PILANDES Postural Cueing I - Think Different

“When I find myself pushing, I have not taken the time to see where I am before I start to move.” – Marjorie Barstow, Teaching Aphorism

Under Steve Jobs, Apple launched its “Think Different” campaign to huge international success. Do you remember it?

It was honouring the people who show us that the way forward is counterintuitive: they moved in the opposite direction to conventional wisdom…

This exists within PILANDES too, because it exists within Alexander’s discoveries.

PILANDES Postural Cueing is a “Think Different” approach to Pilates:

Surrendering instead of controlling
Exploring instead of reaching
Letting instead of pushing

1. SURRENDERING

A zen monk who once spoke to an international Congress of Alexander teachers in Freiburg (or was it Engelberg) in 1991, remarked to us all:

“You don’t want to impose your idea on the movement of the body.”

I felt a jolt of surprise on hearing that – I wrote it down and remember it still, long after I’ve forgotten the name of the man who said it. (Anyone?) Think of this idea in relation to Pilates or any system: your movements operate under constraints that you cannot fully know.

Are you imposing your idea?

Any “efforting” involves trying to impose control over constraints that you often treat as “obstacles” against your will to push through. But hey – maybe you aren’t built to bend that far? Maybe your leg just doesn’t reach as high as your instructor’s?

Your body is unique.

Surrendering to the constraints of your unique personal structure leads to…

2. EXPLORING

Rather than having a fixed endpoint in mind – e.g. I must touch my toes – you can ask yourself “How far do I get today?” Joint range can subtly change on an almost daily basis. Rather than always reaching toward an imaginary endpoint, explore your constraints by watching where the movement actually arrives today…

3. LETTING

Now you’re following the zen monk’s advice – letting your body move as you watch it. No longer trying to impose your will, instead listening respectfully to discover the constraints that exist for each move you make.

Fresh. Alive. Present.

Still not sure this applies to you? Best advice: come along to my one-day in London or New York with your most constrained, irritating (Pilates) movement in mind, then explore with me how, with a different mind, you discover a different body.

You think different.

NEXT: PILANDES Postural Cueing II – Why Postural?

Stay tuned.

2026 Workshops

LONDON:
August 8 – PILANDES
August 23 – Trauma-Informed AT

NEW YORK:
October 24 – PILANDES
October 25 – Trauma-Informed AT

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