perks may be due to the focus on the brain-body connection to foster better movement patterns, awareness, and the confidence necessary to stay on your feet.
3. May Assist Rehabilitation
Whether you’ve had an injury, surgery, or stroke, or are seeking rehabilitation for a neuromuscular disorder such as multiple sclerosis, the Feldenkrais Method may be able to play a role in improving and maintaining your physical function. “Feldenkrais is a learning model for the brain and body,” says Belser, further describing it as “unbelievable for rehabilitation” for some of his clients. An injury requires strength work in rehabilitation, but you also have to step back and look at how that joint is moving to rebuild those brain-body connections as a foundation, he says. Take a knee replacement, for example. With Feldenkrais, the overarching focus would be reintegrating your repaired knee with the rest of your body and restoring its function with efficiency and less pain, he says. It may also help with the mental aspects of learning to trust your knee again and building confidence in the joint again. When it comes to chronic conditions like multiple sclerosis, some initial research indicates that a Feldenkrais practice may make people feel less stressed about their condition. For Parkinson’s disease, the practice may also enhance balance, mood, mobility, speed, and quality of life. Likewise, a pilot study and case series of four patients who had a stroke with chronic neurological deficits found that a six-week Feldenkrais program improved measures of gait by 55 percent and balance by 11 percent. The authors also postulated that offering Feldenkrais in a group setting may have enhanced its effects because of the emotional and social support offered.
4. May Help You Perform
Feel like something’s just not clicking when you’re on the dance floor, on stage as an actor or musician, or on the field as an athlete? According to the FGNA, practicing Feldenkrais awareness through movement can help you find connection in yourself, improve self-awareness, and unlock mental roadblocks. Stein works with many professional dancers on technical elements of their craft that they report feeling stuck on. “We work on finding the tiny place in their anatomy that needs adjustment to make that movement easier. Or if they have a chronic glitch, we find a way to work more efficiently with that so that it doesn’t cause more problems later,” she explains. This can extend to all types of athletics or art to fine-tune your movements as you perform.
5. May Help Support Healthy Aging
Arguably, Feldenkrais isn’t considered exercise per se, but it can encourage maintaining a movement practice as you age, research suggests. In an interview study that asked eight older Feldenkrais participants what they liked about the practice, they said that it provided a means for gentle exercise, movement, and mindfulness. Older adults signed up for classes to help improve their performance during daily activities, and some reported better functionality, noting they found it easier to climb stairs. People in the study also liked the type of movement the method offers: For the majority of people, it doesn’t raise the heart rate or demand heavy breathing, which made Feldenkrais particularly attractive. Also, the noncompetitive nature of classes — mindful movement without expectation or judgment — was particularly beneficial for attendees’ well-being.
