`Author:` Esther Gokhale `Availability:` [[Available Books]] > [!info]- > > [!note]- Notes > > Review... ![[IMG_Ester Gokhale.jpeg]] --- #### Foreword How does Esther’s method work? Basically, by restoring the spine to its optimal length, and the rest of the bodies architecture to its optimal position. For people of all ages, the method improves balance, pulmonary function, circulation to the limbs, and spinal architecture. It facilitates body awareness and a sense of empowerment because the steps are so easy to perform and because the results accrue from day one. --- #### Preface When my baby was a year old, I underwent back surgery for a badly herniated disc. For several months post-surgery, I had a relatively pain-free life, although I could not lift or carry my daughter, and was advised to have no more children. Within 12 months of my surgery, the pain returned and my doctors recommended further surgery. Instead, I decided to find my own path out of misery and to begin my own deeper research into the causes and treatments for back pain. --- I learned about L'Institut d'Aplomb in Paris, France, where [[Noëlle Perez-Christiaens]] teaches an anthropologically-based posture modification technique. Her theory is that we in industrialized countries don't use our bodies well, that this misuse can cause pain and damage, and that we have much to learn from people in traditional cultures. The theory resonated with my childhood memories from growing up in India. --- I remembered listening to my Dutch mother marvel at how gracefully our Indian maid went about her duties and how easily the laborers in the street carried their burdens. Classes in Noelle's technique diminished my back pain significantly, and I spent five years training to become certified in Aplomb®. Spurred on by what I learned, I attended courses at Stanford University Medical School and Department of [[Anthropology]]. --- I visited countries in Europe, Asia, [[Africa]], and South America observing, photographing, filming, and interviewing people without back pain. I incorporated teachings from other disciplines, added elements from my field research, and created a unique, systematic method for helping people efficiently transform their posture and return to physically active lives. --- ## Foundations This carpenter from Burkina Faso pressed me to take his photograph. ![[Good posture.jpg|190]] --- I hesitated because I do not usually take posed photographs, but I am glad I took this one. Notice that his shoulders are aligned toward the back of his torso; his neck is elongated without much curvature and, as a result, his chin angles down; his belt is lower in front than in back, reflecting a pelvis that is tipped forward and a sacrum that is angled back; his chest is "open"; his breast bone is more horizontal than vertical; and his rib cage is flush with the contour of his torso. Even though he works on a low table for much of the day, he does not stoop forward or hunch his shoulders at all. --- ![[good posture 2.jpg]] --- STANDING UPRIGHT? The argument goes that our spines have not evolved sufficiently to carry the weight of our upper bodies, necks, and heads without strain or damage. By this reasoning, we should all be suffering back pain. Yet there are whole populations where the incidence is very low." --- Five and a half million years of being upright is plenty of time—even by evolutionary standards—for our spines to adapt and accommodate the "new" burden of our upper bodies. I believe that the problem is not an evolutionary flaw, but a cultural one. The cause of our pain is not that we stand upright, but how ve stand upright (figs.F-3, F-4). --- #### Fig. F-3 ![[good posture 4.jpg|250]] --- #### Fig. F-4 ![[Bad posture 2.jpg|300]] --- SEDENTARY LIVES? Another frequently cited excuse for our back pain is our sedentary way of life: unlike people in many parts of the world, most workers in industrialized societies earn their living sitting down. Yet statistics show that in industrialized societies manual laborers have an even higher incidence of low back pain than sedentary workers. This suggests that switching from sedentary jobs to more physical ones would not solve our back problems. --- ![[Good posture 3.jpg|200]] --- ![[Bad posture.jpg|200]] --- In my travels in Burkina Faso, Ecuador, and India, I encountered numerous sedentary workers including potters, basket makers, and weavers, who spend long hours sitting and yet do not suffer from nearly as many back problems as we do (fig.F-5). In our culture as well, some people manage long hours in front of computer screens without negative consequences to their backs. In fact, recent medical statistics call into question the agreed-upon philosophy that static sitting at work is a risk factor for low back pain.' Again, I believe that it isn't that we sit but how we sit that causes our problems (fig.F-6). --- ## Orientation - ## Lesson 1: Stretchsitting ## Lesson 2: Stretchlying on your back ## Lesson 3: Stacksitting ## Lesson 4: Stretchlying on your side ## Lesson 5: Using your inner corset ## Lesson 6: Tallstanding ## Lesson 6: Hip-hinging ## Lesson 8: Glidewalking ## Appendix 1: Optional Exercises ## Appendix 2: Anatomy `Concepts:` [[Health]]