A Companion to This Lesson
Welcome to this exploration of Vertical Force and the Skeleton. Having just completed the lesson on the floor, you may feel a new sense of length or a different relationship to the ground beneath you. This booklet is designed to help you navigate the internal shifts you just experienced, moving from the immediate sensation of the movements into a deeper understanding of how your nervous system began to reorganize itself around the architecture of buoyancy. Through the lens of The Riser framework, we will trace the arc of the lesson—from the initial vertical pulses to the final integration in standing. You will see how the sequence was designed to reduce cortical noise and inhibit the parasitic muscular contractions that often buckle the skeletal column. By examining the transition from muscular propping to skeletal integrity, you can begin to see how the floor’s upward force was invited to travel clearly through your central axis, turning what felt like a heavy lift into an effortless rise. Think of these pages as a companion rather than a manual. In the Feldenkrais Method, we do not treat movements as exercises to be mastered, but as questions to be lived. This guide helps you identify the specific inquiries your nervous system was sorting out during each phase of the lesson. It is an invitation to look behind the curtain of the pedagogy and discover how a coherent skeletal pressure wave can fundamentally transform your relationship to gravity.
Lying on the back, legs long and comfortably apart, arms at sides with palms facing the floor.
This starting position isn't arbitrary. It's chosen to give your nervous system a baseline — a clear sense of how things are before the lesson begins. You'll return to it at the end, and the contrast is often striking.
Every Feldenkrais lesson poses a question to your nervous system. Not a question you answer with words — a question you answer with movement, sensation, and gradually shifting organization.
The architecture of buoyancy: How can the body move from muscular propping to skeletal integrity, allowing the floor's upward force to travel clearly through the central axis?
Cortical noise is reduced through the introduction of vertical vibration. By oscillating the body along its longitudinal axis, the nervous system is forced to inhibit parasitic contractions in the belly, back, and shoulders that would otherwise buckle the skeletal column.
To make sense of the journey through this lesson, it helps to understand three ideas. They'll come up throughout the booklet.
When you first try a movement, there's a part of you that grips, pushes, and forces. This is your voluntary muscular effort — we'll call it the Shadow. It means well, but it's noisy. It uses ten muscles when two would do. It holds your breath. It treats every movement as a task to be conquered.
Underneath the Shadow, your skeleton and reflexes already know how to support you. This deeper system — the Foundation — is quiet, efficient, and reflexive. It responds to gravity, finds balance, and transmits force through bone rather than muscle. The lesson's job is to let the Foundation emerge.
The lesson doesn't fight the Shadow. It washes it away — through repetition, variation, and gentle complexity. Like water over stone, the unnecessary effort gradually dissolves. You don't try to relax. You simply repeat and vary until the Shadow runs out of strategies and the Foundation is all that remains.
Here's what happened in this lesson, section by section. For each part, you'll see what you did and what was happening underneath.
Establishing the basic vertical force transmission from the feet to the head while lying on the back with knees bent.
In this opening phase, the teacher establishes the functional connection between the feet and the crown of the head by initiating a vertical oscillation. They guide you to sense the path of this force through your spine while reducing muscular effort, ensuring the tissues are soft enough to let the pressure ripple all the way to your neck.
The question being posed: Am I stacking my columns or buckling them against the floor's pressure?
The functional goal: Establishment of the longitudinal axis as a conduit for force.
I feel the floor's resistance against my feet and I am beginning to send a ripple of pressure up my spine. I notice where my shoulders want to 'prop' and lift instead of letting the wave pass through to my crown.
I am bracing my neck and pulling my shoulders away from the floor, trying to 'stay straight' through muscular effort.
Exploring verticality with long legs using the heels, and introducing the concept of skeletal resistance to gravity.
The teacher uses pauses to help you transition from the stable base of standing feet to the longer leverage of the heels, establishing the functional connection between the ankles and the crown of the head. By integrating the hands and arms into the push-pull, they clarify the relationship between the extremities and the spine to create a unified, whole-body movement.
The question being posed: Can I trust the floor to hold me when my legs are long and my base is narrow?
The functional goal: Connection of the heels to the crown through the skeletal column.
My heels are now the source of the upward flow, rubbing the floor to propel my whole self. I am learning to get out of the way of the movement, letting my hip joints become free conduits for the floor's energy.
I am gripping my thighs and buttocks, trying to 'do' the movement rather than letting the floor push me.
Using one standing foot and a diagonal overhead arm to map and direct the vector of force through the torso.
The teacher guides you to map the diagonal relationship between one standing foot and the opposite overhead hand, shifting from symmetrical pushing to a more complex cross-body coordination. By intentionally directing the force toward the hand or head, you refine your sensing of how the torso functions as a clear conduit for power before moving into more integrated spinal oscillations.
The question being posed: Can I find a clear path for the Riser through a diagonal architecture?
The functional goal: Clarification of the vector of force through the asymmetrical torso.
I am mapping the diagonal line from my standing foot to my opposite hand. I feel the force wanting to spill out the side of my ribs, but I am refining my internal stacking to keep the Riser true.
I am holding my breath and tightening my side-waist, creating a 'buckle' in the diagonal column.
Lifting the pelvis to oscillate the spine vertically, focusing on the 'pumping' action through the shoulder structure.
The teacher uses variations in breathing and oscillation speed to question how force travels from the feet through a floating pelvis, clarifying the functional relationship between the lower body and the mobilization of the spine through the shoulders. By lifting the pelvis, the teacher shifts the lesson’s focus toward maintaining skeletal transmission while unweighted, challenging the upper thoracic spine to remain clear and responsive.
