Technique Tips for Conscious Proprioception.

conscious proprioception

Increased awareness of your sense of position, motion and balance.

Being able feel your posture and sense where you natural range of movement should take you.

The connection between body and mind.

1. Inward focus.

Whatever helps you relax and lose a little of the outside world.

Close your eyes and think of your Base-Line muscles at the core of all movement, the central pillar from where the rest of the body extends.

Base-Line muscles

Base-Line muscles. Human torso seen from the front showing the pelvic floor and rectus abdominis muscles. The pelvic floor lies within the bones of the pelvis. Like a basket of muscles, forming the base foundation of the body. The rectus abdominis muscles are the body's core pillar of strength and our central line. Like two ribbons of muscle up the front of the abdomen from pelvis to chest. The rectus abdominis are made up of panels of muscle, a series of blocks stacked from pubic symphysis to the rib cage. Engage and elongate these muscles with every breath in start to feel the relative positioning of your midline anatomy and increase awareness of the biofeedback for your sense of proprioception.

Start to feel your state of alignment using the relative positioning of your midline anatomy as your guide.

5 midline markers

2. Feel the Sunlight.

Dawn is recommended as a good time for many traditional exercises, but whenever works for you.

A photo of sunrise through the trees. A bright, almost white sun surrounded by yellow. The rest of the sky is orange. The tree branches and hills in the background are dark. Feeling the sunlight on my face helped me to see the sparkles in my mind and become more aware of the feedback from my body regarding my positioning, increasing my conscious proprioception skills. The basis of the sensation of Qi and the concept of chakras, both trying to describe experiencing proprioceptive feedback from the body in colors and lights.

Being outdoors, breathing clean air, walking on uneven ground - all good things in my opinion.

Closing my eyes and feeling the sun's rays on my face. The light through my eyelids helping me to see 'the sparkles' and increase my awareness of the sensory feedback my body provides.

my body-mind connection

3. Get Moving With Your Main Muscles.

Find the 5 (paired) main muscles of movement on your body - touch them. Try to activate the whole of each muscle.

main muscles of movement

the 5 (paired) main muscles of movement on a skeleton seen from several angles. The central support from the baseline pelvic floor and rectus abdominis muscles. The large gluteus maximus muscles of the buttocks and the straight pole of the rectus femoris muscles down the front of each thigh from hip to shin bone. The trapezius muscles are sheets of muscle from the back of the skull to the lower back, extending out towards each shoulder. A kite-shaped blanket over the back of the body, supporting and guiding the head and arms when they are free to move.

Feel for a balance between left and right sides of your main muscles, centered around Base-Line.

Be aware of the positions that you find it easiest to activate your main muscles and of when you struggle more and your body feels restricted and misaligned. Build the connection between body and mind.

Use the roll-down action, supported by your Base-Line, and move however feels natural.

the roll-down

Be inspired by Pilates, yoga, Tai Chi, ballet, other dance forms and internal martial arts etc. They all demonstrate what the body is capable of when working at optimum.

Being in water is good for gentle exercising and using floats helps to feel your state of balance.

Do what you can. Whatever you find easiest and enjoy. Don't strain to do things you are not ready to do. The aim is to work towards regaining a full range of natural movement which takes time if your body is imbalanced and restricted.

full range of natural movement

4. Appreciate Your Anatomy.

You don't need to know what all the muscles of the human body are called, but it's good to appreciate how complex our muscular system is and to see how central the 5 main muscles of movement are to the body, with our Base-Line muscles at the core.

Two images of the human body, one from the front and one from the back, showing the muscles. The right side of each view shows the outer muscles, the left side has the first layer removed to expose the underlying muscles. The body is a complex system of many muscles of different shapes, sizes and directional positioning to allow a full range of natural movement. The 5 main muscles of movement are central to this. The pelvic floor the base of the torso. The rectus abdominis connecting pelvis to chest at the front of the abdomen, the body's central line. The trapezius muscles from mid back to the back of the head, shoulder to shoulder, are responsible for the alignment of the upper body and guiding the head and arms through a full range of natural movement. The rectus femoris muscles of each leg align the hip and knee joints. The gluteus maximus muscles at the back of the pelvis link the legs to Base-Line support.

5. Get to know your pain.

When you feel a pain ⇨ Examine the feedback your brain is getting.

pain and weird sensations

Notice. Focus. Feel. Connect.

Develop the connection between body and mind.

Learn to use your body better.

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