Awareness Through Movement #425

Lying on the heels 4 – POWER OF THE PELVIS

Rushed with time, I’ve simply tweaked what Grok said in answer to questions for how to best describe the benefits of this lesson (Note: Vita, it might be a bit challenging for you):

a beautiful illustration of the pelvis from one line, symbolic of the human system

The skeletal chain
—meaning the way bones, joints, and muscles work together from head to toe—
is central to understanding how a movement in one area, like the feet,
can influence something seemingly distant, like the neck.
Let’s break it down with some examples and explain why this approach
is so valuable.

The Big Picture: The Human Body As One System

When you move your whole body as one system, you’re engaging a chain of connections rather than isolating a single muscle or joint. The skeleton is like a series of levers and hinges, all linked by muscles, tendons, and fascia (connective tissue). A shift in one part ripples through the rest, redistributing effort, tension, and alignment. This lesson uses slow, deliberate movements to help you feel these connections, improve coordination, and release unnecessary strain.

How Moving the Feet Benefits the Neck

In this lesson, you’re often sitting or lying with your feet tucked under your pelvis or moved side to side, When you adjust the position of your feet - sliding them under the pelvis—you change the angle and pressure at your ankles which influences how the knees bend or rotate, as the tibia and fibula (lower leg bones) shift slightly.

The alignment of the knees affects the pelvis, tilting it forward, backward, or side to side which subtly rotates the hip joints. When the pelvis tilts or rotates, the lumbar spine (lower back) follows, curving or lengthening. Considering the spine is one continuous column, a change in the lower back ripples up through the thoracic spine through the ribs to the cervical spine into the base of the skull.

So, by moving your feet slowly and intentionally, you’re creating a wave of adjustment that can soften tension in your neck.

Why This Matters:

You start to feel how everything’s connected. Maybe you never noticed how tensing your feet changes your posture all the way up, then, instead of overworking one area (like craning your neck to stretch it), you learn to distribute effort across the chain, making movement easier and less taxing. This can relieve chronic tension.. as does training the nervous system to link with distant parts—like the feet and neck—into smoother, unified actions.

Practical Takeaway

Imagine your skeleton as a mobile hanging from the ceiling: tug one end, and the whole thing sways. In this lesson, tucking your feet under or shifting them side to side is like tugging that mobile. The neck benefits because it’s not an isolated piece—it’s part of the sway. Over time, with practice, you’ll feel lighter, more aligned, and less like your body’s fighting itself. That’s the beauty of moving as one system!