Feet, Ankles & Knees

Feet, Ankles & Knees
Week 3 – Tune into Your Feet

Introduction

Key Points to Reflect & Integrate:

  • How are you learning to tune into your feet given the explorations of the first two weeks?
  • Between stability and mobility:
    • Which feels more established in your feet?
    • Is either limiting the potential for the other to arise? 
    • Which do you feel you need to tune into and cultivate more?

Next steps:

  • Trace the bones of your foreleg, your two shin bones, the tibia and fibula.
  • Practice Tools: contemplate the visual of the waterfall as reflection of the pathway of weight from the shin into the heel and the forefoot.

Anatomy and Biomechanics:
Twisted Plate – Heel Foot and Ankle Foot

Key Points to Reflect & Integrate:

  • Twisted plate – vertical heel and horizontal toes –  develops as we learn to bear weight on the sole of the foot.
  • Heel foot: trajectory from the tibia into the talus 
    • into the calcaneus (heel) into the cuboid (keystone of the heel foot) and the 4 & 5th toes
  • Ankle foot: trajectory from the tibia into the talus 
    • into the navicular (keystone of the ankle foot) and the 1, 2 & 3rd toes

Next steps:

  • Practice Tools: learn more about the anatomy of your feet through the anatomy slides.
  • Parallel the supination and pronation of your forearm to your foot, note the similarities between the elbow and the heel, and between the wrist and hand and the forefoot.

Unlocking Movement:
From Heel to Toes

Key Points to Reflect & Integrate:

  • Use the unlocking movements:
    • First, open up and deepen into the heel and achilles space 
    • Second, access the flow and reach towards the toes
  • Heel as the pool + toes as the delta, versus heel as the stake + toes as the gas pedal

Next steps:

  • Sense the flow from the weight in your heel to the reach through your toes as you stand and walk (don’t force anything but instead, tune in).

Unlocking Movement:
Engaging the Inner Edge and the Outer Edge

Key Points to Reflect & Integrate:

  • Use the unlocking movement to:
    • Activate the inner edge of the foot to create boundary and reach
    • Spread towards the pinky edge to create boundary for the outer edge of the foot
  • Enable the reach of the ankle foot to support the heel foot.

Next steps:

  • Practice Tools: see how these unlocking movements inform your further exploration of the asanas offered.

Sanskrit Study:
The Natural Unfolding of Om

Key Points to Reflect & Integrate:

  • Om flow and brings about the unfolding of all movement and sound.
  • When we tune in, we do not create the flow but can refine the banks of the river (the flow).
  • Krama: acknowledgement that we are tuning into a sequential unfolding.

Next steps:

  • Journal: what does it mean to step into the flow of Grace? What is already happening that you can tune into and invite more consciously?
  • Practice Tools: contemplate the visual of the waterfall as a reflection of your movement: flowing and currenting like that of water

Q&A: 11/20/2020
In-Depth with the Feet

Syllabus

Schedule

Resources

DOWNLOAD CENTER

Sanskrit Study – Ohm
(pdf)

Meditation
(mp3)

Practice Tools – All
(pdf)

Practice Tools – Move
(pdf)

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Syllabus

Schedule

Resources