Franklin Method Fellowship

In episode 15 of the Franklin Method Fellowship we look at the jaw. This is a common place where many people hold tension. Tension in our jaw is influenced by the neck and shoulders, upper body posture, the pelvic floor, breathing, and stress. This can create clicking and deviations in movement of the TMJ joints and affect the mobility of our spine. The good news is there are many tools that we can use to release tension, create balance, and promote a sense of ease in this area. We make connections in this episode to the movements of the jaw and the pelvic floor. We look at the movement of the TMJ joint and incorporate some fun exercises with the tongue and cheeks. Enjoy the episode! Please leave a comment and share about your experience.

In this episode 14 of the Franklin Method Fellowship we look at the hip joint. We begin noticing common postural patterns in standing and how that affects our ability to bear weight through the hip joint. We look at how the hip joint is much more internal in or body than we may think. We look at the functional anatomy of how the femur head moves in the acetabulum (hip socket) as we bend and stretch our legs. To help us with this movement we use the image of the femur head as an eye that closes when we bend and opens as we stretch our legs. We release muscles around that hip joint and do some strengthening exercises to help us center the femur head in the acetabulum. Lastly, we practice getting up and down from sitting which we all do a lot and images that can make this movement easier and more efficient. Enjoy the episode and share in the comments what you notice about your hips!

In episode 13 of the Franklin Method Fellowship we look at the knee joint. The health of the knee joint impacts our ability to walk, run, go up/down stairs, and get up and down from a chair or the floor. The knee joint is in between the 2 longest levers of the body and has to deal with forces coming from the ground up and forces coming from the joints above. How does it do that? We explore the challenges of the knee and the beautiful design that helps with these challenges. We look at the bones that make up the knee joint and important movements for healthy function. We embody the bone rhythms of the knee as we bend and stretch our legs. This helps improve mobility, strength, balance, and find effortless posture. Enjoy the episode! Your knees will thank you!

The patron only content for episode 12 is exercises for the feet that everyone can benefit from. Therefore, we decide to make it accessible to you all. The feet are the foundation of the body and need to be mobile, supple, responsive, and able to sense the environment. This is a great exercise practice to integrate into your daily routine and a great way to prepare your feet for walking, running, sports and daily life. Enjoy the practice!

In this episode we look at the feet. The feet are the foundation for our body, but how much do we know about them and pay attention to them? In this episode we experience how the foot has to change quickly between 2 modes, propulsion and foundation. Sometimes our feet are more rigid and sometimes our feet are more spread out. We look at the orientation of the foot and how it is actually a spiral. We do an exercise to twist the foot to get the spiral function of the foot going. We take a tour of the bones of the foot that feels amazing and lastly finish up with exercises for the feet using Franklin Method Balls. Enjoy the episode!

In this episode we look at the shoulder, which is a common area where people experience tension. We explore the many joints that make up the shoulder. We use muscle sponging for the Trapezius to release tension in the shoulders and the image of the Trapezius as a sail and water flowing down the muscles. We practice everyday movements like reaching and how we can use more of our joints to have better mobility. We also embody support for the shoulders from the rib cage, spine and all the way down to our feet. Lastly, we do an exercise to tweeze the clavicle to create space with the 1st rib. Enjoy your relaxed neck and shoulders!

In this episode we discuss Parkinson's Disease and some of the common symptoms associated with it. We share exercises that can help improve rigidity, a flexed posture, proprioception, balance and coordination. We kept this episode short as there is so much information about Parkinson's Disease and it affects many systems of the body. Our previous episodes on the heart, lungs, breathing, and pelvic floor are also beneficial for Parkinson's Disease. Make sure that you've checked with your doctor, and you have a safe setup when practicing the exercises. We show a lot of modifications to make them very accessible for all levels. If you do not feel comfortable with the exercises you can still benefit by watching the exercises and imagining that you are doing the movements. Enjoy the episode!  The Franklin Method is also called Dynamic Neuro-Cognitive Imagery. There has been research done on using imagery with people with Parkinson's Disease. Here is the study below for reference. Abraham Amit, Hart Ariel, Dickstein Ruth, Hackney Madeleine E. "Will you draw me a pelvis?" Dynamic neuro-cognitive imagery improves pelvic schema and graphic-metric representation in people with Parkinson's Disease: a random controlled trial. Complimentary Therapies in Medicine. 43 (2019) 28-35.

