I got to the ANAT BANIEL METHOD through an old friend whose daughter has scoliosis.  She had improved greatly and they were no longer considering surgery.  I have degenerating disk disease, bulging disk between L4 and L5, spinal stenosis and had surgery.  I gave up golf many years ago and only recently started again after years of physical therapy and massage therapy.  Prior to each game I would medicate myself with Advil then again before the start of the second 9 holes.  After the game I rushed home to lie on ice packs, one after another.  I also had developed a tear in my rotator cuff and pain in my neck and shoulder injured after surgery on my shoulder.

My friend suggested taking a 2-day workshop at the ANAT BANIEL METHOD center in San Rafael, just north of San Francisco.  After which my shoulder and neck pain had diminished but more important I WAS PLAYING GOLF AND DRIVING 20 TO 30 YARDS FARTHER THAN JUST THE WEEK BEFORE.

I didn’t know why and had no explanation for it other than the workshop I had taken over the weekend at the ANAT BANIEL METHOD center in San Rafael.

After practicing what I had learned and reading more about the ANAT BANIEL METHOD and Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais, who the ANAT BANIEL METHOD is based on, I decided to venture into the 10 segment course (900 hours) that would certify me as an ANAT BANIEL METHOD practitioner.

During each segment I became more and more convinced of its logic and that this approach to movement was well founded in nature and science, especially physics.  After all Dr. Feldenkrais was a physicist. Dr. Feldenkrais’ history is documented on the ANAT BANIEL METHOD site as well as the Feldenkrais Society site.

The requirements for this movement modality are simply, 1.) a skeletal system, 2.) a brain and 3.) gravity. (The first 2 need not be perfect to gain improvement.)

I learned that we all develop habits that don’t get changed by any of the other movement modalities I know about including instruction by professionals in the areas you are trying to improve.  That a new born infant only has the three requirements mentioned above to learn to move with perfection before it’s learned habits that impinge on these perfect movements. That the ANAT BANIEL METHOD does change habits reorganizes us and coordinates our movements.  That a lot of the ANAT BANIEL METHOD training moves us back toward or through the perfect movements of infancy.  That then some of our movements can become eloquent.

Some professional athletes innately have these movements, like Tiger Woods and Michael Jordon. I believe all athletes would improve and reduce injury and if need be recovery from injury using the ANAT BANIEL METHOD.

In fact, I believe that everyone could improve his or her lives in many ways by applying this method.

Thus I proceeded in my training and am continuing into mastery programs for Child Development, Vitality and Longevity and perhaps to the Advanced Athlete program.