Pulling & Pushing Joints, and Perception

James Drewe
Feb 1
2 min read

If you've ever been to an osteopath or an Alexander Technique teacher, you will probably have had the experience of having your legs 'pulled out'.

It's a great feeling. You lie on your back on the couch, the practitioner takes hold of your ankles, and very gently leans away from you, as though trying to pull your legs away from your body.

For those of you who haven't experienced it, it might sound slightly bizarre, but, if you are able to release your hips, knees, and ankles, it's a wonderful feeling.

Opening Joints by Pulling

Experiencing the same sensation in the arms is relatively easy - either you hang from something (although this can cause wrist tension), or somebody stands beside you, takes hold of your wrist or preferably your hand, and pulls your arm sideways.

Gymnastic rings are almost ideal - even in a play park, although it's difficult to release the wrists when you are gripping something.

Opening Joints When Pushing

In theory, when you push an object, you compress your joints, your body is moving against the other object or person, and the arm in the middle is being squashed.

However, you can just as easily push an object/person simultaneously opening the joints.

If you try doing this, you'll find that the joints in your arms and shoulders appear to settle as the tendons on either side of them release and allow the arm to lengthen.

As a comparison, it's worth trying to tense your arms as you push (e.g.) a wall, and you'll find that your shoulders, in particular, rise, and your neck tenses.

Connection

When you begin to use the above concepts in anything you do that involves a pushing or a pulling action, there is the experience of the arms 'lengthening' but without any stretching taking place. Space appears to form between the joints, and the fascia connects as the muscles 'equalise' with no muscle being more activated than any other one.

Whole Body Connection

But even more importantly, when you push whilst simultaneously opening the joints, the arms integrate with the body, and the body starts to work as a whole. This is exactly the same as doing a Zhan Zhuang standing qigong exercise.

If you are moving forwards from one leg to another whilst doing the push, and you simultaneously open the leg joints, the entire body connects.

Applying it

If you are able to apply this whilst moving through a tai chi sequence, or whilst in a qigong posture, you will find that the body connects better, and no single muscle or group of muscles works harder than any other.

It's an excellent example of 'the whole is greater than the sum of the parts'.

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James Drewe teaches Tai Chi and Qigong in both London and in Kent and online.

Details of weekly classes both live and online can be found on the website, and there are classes for 2-person Tai Chi on one Saturday a month.