In this bonus episode we have Susan Lowell de Solorzano on the podcast. Susan is an expert in the new and fast-growing field of Biotensegrity. She is co-founder and board member of the Stephen M. Levin Biotensegrity Archive. She is show-runner and co-host of BIotensegriTea Party episodes. She is the author of Everything Moves: How Biotensegrity Informs Human Movement and other books. Susan has a background in Tai Chi Ch'uan and internal Chinese Martial Arts, music and kinesthetic learning. Susan discusses what Biotensegrity is and how it relates to the human body. She gives experiences of how we can feel Biotensegrity with the tensegrity Skwish toy and a breathing exercise. She talks about how Biotensegrity offers a different perspective from conventional biomechanics and what brought about the shift away from the biomechanical model dating back to the 1600s. Please take Susan's advice as a hands-on teacher and build a tensegrity model where the compression elements and tensile elements don't touch each other. Please make sure you visit her YouTube Channel (Susan Lowell de Solorzano) and build a tensegrity with common household items. You can watch the live recorded zoom meetings of the BiotensegriTea parties on the Biotensegrity Archive YouTube channel. Just search Biotensegrity Archive on YouTube and subscribe. Visit https://biotensegrityarchive.org/ and click on mailing list to join the email list. Show Susan your appreciation by leaving comments. Enjoy the episode!

In this episode we continue with the spine and look at the facet joints. The facet joints are where movement occurs in the spine. We look at how the orientation of the facet joints changes as we move from cervical to thoracic to the lumbar spine. We look at how the individual vertebrae slide and glide on top of each other and get a sense of how the vertebra move in flexion, side bending and rotation. We bring our new facet imagery into the spine dance and band exercises for the spine. Lastly, we notice the positive changes we feel in the spine after this movement practice.  We encourage you to bring the imagery of facet movement into your daily life and exercise practice. Enjoy the episode!  

In this episode we look at the design and function of the spine. Our spine is incredibly important to the health of our body yet many of us don't know a lot about it. We also tend to have negative associations of pain and injury with our spine. We hope this episode will change your outlook and give you a better understanding and felt sense of how your spine can support you and movement can be freeing and healing for the spine. We finish with the Franklin Method spine dance which is a nice routine to incorporate into your daily practice. Enjoy the episode!

We have noticed in prior episodes that exercises for the pelvis, breathing, heart and lungs improve our head and neck posture and give us a sense of a relaxed jaw. In this episode we look more closely at the muscles of the neck. We begin with an embodiment of where the cranium sits on top of the spine and get a sense of nodding our head moving the occipital condyles and rocking back and forth on the sit bones. We do exercises for our SCM (sternocleidomastoid muscle), Trapezius and Scalenes. Lastly, we look at the movement of the trachea with neck flexion and extension. These exercises in series create an incredible relaxation in the neck and shoulders and an openness across the chest. Enjoy this practice and share your experience and images in the comments! 

This is the replay of our live pelvic floor Q&A this week. We answered questions about the pelvic floor exercises in episodes 5 and 6 of the podcast and our attendees came with some great questions about the pelvic floor. We answered questions including how to use the exercises in the podcast to help with urinary urgency from pelvic organ prolapse, what are the best exercises for incontinence, and should we be practicing Kegels? If you have questions that weren't addressed in the Q&A please email them to franklinmethodfellowship@gmail.com. 

In this episode we talk about what the Franklin Method is and what the benefits are of using imagery with functional movement and exercise. We talk about all the positive changes you can expect to notice and feel from a Franklin Method practice. Lastly, we share our recommendations for how to get the most out of watching and listening to the podcast. And for people wanting more, we have a patron program including exercise practices from each episode, recorded live Q&As and more. Enjoy the episode!  