The question being posed: What happens to my height when I pump my spine through the shoulder structure?
The functional goal: Skeletal resonance and mobilization of the upper thoracic spine.
My pelvis is floating, and I am sliding my axis along itself in the air. I feel like a turtle emerging from its shell, my neck lengthening as the pressure wave clears the path through my shoulders.
I am bracing my lower back to hold the weight, but the rhythmic oscillation is starting to shake my grip loose.
Developing paradoxical and seesaw breathing patterns and integrating them with the heel push/pull.
The teacher uses pauses to frame the introduction of paradoxical and seesaw breathing, which serves the function of softening the torso's internal volume to better receive the vertical force from the heels. By integrating these rhythmic breath patterns with the heel push/pull, the teacher helps you identify and eliminate unnecessary effort in the abdominal wall that might otherwise dampen the skeletal oscillation.
The question being posed: Can I soften my internal volume to allow the skeletal force to pass through?
The functional goal: Malleability of the torso for efficient force transmission.
I am moving air like a seesaw, softening my belly and chest alternately. This internal space is becoming a fluid medium that supports the vertical pressure wave without muscular friction.
I am trying to control the breath with my throat, but the internal massage is melting my resistance.
Exploring vertical force in a side-lying position, culminating in lifting the head as an emergence of skeletal pressure.
The teacher uses the side-lying position to question if the head can lift as a functional result of skeletal pressure from the standing foot rather than neck effort. This exploration clarifies the relationship between the foot and the crown in a new orientation, bridging the vertical force transmission from the back toward the upcoming prone and standing movements.
The question being posed: Does my head float effortlessly when the skeletal column is aligned on its side?
The functional goal: Realization of buoyancy and the 'involuntary' lift of the head.
I am on my side, and as I press my foot, my head simply ascends along my arm. It is not a muscular lift; it is the inevitable result of the pressure wave reaching the crown of my head.
I am beginning to stand down; the effort of 'lifting' is being replaced by the support of 'rising'.
Applying the vertical push from the toes while prone, mimicking infant developmental movements to lift the head.
The teacher uses the prone position to question if the functional relationship between the toes and the head remains clear when the spine must overcome gravity to lift the skull. This developmental movement integrates the previous explorations of force transmission, ensuring the skeleton is ready to support your weight in standing.
The question being posed: Can I find the upward flow against the full weight of gravity in the prone position?
The functional goal: Skeletal stacking and developmental integration of the Riser.
My toes are anchored like a sprinter, and I am driving my whole self toward my crown. My head surprises me by floating up, a clear expression of skeletal resonance against the floor's resistance.
I have almost entirely let go; the skeleton is now doing the work of resisting gravity through stacking.
Final vertical oscillations on the back and transferring the sensation of skeletal support into standing and walking.
The teacher coordinates the belly’s expansion and contraction with the heel push to clarify the relationship between internal pressure and skeletal movement. This final reduction of effort through light oscillations prepares the student to carry the function of vertical force transmission into standing, where they sense the floor actively pushing up through their skeleton during each step.
The question being posed: How do I partner with gravity to find height while walking?
The functional goal: Verticality and skeletal integrity in upright movement.
I am standing, and I feel the floor pushing me up with every step I take. I am no longer 'standing straight' through effort—I am being 'stood' by a buoyant, skeletal column that carries my weight effortlessly.
I am quiet; the Riser has taken over the architecture of my height, and I no longer need to prop myself up.
Every Feldenkrais lesson has a trajectory — from effort to ease, from noise to quiet. Here's how this lesson made that journey.
Cortical noise is reduced through the introduction of vertical vibration. By oscillating the body along its longitudinal axis, the nervous system is forced to inhibit parasitic contractions in the belly, back, and shoulders that would otherwise buckle the skeletal column.
The moment of Transmission emerges when the student is side-lying or prone and the head begins to 'float' into the air. This is the transition from 'lifting' (Shadow) to 'rising' (Council), where the head's ascent is the involuntary result of a coherent skeletal pressure wave.
How force travels through your skeleton from the floor to your crown. When you're truly vertical, the floor pushes up through your bones all the way to your head — you don't have to hold yourself up.
The inner being who senses your relationship with gravity. They feel weight dropping through bone, they know when the column is stacked and when it's collapsing. Every movement is received as: What just happened to my column? Is force transmitting cleanly through my bones, or is something buckling?
The habit of distrusting the ground. They grip the lower back, clench the waist, pull the head up with the neck. They believe that without their effort, everything would collapse. The lesson shows that bones can do what muscles have been forcing.
When you return to this practice, focus on how the skeleton acts as a conduit for the earth's upward pressure rather than a structure to be held up. Notice if you can find that sweet spot where the floor’s force travels effortlessly from your heels to the crown of your head. • Reduce your effort by half to better sense the subtle pumping action through your spine, especially during the wide-legged heel pushes. By doing less, you allow the relationship between your ankles and your skull to become a clear, unobstructed channel for vertical force. • Use the pauses between movements to question where you are still propping yourself up with muscular tension instead of relying on skeletal integrity. Pay particular attention to how the seesaw breathing patterns can soften the chest, making the diagonal force transmission from foot to overhead arm more fluid. • Experiment with the image of the floor pushing you up as you transition from side-lying or prone positions into standing. Sensing this buoyancy in every step transforms walking from a series of falls into a continuous expression of the Riser’s vertical power. Revisit these oscillations often to refine your internal map of the architecture of buoyancy.