For those of you seeing me this week and asked after our new permanent location, my reply has been along the lines of, “I’m awash in abundance!” Similarly to the celebration of Sukkot, I’m grateful for the opportunity to welcome new movers to our group classes and appointments, loving making decisions on finishes for the new space, and appreciate learning more about the SF permitting process. Thanks for sharing in my enthusiasm!

In my reading this week I learned about the technological potential to recapture wasted heat energy from appliances like refrigerators and using it for heating homes and businesses. There is something so perverse about creating heat while refrigerating, so I’m excited scientists are figuring out how to recapture that energy. It got me thinking about how much wasted energy our bodies generate while clinging to old movement patterns that no longer serve us, and what if we could find better efficiency through our movement patterns, saving energy in the process? In trying to strengthen our hamstrings, how much do we spin our wheels because we’re gripping our hip flexors? What happens when we hold our breath when doing abdominal work — are we really working our “core” efficiently, or are we working against ourselves?

GYROTONIC® exercise approaches this energy loss by seeking more economy of movement. We use rhythm to ride on through the exercise sequences, and imagery to bridge the rest. You’ll hear me say ridiculous things like, “imagine that you are only a skeleton, no muscles,” or “don’t worry — no one has ever crumpled into a puddle from being too relaxed.” But wait. Don’t I teach exercise, which implies increased muscular effort? How can I exercise and be relaxed?