Exercises for Opening the Chest and the Back

Let's move to a Bodywork experience. I've been thinking about this one lately – it's one I experience regularly. It has to do with the flow of the breath and the feelings that may arise as a result.

From this point on, we'll be looking at actual Bodywork experiences, and this will require working with a partner. You'll be applying a bit of pressure to specific points.

As I mentioned above, if you want to learn to do "real" Bodywork, you must find a qualified teacher – someone who has "hands on" experience – and therefore can help you to learn to judge the amount of pressure to apply. That being said, applying moderate pressure while playing with these exercises will give you feel for what Bodywork is about.

Please note! If you prefer visual aids for learning this material, purchase our Bodywork CD-R

Begin by assuming the regular breathing position. Close your eyes. Begin the breathing cycle. Your partner should monitor the inflow and outflow of your breath. After five minutes, your partner should find one pair of the intercostal spaces (one to each side of the sternum) between your ribs, over your heart. There's a picture above, indicating the spots. Be sure you are in the gaps between the ribs, outside of the sternum, not on a rib!

Applying downward pressure, (just enough so that you notice it,) have your partner again monitor your breathing. You monitor your feelings. What you may begin to notice is a sensation of either sadness or joy. If you feel either of these things, or pretty much anything else, give yourself permission to let the feelings out. Your partner simply sits there, applying some pressure. Your partner is "with you" as you allow yourself, for example, to laugh or to cry. Partner, your job is not to try to "fix" anything. Just be there. Let your partner have his or her experience. 

Please note! If you prefer visual aids for learning this material, purchase our Bodywork CD-R

This Bodywork exercise focuses on
the pelvis and lower back.

Usually in Bodywork we release the upper body first, so that when we release the pelvis, the energy it contains has a place to go. As we're looking at gentle release techniques in this series, there's less of a need to do releases in a specific order. We're, at this stage, just identifying areas of tightness. 

As to the pelvis, let's review.

The back pelvis contains energy we could call "passion for life." If we are not living out of our passion – if our life is dull and commonplace and meaningless, the unexpended "life passion" energy will be locked in the back pelvis.

The front pelvis contains"passion for passion's sake" – sexual and sensual passion and energy.

Remember! We block energy by tightening muscles. Pelvic energy blocks are a triple whammy.

• First, to keep the energy from moving up, we tighten the diaphragm. (On the back, the diaphragm is located beneath the bottom ribs.)
• Second, we tighten the muscles at the curve of the lower back, on either side of the spinal column.
• Third, we tighten the leg muscles, as they attach to the pelvis, notably at the side of the pelvis 2 inches below the hip bone, and then down the outside of the leg. This tightening helps to keep the pelvis "still."

Let's feel for tightness, if any, in the back.

Giver: look at the picture so you can find the points

Receiver: lie on your stomach.

Giver: locate the bony protrusions at the top of the pelvis (yellow dots.)

Slide your fingers up until they contact the lowest ribs (orange lines) Move in until they meet over the spine.

Now, move your fingers out an inch or so on either side of the spine. NEVER push down on the spine!

Continue to slide your fingers along the bottom edge of the lower rib, feeling the muscles to either side of the spine. At about 2 -3 inches to either side, the muscle will end, and your fingers will "slide off." Now, at that point, using your thumbs, slide down two inches from the ribs (the spots in green,) and press inward toward the spine and downwards at a 45 degree angle, pressing on the outer edge of the muscle you just found. Not too hard, please.

Receiver: you might feel a fair amount of pain in this area. Breathe and exhale using a sound, like "ahhh." Or "ouch!" The goal here is to notice how tight this area is.

Giver: press in on this area for a minute or so, following the outer edge of the muscle, moving up and down along the muscle.

Finally, place your hands over the muscle, one hand over the other. Imagine breathing chi into your hands, or imagine sending warmth to the area. Do this for 5 minutes. Rest.