The main mechanistic argument I’ve seen for exercise type and quantity is Chris Masterjohn’s argument that maintaining basic competence at many movements is helpful both for local soft tissue health and for injury prevention:
If your goal is competence for many movements signing up for a Feldenkrais class is probably better than most of what’s traditionally called exercise. The Feldenkrais class is much better optimized for that goal than traditional exercise.
Feldenkrais doesn’t give you cardio benefit or muscle hypertrophy but if movement competence is your goal it’s superior.
I agree, and for those with enough literacy and capacity to generalize independently, the books, especially Awareness Through Movement, can be as good or better, with the caveats I mention in the Republic of the Self section of Levels of Republicanism. I also discuss some alternatives.
It’s great to hear that you came to similar conclusions. I feel often like most of the longevity discourse just ignores somatics and fascia. Sensor-motor amnesia just isn’t in the “official hallmarks” and when they talk about fascia they say extracellular matrix and ignore the discourse about how to actually solve issues that uses the word fascia.
When it comes to classes teacher quality will influence whether the class is better than what people just get from the book. Teachers can point out blindspots that I don’t think just systematizing from Awareness Through Movement will reveal.
I think there’s large room for further improvements in concepts and I’m working on writing a book right now. Recently, I became aware of how my tight Pterygoid muscles and Rectus Capitis Anterior might be one of the main reasons for my Rhinitis (with Gemini agreeing), but previously I wasn’t really aware that those muscles are there and matter. I don’t think simple exploration that I would do on my own would have revealed that blindspot.
If your goal is competence for many movements signing up for a Feldenkrais class is probably better than most of what’s traditionally called exercise. The Feldenkrais class is much better optimized for that goal than traditional exercise.
Feldenkrais doesn’t give you cardio benefit or muscle hypertrophy but if movement competence is your goal it’s superior.
I agree, and for those with enough literacy and capacity to generalize independently, the books, especially Awareness Through Movement, can be as good or better, with the caveats I mention in the Republic of the Self section of Levels of Republicanism. I also discuss some alternatives.
It’s great to hear that you came to similar conclusions. I feel often like most of the longevity discourse just ignores somatics and fascia. Sensor-motor amnesia just isn’t in the “official hallmarks” and when they talk about fascia they say extracellular matrix and ignore the discourse about how to actually solve issues that uses the word fascia.
When it comes to classes teacher quality will influence whether the class is better than what people just get from the book. Teachers can point out blindspots that I don’t think just systematizing from Awareness Through Movement will reveal.
I think there’s large room for further improvements in concepts and I’m working on writing a book right now. Recently, I became aware of how my tight Pterygoid muscles and Rectus Capitis Anterior might be one of the main reasons for my Rhinitis (with Gemini agreeing), but previously I wasn’t really aware that those muscles are there and matter. I don’t think simple exploration that I would do on my own would have revealed that blindspot.