2

Structural Health: Symmetry, Space, and Flow

STRUCTURAL HEALTH involves symmetry, space, and flow. Lack of symmetry shows up as imbalance in the right/left, up/down relationships of the body (fig. 2.1). Lack of space becomes compression and tension (fig. 2.2), and lack of flow manifests as restrictions in movement, poor circulation, and blocked energy (fig. 2.3).

The right/left hemispheric balance of the brain and heart should be reflected in a symmetrical appearance, which we usually consider beautiful. Most of us are born somewhat symmetrical and develop structural imbalances as we get older, through compensation, hemispheric dominance, injuries, and habit.

Compression happens as we get older too, and gravity starts to shrink us and pull us down, if we don’t work hard to oppose this. Some people have naturally tighter joints and compress more, but we all tend to either collapse or tighten, which pulls us in, and we lose our natural space and openness.

Flow is a major function of the body, and rhythm is part of our being. Together they are expressed in the circulation of blood, lymph, and all the fluids that constantly pump through our tissues; the invisible electrical frequencies that create nerve force and meridian lines; and our emotional energies. We can block our flow by restricting movement, holding in mental and emotional energy, and contracting our bodies. Imbalance of symmetry and lack of space will create blocks in our flow.

Fig. 2.1. Asymmetrical displacement and imbalance

Fig. 2.2. Slouch profile: compression and tension

Fig. 2.3. Poor circulation and blocked energy

The perfect baby bodies in fig. 2.4 illustrate symmetry, space, and flow. As baby bodies change into child, adolescent, and adult bodies (fig. 2.5), they lose these qualities and become more different from one another. Individuality is gained at the price of distortion and probably pain. Some adult bodies maintain symmetry, space, and flow, yet still become distinct and individualized (fig. 2.6).

Fig. 2.4. Perfect baby bodies

Fig. 2.5. Child, adolescent, and adult bodies

Fig. 2.6. Adult individualized bodies

GRAVITY

Gravity is probably the most important relationship we have of which we are unaware. Fortunately, it acts on us constantly and predictably, and yet that factor of constancy gets in the way of our consideration of its subtle effects on us.

Life on earth is unimaginable without the earth’s force of gravity. We, as embodied creatures composed of carbon matter, share our body composition with the planet and all the organic (which means composed of carbon) life on it. We could not survive in our present form of life on any other known planet. Even at a short distance from the ground, we have to protect ourselves from removal from the earth’s electromagnetic field.

We don’t usually consider any of this consciously, though we know it intellectually. Furthermore, our artificial environments keep us even further insulated from awareness of our relationship with gravity. However, as our bodies progress through time, gravity forms our physical structure. Not only is gravity a ubiquitous force that pulls us downward, but we can play an active role in how we respond to it. It is this element of choice that we can work with to change our bodies.

Resistance

As upright beings we have a much more complicated developmental path than other animals toward a harmonious relationship with gravity. Human infants take a long time to walk on the ground, and lots of things can go wrong before we even succeed.

The womb, which is as close to a gravityless environment as most of us will ever experience, allows our unprotected beings to connect with the earth’s surface through the mediating environment of our mothers’ bodies. We’re not ready, when we are born, to take on gravity full throttle. Of course, nobody expects a newborn human to walk. But we do expect them to lie on hard, flat surfaces, with gravity exerting a sudden unmediated force on their bodies. This is such a shock to a small body that usually a baby will respond by crying if left there for long.

If the crying fails to bring a response—and many well-meaning parents have left their children to cry it out, to learn to be alone—the infant will respond by tightening any muscles she can, probably in the abdomen or back, both to suppress the bad feeling and to create a sense of support, a false floor of hard muscle, inside the body, since it’s not available outside. This sets the stage for later muscular armoring and an association of sensations of tightness and holding with security.

This is the beginning of a tension pattern most of us have to some extent, where the deeper muscles tighten up as we pull away from the ground and into ourselves (fig. 2.7). The emotions that go with this pattern are, first, a sense of alienation from the outside and an attitude of withdrawal into the self. The unwinding of this pattern, which is felt when the deep muscles start to release in a bodywork session, shows up when a person stands up after a session. They often say, sounding shocked, “I feel like I’m falling into the ground!” And as they move around afterward, the deep muscles of the abdomen, the inner core of the legs and feet, and maybe even the spine may begin to pull away from the ground again. It’s such a strange feeling for most people, and nothing in the environment (shoes, floors, chairs, and so on) supports the release, so they usually can’t maintain it for long. And yet this felt sense of connection with the ground is something we should be experiencing all the time.

The chronic state of anxiety most people live with is probably related to a severance from the earth’s electromagnetic field, caused by incorrect and premature exposure to the unmediated force of gravity. This abrasive and violent exposure leads to deep tensions in the body as a defense, which later cuts us off even further from having a proper relationship with gravity.

Fig. 2.7. The effect of gravity on the body

Collapse

The other, opposite pattern that expresses a distorted relationship to gravity is the collapse into gravity. Usually, the pulling-away pattern uses up so much energy that the person can’t maintain a straight spine and starts hunching forward—giving in to gravity.

