So, here I've spent most of this last year learning about alignment, learning how my body really works, learning how to eliminate painful daily habits. I've worked hard, and trained myself to unclench my gluteals, drop my ribs, drop my shoulders, stop thoracic thrusting, walk barefoot and with minimal footwear, ramp my head back, straighten my feet, work at my desk while standing, widen my stance, relax my abs and poop with my feet up on a stool.
Stool with a stool.
HA!
Impressed?
Well, it turns out, I have no idea how to walk properly.
It took a blog post from a fellow Restorative Exercise junkie, Barbara Loomis or Nurturance, to help my brain wrap itself around my hidden bad habit. It's totally worth your time. She's awesome. And her blog has my favorite word in the English language in it: monkey.
Barbara the Alignment Monkey helped me see myself for what I really was: a John Travolta imitator.
Yes, despite all my newly applied knowledge about alignment and my machine, I was still "bouncing" when I walked, and sort of turning my arms out like a gorilla. Watch this:
Some folks have commented on my walk, saying "Wow, you strut!" I took this as a huge compliment, like Oh yeah, you bet I do, un-hunh! I am bad-ass!
I have changed my arms, mostly, and I don't tuck my tailbone in like Monsieur Travolta, but I do bounce. Holy crap. I am still bouncing! After I watched this video, and read this further-enlightening blog by Katy Bowman (yes, dammit, she is still my hero!), I took a good long walk and realized what the next step in Educating Rita (or, Dani) must be: no bounce-walking. No bouncing.
This is how I've been walking, demonstrated by the brilliant and hilarious Katy Bowman, MS, creator or Restorative Exercise and biomechanical whiz:
That's not a walk using butt muscles to push off, that's a walk that's slowly tearing up the knees and using too-tight quads to motor forward.Sort of like a slow fall. Who wants to fall all the time?
That means I have to use my newly unclenched butt to PUSH OFF from the ground. You know, like I've been lecturing you guys to do? Like Katy Bowman walks?
Like this:
I can admit when I've been a moron. I can also admit that I write a blog about walking and I don't know how to properly walk. 42 years old and I've been doing it wrong all this time. Huh.
But I will get there.
Since then, I've been been using my OCD-focusing powers on not bouncing, which has been freakin' heaven on my knees, and my butt feels like it's getting a serious workout. Definitely, definitely.
So, all you guys and gals that want round tushies (you do, trust me), read both these blog posts I've referenced above, put on your neutral heel shoes and push off using your posteriors. Feel the difference in how you walk. Maybe you aren't a knee bouncer walker, maybe you are. I know I am, and it's obviously the next step (!) in my journey toward being aligned and well.
I like big butts and I cannot lie,
Dani
When I injured myself a year ago I discovered that I could walk very slowly without a bounce in my step and make it around the block without looking like Sanford ("I'm coming Lizabeth"} and grabbing my heart. Sadly, I have not been walking overly much because of the pain, but when I do, I notice that I no longer bounce. And my derriere has always been the size of Montana (ha ha) even when I'm at a 'normal' weight. My calves are also huge which is probably where my back problems stem from but that is another story. So I am glad to hear that my butt-induced stride is correct. Glad you finally learned how to walk after 42 years of practicing :) Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteWhere are the videos?
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