In Episode 6 of the Franklin Method Fellowship, we look at training the pelvic floor dynamically. We show you simple exercises taking your pelvic floor through a full range of motion and exercises that address creating a balance in hip external and internal rotation. Have a listen as we demystify training the pelvic floor. And if you are part of our patron program you get bonus content how exercises for the face and feet can impact our pelvic floor! Enjoy the episode!  Episode 6 Time Line Remember to breath during all movements. 1:44 mins Why do we have a pelvic floor? 3:40 mins Where do you sense your pelvic floor. Locate boney landmarks. Can you sense when your pelvic floor is relaxed? 4:08 mins During a pelvic floor contraction do you grip your glutes or inner thighs or hold your breath? 5:55 mins Can you imagine your ilium being the ends of a book and your sacrum a book binder? Now imagine closing the book. 7:10 mins We’ll show you a dynamic approach to pelvic floor contraction. 8:42 mins It’s important to get the pelvis to move in conjunction with the full body, walking, in functional movement. 9:40 mins Images to feel your transversus abdominus and pelvic floor contractions. Closing the book image. Bring your tailbone to the back side of your pubic bone image. Imagine a zipper from the pubic bone to the belly button and zip up in your mind only. 19:00 mins Check in and notice your pelvic floor. Notice your posture, level of tension and increased tone, asymmetry. Notice if your pelvic floor muscles are telling the organs above “I got you”! 26:05 mins. Bend your hips and knees with your hands on your sit bones, you can feel your sit bones slide apart and when you straighten your hips and knees you can feel your sit bones slide together. 29:52 mins. Breathe into pelvic bowl and imagine it widening as the sit bones float apart. 31:33 mins. Lift your leg up, the sit bone swings forward and as you lower your leg it swings back. 37.47 mins. Let’s combine the movements of sit bones forward and back, with sit bone out and in. 43.25 mins. Go for a short walk and turn back. Which side are you going to turn to, dominant side or non-dominant side? Does it affect your pelvic floor? 46.29 mins. The levator ani muscles insert into the fascia of the obturator internus. The obturator internus exits and wraps around the back part of the sit bone and to the greater trochanter/hip groove. 48:25 mins Slightly flex your hips and knees. Slide your heel out and in on one leg. Rub on the outside of the greater trochanter to wake up your obturator internus. 58:39 mins. Start with the knees and feet turned in and squat down (internal rotation) for lengthening. As we stretch our legs, slide your heels together as you go into external rotation for shortening. Stretch your legs as you go into external rotation where you will slide your heels together and rise up into releve. 65:00 mins Hip abductor and adductor movement as your sit bones slide apart and together

In this short video we show how to sign up online on Podbean and how to access the Patron content. It will walk you step by step through the process. If you are having difficulties logging into your account please email us at franklinmethodfellowship@gmail.com.

The pelvic floor is one of the most misunderstood parts of the body and in this episode, we help to demystify it. We help you to connect to the pelvic floor and sense and feel these muscles with breathing. We also use shapes and patterns to help develop an embodiment of different parts of the pelvic floor. Did you know there are over 14 muscles that make up the pelvic floor? The good thing is you don't need to know any names. In this episode we simplify the pelvic floor by using imagery. You will walk away from this episode with a sense of the front part of the pelvic floor that supports the bladder, the back part of the pelvic floor that supports the rectum, and the front side part of the pelvic floor that relates to our hips. Make sure you watch until the end, as you will love the Franklin Method ball exercises! Episode 5: Breathing and the Pelvic Floor Timeline Introduction 3.00 mins. Patient story, fecal incontinence with improvement after 3 treatment sessions. 5:10 mins. How do we know what our pelvic floor muscles are doing? Gaining a good connection of your pelvic bowl. 7:09 mins. Walking to achieve good pelvic floor function. 8:30 mins Dynamic images of your pelvis organizing itself as you lie on the blue Fascial Ball. 11:13 mins Check in around your pelvis. What do you sense and feel? 15:57 mins What are the functions of the pelvic floor? Why do we have a pelvic floor? 18:30 mins. The pelvic floor can serve as protection whether physical or emotion. 19:30 mins. Finding your boney landmarks. 21:30 mins. Finding your mid point on your sit bones. 24:30 mins What are the muscles of the pelvic floor? 26:50 mins There are 14 supporting pelvic floor muscles. 30:56 mins. Imagine breathing and the pelvic floor. 36.05 mins What are qualities of the pelvic floor? 42:05 mins. Imagine with your mind only, your ilium are the ends of a book and your sacrum is the binder. Now, imaging closing the book. 46:00 mins. What happens to the pelvic floor when we’re breathing in relation to the diaphragm? 51.00 mins PNF (Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation) a diagonal movement to increase flexibility in the pelvic floor. 53:30 mins. What do we know about the front part of the pelvic floor? 58:00 mins. What do we know about the back part of the pelvic floor? 1:03:00 mins. Coordinate your pelvic floor with your breathing as you move your hips and knees. 1:05:52 mins Franklin Ball exercises for the pelvic floor. 1:12:12 What emotions do you feel after doing these exercise movement? Calm and gratitude for your body and pelvic floor.

In this episode we continue with breathing and look more closely at the diaphragm. Have you ever wondered how to train your diaphragm? In this episode we look at the location, where it attaches, the qualities, how it moves and exercises to encourage mobility and a good range of motion in your diaphragm. Your diaphragm is like any other muscle in the body that needs to be trained. Timeline of Episode 4: “My feet are adaptable, my heart is elastic, my lungs are strong” ~ Solange Ross 3:30 Swimming imagery, 5:35 Model of expandable sphere as the lungs and frisbee and the diaphragm. 6:30 Say SHH during exhalation to restore more of a parasympathetic response. “Breathing is very important for the fundamentals of life” ~ Debora Chasse 8:00 Why do we breathe? The diaphragm drives the movement of the lungs as the lungs go along for the ride. 11:15 What negatively affecting our breathing? 15:00 Drawing of Diaphragm movement during respirations. 20:03 Shake arm for about a minute. 25.36 Shake your diaphragm. 29:24 Bounce your diaphragm. 31:00 Jump rope with your diaphragm. 31:55 Check in, notice and feel your body, notice your diaphragm. 34:33 Stretching your diaphragm with your FM bands. Spine pushing into the band with your back, Extending your spine as you use the band for to increase your extension forward. Side bending your spine as your arm stretches the band in the opposite direction. Rotate your spine as you pull the band in the same direction you are rotating. Following today's practice do you feel coordinated and more organized?