We associate collapsing, hunching, and sagging with aging, and we do tend to collapse more as we age, since it seems to require less energy to “give in” than to resist. The inner feeling that is part of this pattern is that of defeat and despair, as the pulling-up pattern reflects and creates mistrust. So we tend to see the lower body pulling up away from the ground and then the upper body collapsing down. In fact, the reverse should happen in a healthy body—the lower body should relax into the ground to be supported by it, and the upper body should lift up away from the earth in order to move freely.

The movement pattern that would create this ideal posture is brachiation, which means the kind of diagonal swinging movement from branch to branch that monkeys do (fig. 2.8). That this pattern is part of our genetic heritage is shown by the strong grip a tiny baby has, redundant now, but useful when the baby needed to cling to its mother’s fur (fig. 2.9). This grip develops later into the ability to brachiate. Children can still do this, as shown by the popularity of jungle gyms, but most adults never brachiate. Many would hurt themselves if they tried.

Notice how large the side muscles of the body are (fig. 2.10). These muscles are designed to brachiate, which works them in a stretched position, counteracting the pull of gravity by lengthening the spine. This is the kind of upward movement we need to do. We’d prevent, or cure, most back problems this way. See figure 2.2 for a look at what causes most back problems.

Fig. 2.8. Monkey brachiation

Fig. 2.9. Intense gripping from birth

Fig. 2.10. Large side muscles

Most animals use their eyes as a source of information much less than we humans do. Humans in general trust their vision, even though it’s not particularly acute compared with, say, a hawk. We also live in a visual culture, where we use our eyes all the time. Since our eyes are in front of us, this means almost all our activities have become forward facing—reading, painting, driving, watching television, and so on. In time, our heads and necks become stuck in a forward position, so the head is no longer supported by the entire spine.

The human head is so heavy (averaging ten to eleven pounds) that the tissues at the front of the body can actually start to pull away from the spine, prolapsing the organs and overstretching the back muscles, which can then tighten in order to correct the position of the spine. So we get back pain and spasms as one consequence of our troubled relationship with gravity.

This forward flexion posture, with the head pulled way forward off the central axis of the spine, the shoulders rounded forward, and the upper back forming a big hump, is almost universal in our culture (fig. 2.11). If you look at this picture more closely, you can see how the curled forward posture imitates the comforting curled-up position of the fetus in utero (fig. 2.12). It’s a reaction to shock, curling in and around the sensitive organs and tissues in the front of the body. Without a balanced, mature relationship to gravity, you can feel unprotected and vulnerable walking in an upright position.

BECOMING CORRECTLY UPRIGHT

Being successfully human means resolving this problem in the body and becoming correctly upright. The design of the body at this stage of evolution actually will allow successful verticality—just—yet our lifestyles tend to mitigate it.

Look at people in the street, at work, from this point of view—how are they dealing with the challenge of gravity? Are they pulling away, collapsing and sinking, falling forward, or even locked in extension as a reaction to forward flexion?

What is a healthy relationship to gravity, and how can we achieve it? First, we need strength in the back and core muscles around the spine. The spine itself needs to be our grounding point, and its balance (firmly centered) in our body controls our relationship to gravity. The muscles of support are the back and core muscles, while the muscles of expression and movement are mostly in the periphery and front of the body. If we use the muscles of expression for support, we will have pain somewhere.

Fig. 2.11. Forward flexion posture

Fig. 2.12. Fetus in utero

When we are not using our arms, the hands should rest by the sides of the body, not at the front, and we should relax them when we walk so they swing naturally. Most people never fully let go of the tension that builds up in their hands and arms. When you are not using your arms, quiet them down; let them swing gently from the shoulder girdle, encouraging the free movement of the thoracic spine. If you hold the arms tight, your upper back will lock up.

When the legs pull up and away from the ground, the result is usually hyperextended, locked knees, and thighbones pushed too far forward in the hip socket. This results in stiff, weak feet with flabby arches and a rigid, high instep. Tension settles deep into the leg, as though right around the bones.

A lot of this has to do with the feet. Of course, our main connection with gravity is through the soles of our feet. The feet need to walk unshod on uneven, varied terrain. If you can’t do this (and yes, I know most of us can’t, or won’t), then read the entire chapter on the feet (chapter 16) for foot help.

  Correct the Position of Your Thighbones

This exercise should move the thighbones temporarily back into the right place, putting your legs in a more optimal relationship with gravity to support your spine.

