The Alexander Technique Manual
This is a practical and informative guide, which clearly sets out the principles of this world famous technique and shows you how to use them in your daily life. With the help of superb colour photography, it reveals exactly how we place our bodies under excessive strain and how the Alexander Technique can help us to ease this tension and achieve a more relaxed muscular system. There are also awareness exercises for you to practice at home, with handy hints on mistakes to avoid when you first start to practise the Technique.
Topics that are covered include breathing, driving, walking, standing, sitting, writing, working at a computer, playing musical instruments and many others. Golf, running, tennis, cycling, pool, football and horse riding are also included in the chapter on sport.
The Alexander Technique Manual is suitable for anyone, with or without previous experience; it has various case histories and also has special sections on pregnancy. This is the most lavishly illustrated book yet, with 200 colour photographs throughout.
Special Features of this book include:
- Fully illustrated with nearly 200 stunning full colour photographs and illustrations
- Several of the pictures are shot with a strobe light to illustrate movements
- Basic introduction to the Alexander Technique
- Hints on how to improve breathing
- Special section on various sports including running, golf, cycling, horse riding, football, tennis and pool
- In-depth chapter on Pregnancy and Childbirth
Chapter titles include:
- Introduction
- What is The Alexander Technique
- How is the Alexander Technique relevant to you
- Pausing before action
- Thinking in activity
- First steps to reducing stress and tension
- The Alexander Technique and sport
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- What to expect from an Alexander lesson
- Afterword
- Resources
Reviews
The Irish Times
"The Alexander Technique Manual by Richard Brennan explains coherently how the Alexander Technique evolved and the ways in which it can help to release muscular tension within the body. Demonstration photographs are particularly good and compliment the text. This technique has aroused great interest among Dressage riders since bodily tension or stiffness in the rider is immediately reflected in the horse's way of working. If you suffer from backpain or muscular tension of any sort, the Alexander Technique is worth a try and this is the book to introduce you to it."
Here's Health
"This practical and informative guide clearly explains the principles behind the world-famous Alexander Technique. Author Richard Brennan, himself a qualified teacher and something of a pioneer in the field, reveals how you can reduce stress and tension in your body by sitting, standing and performing everyday activities properly. By unlearning entrenched habits of standing and sitting, you can improve your posture and discover how to use your body more freely, in everything from sport to pregnancy. This book is illustrated with tons of glorious full-colour step-by-step photographs on nearly every page. Each one successfully communicating the subtle movements visually, which means the reader can actually understand how the technique works. This book is great for newcomers as well as established students of the Technique. This manual is guaranteed to put you in touch will your body and help you to discover its full potential."
Books Ireland
'What lifts The Alexander Technique Manual way out of the ruck of other self-help books is the exceptionally good colour photography - including multi-exposure ones to express movement. It is a pleasure to look at and amply justifies the big format, making the book both attractive and remarkably good value.'