This is a 20 minute exercise practice for the lungs and part of our patron only content. It includes exercises from Episode 2 on the lungs. In this practice we explore tapping the lungs and how it improves our proprioception. We use imagery for the lungs as we move our spine through flexion, extension, side bending and rotation. We also show the relationship of the heart and lungs with imagery in these movements. Enjoy this bonus practice! Episode 2: The Lungs Timeline 7:10 mins Why do we breathe? Does your posture affect your breathing? 14:26 mins What are the qualities of the lungs? 19:60 mins Anatomy of the lungs. 23:13 mins Notice how the top of the lung goes above the collar bone. 26:25 mins The lungs are two mountains with snowy peaks at the top above the first rib. 27:13 mins Check in. Posture, breathing, presence. Compare your right side of your lung to your left side. Is it easy to breath into both lungs. 30:00 mins Tapping mechanoreceptors, sensory organs found under the skin to increase proprioception. 36:40 mins Imagine the lungs as delicate laced butterfly wings and the body as the sternum. or Birds flapping their wings. 38:30 mins Flex and extend your spine. Imagine the lung flexing with it during spine flexion on one side. 40:30 mins Side bend your spine to one side as you notice your spongy lung on the opposite side is sliding up and over your heart. 54:18 mins Swing your arms around your spine. Imagine swinging your lungs around your spine as your lungs follow the same direction you are swinging to. 58:10 mins Take 3 breaths as you notice the air coming in to the airway trees, coming in from your nose to your trachea, into your entire lungs, resting onto your diaphragm.

In Episode 3 we focus on our lungs and diaphragm with breathing exercises. We feel how the movement of the diaphragm influences the lungs and that the lungs are spiraling with breathing. We feel the 3 dimensional expansion of the rib cage during inhalation and the spiraling of air into our nostrils.  "Embodying function, improves function." ~Eric Franklin Timeline of Episode and Exercises 8 mins Check in. 16.5 mins-Image of the lungs. 22.0 mins- Shh exhalation. 30.45 mins- Feel expansion of lungs and ribs. 33.0 mins- Imagine a fan.  37.4 mins- Ribs expanding. 40.3 mins- Umbrella (3d) demonstration for ribs 47.30 mins - The 2 hemispheres of the diaphragm. 51.0 mins-Pleural ligaments and Lung Spiraling. 59.40 mins-Increase your efficiency of breathing. "Bless others with your breathing practice." ~Debora Chasse

Welcome to the Franklin Method Fellowship! Episode 2 is on the lungs. In this episode we look at the functions of the lungs, the qualities of our lungs, we sense and feel the location of the lungs with tapping, and we move our spine in all directions using imagery for the lungs. After each exercise in this episode, we notice improvements in breathing, posture, balance, and feeling calm. Enjoy the episode and please share your experience and images as you go through the practice. Episode 2: The Lungs Timeline 7:10 mins Why do we breathe? Does your posture affect your breathing? 14:26 mins What are the qualities of the lungs? 19:60 mins Anatomy of the lungs. 23:13 mins Notice how the top of the lung goes above the collar bone. 26:25 mins The lungs are two mountains with snowy peaks at the top above the first rib. 27:13 mins Check in. Posture, breathing, presence. Compare your right side of your lung to your left side. Is it easy to breath into both lungs. 30:00 mins Tapping mechanoreceptors, sensory organs found under the skin to increase proprioception. 36:40 mins Imagine the lungs as delicate laced butterfly wings and the body as the sternum. or Birds flapping their wings. 38:30 mins Flex and extend your spine. Imagine the lung flexing with it during spine flexion on one side. 40:30 mins Side bend your spine to one side as you notice your spongy lung on the opposite side is sliding up and over your heart. 54:18 mins Swing your arms around your spine. Imagine swinging your lungs around your spine as your lungs follow the same direction you are swinging to. 58:10 mins Take 3 breaths as you notice the air coming in to the airway trees, coming in from your nose to your trachea, into your entire lungs, resting onto your diaphragm.