1. Lie on your back with your legs stretched out and see how much space is under your thighs. There shouldn’t be much at all. If there’s more than an inch, your thighbones are too far forward.
2. To understand this, have a friend press down hard on your legs with her palms right below the hipbone for about a minute, exerting equal weight on both sides (fig. 2.13). Tell your friend she can rest her whole weight there. If she could balance, she could probably stand on that part of your leg and it would feel good. If it doesn’t feel good, you either need a softer surface to lie on or your friend is pressing too low or too high on the leg.
3. To keep the bones in this corrected position, stand up and notice where your feet are on the ground, where the soles now press down, and where you feel the pelvis positioned. This is the right placement for your body. Walk around, and notice how you might need to use different sets of muscles now.
4. If you don’t feel anything much, or if it’s confusing, just notice where the hip joints actually are (fig. 2.14).
5. As you walk, start the movement of the leg from a point as high as the hip joint, and slightly behind it. This will engage your psoas. Think of a kind of bouncy, up-and-down feel to your walk. You are playing with gravity, as though you are walking on a big bouncy ball. Imagine that the ground is springy and moves back at you as you walk. Feel a continuous, moving line through the center of your foot, your leg, and up into the hip joint. Imagine the springy ground is giving you energy as you move.

Fig. 2.13. Correct the Position of Your Thighbones

Fig. 2.14. Hip basin

With this kind of movement, you probably won’t be able to keep the knees locked. Soften them, even until it feels like you are bending them when you stand. Make sure your pelvis and knees stay fluid and mobile when you walk, and when you stand still, keep them free. You don’t need to create two rigid poles beneath you to support yourself. Standing and walking should free up the pelvis, rather than encourage locking.

It’s the muscular system, rather than fascia or the joints that should dialogue with gravity. This will give you resilience and bounce. Some very flexible people, whose joints are unstable, will lean onto their bones, creating all kinds of compression in the joints. You’ll see this when people habitually stand on one leg, often with the other shoulder raised. Usually they pick the same leg to stand on, compressing the hip joint on that side more and more. These people will usually cross their legs when sitting—again, picking the same leg to cross over.

The core muscles of the body, especially the smaller paraspinals and the other connections into the spine, provide our dynamic resistance and release against gravity. The most important muscles to lengthen and strengthen, specifically in standing or sitting positions that work them in relation to gravity, are transverse abdominis, psoas, paraspinals, rotators of shoulders and hips, some neck flexors, all the muscles that support the arches of the feet, and the pelvic floor. Exercises for each of these muscles can be found in part 2.

STABILITY AND FOUNDATION

There are points of foundation in the body and points of stability. The foundational points are, simply, where your body touches a surface. If you are standing, your feet are your points of foundation—specifically, the places where your feet contact the ground, which would vary depending on the shape of the arch of your foot.

If you are sitting, your foundation points might be your feet, sit bones, and, to some extent, your back. Notice the position your body is in right now, probably sitting. The main points of foundation are where you rest most of your weight. Now press this part of your body—it’s probably your sit bones—slightly into the chair. Think of pushing the chair down, away from you. Observe the differences in the rest of your body when you engage your points of foundation. Some areas relax and let go; others engage more. I feel my shoulders relax when I press my sit bones down, and my lower abdominals work harder. Automatically, I sit up straighter. I’m engaging in a relationship with gravity, rather than collapsing down into it or tightening up away from it.

When you press isometrically down through your points of foundation, you engage correct support. Foundation has to do with our relationship to gravity and that which is outside the boundaries of our bodies.

Stability, the way I’m using the term, concerns the inner intraphysical relationships of body part to body part. I’ve found three main points of stability. Of course, in any body position, there might be many others that vary as you move; stability interacts with free movement. These three main points are the ones that generally need to remain stable. They’re navigation points with which you center and orient yourself.

The first is the soft palate, which is very close to the top of the spine (see fig. 10.1). The second is the xiphoid process, at the bottom front of the rib cage (fig. 2.15). This is the place that Pilates instructors tell you to keep closed and slightly tucked when you do abdominal crunches, to engage the deeper muscles and keep the back safe.

Fig. 2.15. Xiphoid process

The third is the tailbone or coccyx (fig. 2.16). The stability of the very bottom of the spine creates the ease, or lack of it, in the hip joints and allows for easy balance when you are in alignment. The stability of the tailbone affects the inner ear; motion sickness and vertigo can be helped by correcting the position of the coccyx.

Fig. 2.16. Tailbone

You can also help to center your spine by using the tailbone in a balance posture, especially if balancing on your tiptoes, or on one leg, is difficult for you. Come into any balance position that’s slightly difficult for you. Keep your tailbone fixed in one place. If you move in that balance position, as some yoga postures require, move from your tailbone and see how that changes your alignment.

Close to each point of stability, we have an area of the body that has a lot of movement naturally. If the stability point isn’t stable, then that flexible area will compensate, and usually that’s the place that will hurt. The correspondences are shown in fig. 2.17. For the soft palate, the corresponding flexible place is around C3, the middle of the cervical spine area. For the xiphoid process, it’s T12, the hybrid thoracic/lumbar vertebra that can get us into a lot of trouble. For the tailbone, the flexible place is at about the junction of L4 and L5, where most lower back pain is experienced. The majority of disc problems occur in L4, L5, and either C3 or the stress point below it, at about C5 or C6.

Fig. 2.17. The majority of disc problems occur in these three areas