In a recent FaceBook post on the INCa's Thought Exchange I was talking about not pressing up through your Leg when standing, as this leads to a loss of Balance, Scotty mentioned that he could not feel if he was or was not doing this, here are a few things to play with to help you connect with feeling your Balance.
Stand in a even and relaxed way, Knees slightly bent, Ankles at Shoulder width and Feet parallel, make sure that your Knees are pointing in the same direction as your Feet and Arms hanging at your sides.
Very slowly lean forwards until you can clearly feel that your Balance has been compromised, and then return to where you started from.
Very slowly lean backwards until you can clearly feel that your Balance has been compromised, and then return to where you started from.
Very slowly lean to the right until you can clearly feel that your Balance has been compromised, and then return to where you started from.
Very slowly lean to the left until you can clearly feel that your Balance has been compromised, and then return to where you started from.
By doing this you have established what it feels like for your Body to be out of Balance. It may be hard to identify when you are in Balance because there is nothing happening that feels wrong, but once you understand what it feels like to be out of Balance if you do not feel this way the chances are that you are in Balance, and by repeating the above exercises a few times you will soon identify what it feels like to "not be out of Balance" just by comparison of the two sets of feelings. Not being "out of Balance" is not always the same as being in Balance, you may be inadvertently using strength to avoid falling.
Leaning the whole body is a just an entry point to feeling awareness about Balance. Try starting in the same position as earlier and slowly raising your Right Arm sideways until you can clearly feel that your Balance has been compromised, and then return to where you started from.
Now raise your right Arm in front of you until you can clearly feel that your Balance has been compromised, and then return to where you started from.
Now raise your right Arm behind you until you can clearly feel that your Balance has been compromised, and then return to where you started from.
Do the same thing with the Left Arm, even do the same thing with both Arms together.
Repeat the exercise with your Legs.
Limbs are still really major disturbances, so how can we refine this idea?
Start as usual and now lean your Head to the left, then right, then front and then rear until you can clearly feel that your Balance has been compromised, and then return to where you started from.
After playing with these idea's we should be quite sensitive to our bodies Balance, now push up through the Legs and see what happens, do you stay in Balance?
If you are still not sure then try these balance corrections, go through the Arm raising exercises and when you notice your Balance has been disturbed raise the opposite Arm in the same way until your Balance has been regained, observe what feelings flow through your body as you do this and then once again push up through your Legs and observe if you are compensating.
If the Arm raising exercises are too subtle then do them on one Leg.
The very act of standing on one Leg will introduce you to a ton of input on Balance, if you wobble at all then you are out of Balance, and often the only way to not fall is to stick a Leg out in one direction and an Arm in the opposite direction.
The emphasis with these exercises is to "PLAY", do not treat it seriously. make up your own tests, stand on your Head, it is even possible to feel your Balance when you are laying on the floor, and feel it get compromised as you roll over.
Once the silliness of all this subsides and you start thinking Whiskey Tango Foxtrot? {W.T.F.} Try to identify exactly what it is that happens to, and within your Body as your Balance is compromised and equally important as it is brought back to Balance, go through all the silliness again with this thought.
If this still does not help you then the chances are that you are just F???ed.
I'm kidding.
Once we can feel our Balance we should also have a real sense of Gravity, and how it makes us want to push back, this is why we push up when we stand still, I will go into this later.
