This is the first of the two advanced training workshops in feldenkrais that Jaime Polanco will offer us this course in Baraka. The next workshop will be held in February and will be Around the Middle line. 

The spiral is one of the forms of organisation that shows up most in living systems.  It is in our genes, our movement paths, as well as the very structure of the skeleton.

In many of the ATM lessons taught by Feldenkrais, there is an invitation to explore a twisting pattern, sometimes hidden in a subtle way (as he liked doing), and other times in complex schemes which require an unrushed and respectful exploration.

The spiral is also the shape that is drawn in the twisting movement of the spine. The twisting, and getting to know in depth how it is organised, will be the main topic of this advanced training.

We will take time to study the anatomy and functionality of the spine; we will reflect upon Moshe Feldenkrais’ knowledge and analyse some ATM sequences in depth; and all of that will lead us to put together a clear, versatile and dynamic Functional Integration scheme.

Some of the topics we will cover are:

• The way the spine behaves when it twists
• Understanding the richness and complexity of the torsion.
• Why is it said that the twist comes together with a lengthening?
• The structural support of the spiral.
• The importance of imagery in the organisation of action
• Short and long spirals
• The unrealized potential

This advanced training came into being after a trainer asked me what meant to me that the torsion is a twist accompanied by a lengthening. My reflection and the practical development that followed that conversation is what I now want to share with the Feldenkrais community.

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Dates: 24^th – 26^th November 2023

Location: Baraka Integral Institute in San Sebastian, Spain

Times: Friday 4pm to 8pm; Saturday and Sunday 10am to 12.30pm and 13.30pm to 4pm

Participation: This is a post graduate training for Feldenkrais practitioners. If you are coursing the 4^th year of your training, please contact us to assess your participation.

Materials: Please let us know if you are able to bring your own material for the FI work (such as table, rollers, head supports)

Fee: 220e. 200e early bird (until October 17^th). 190e for members of the AFKE (Asociación Feldenkrais España). 190e if you sign up to both intensive trainings with Jaime Polanco.

Inscription: FORM

Licensed in physiotherapy by the Complutense University of Madrid, I completed my training as a Feldenkrais practitioner at the Feldenkrais Institute, with Paul Newton as my Educational Director.

I teach ATM and FI lessons regularly, mostly in Madrid, and workshops and courses at various entities and universities. And, since 2020, I combine that with working as an Assistant Trainer in trainings in Spain, Portugal, Italy, Sweden, China, Russia and Slovenia.

As well as my continuous study into Feldenkrais’ materials and thinking, I’m interested in biomechanics and neuroscience, although in the last years I feel that magic is the art that influences most my way of practicing our profession, for its interest in fields such as attention, perception, memory, imagination and emotions.

I consider myself to be clear and adaptable in my way of teaching and I believe the main job of a teacher is to provide the conditions for the capacities that are already within the students to emerge.