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Gokhale started teaching in a studio at [[Palo Alto]], California. The method quickly caught on in the [[Bay Area]], as she has been described as the "posture guru of Silicon Valley" and taught at many well-known companies such as Google and Facebook.<ref name="Doucleff 2017" /> Apart from the US, the method has been taught in the UK, Germany and The Netherlands.<ref name="Wallace 2013" />
Gokhale started teaching in a studio at [[Palo Alto]], California. The method quickly caught on in the [[Bay Area]], as she has been described as the "posture guru of Silicon Valley" and taught at many well-known companies such as Google and Facebook.<ref name="Doucleff 2017" /> Apart from the US, the method has been taught in the UK, Germany and The Netherlands.<ref name="Wallace 2013" />


The medical community has responded with positive interest and praise.<ref name="Worley 2015" /><ref>{{cite news|last1=Vesely|first1=Carolin|title=Get it straight|url=http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/arts-and-life/life/get-it-straight-106504123.html|accessdate=April 21, 2017|work=[[Winnipeg Free Press]]|date=February 11, 2010}}</ref>{{Failed verification|date=August 2017}} However, {{As of|2015|6|lc=y|post=,}} the method had not been scientifically studied yet, and neither had its main assumption, that is, people in less industrialized societies have less back pain because of better postures. Other causes, such as a more active lifestyle, may also affect differences in back pain.<ref name="Khaleeli 2015" /><ref name="Doucleff 2017" />
The medical community has responded with positive interest and praise.<ref name="Worley 2015" /><ref>{{cite news|last1=Vesely|first1=Carolin|title=Get it straight|url=http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/arts-and-life/life/get-it-straight-106504123.html|accessdate=April 21, 2017|work=[[Winnipeg Free Press]]|date=February 11, 2010}}</ref> However, {{As of|2015|6|lc=y|post=,}} the method had not been scientifically studied yet, and neither had its main assumption, that is, people in less industrialized societies have less back pain because of better postures. Other causes, such as a more active lifestyle, may also affect differences in back pain.<ref name="Khaleeli 2015" /><ref name="Doucleff 2017" />


Gokhale has, however, spoken against the widespread notion that "sitting is the new smoking", stating that "we are much better designed than that".<ref name="Bryant" /><ref>{{cite news|last1=Cohn|first1=Meredith|title=When it comes to back pain, don't believe the myths|url=http://www.baltimoresun.com/bs-mtblog-2010-06-when_it_comes_to_back_pain_don-story.html|accessdate=April 22, 2017|work=[[Baltimore Sun]]|date=June 10, 2010}}</ref>
Gokhale has, however, spoken against the widespread notion that "sitting is the new smoking", stating that "we are much better designed than that".<ref name="Bryant" /><ref>{{cite news|last1=Cohn|first1=Meredith|title=When it comes to back pain, don't believe the myths|url=http://www.baltimoresun.com/bs-mtblog-2010-06-when_it_comes_to_back_pain_don-story.html|accessdate=April 22, 2017|work=[[Baltimore Sun]]|date=June 10, 2010}}</ref>

Revision as of 18:07, 27 August 2017

The Gokhale Method or Primal Posture method is a postural awareness technique developed by the biochemist and acupuncturist Ester Gokhale.[1] The method proposes certain patterns that exist in the way people in pre-modern and less industrialized societies move and adopt posture—patterns which also exist among older babies and toddlers.

These patterns, which Gokhale calls primal posture, can be learned through practice. The method became popular in the beginning of the 2010s among professionals in the Silicon Valley.[2][3]

History

Esther Gokhale teaching at the Ancestral Health Symposium in 2013.

Gokhale started searching for a method to cope with her own back pain, resulting from sciatica and several spinal disc herniations starting from her first pregnancy.[3][4]

She based the method on her insights gained at the Aplomb Institute, a French institute for anthropology-based postural awareness, and experience with other postural awareness methods, such as Alexander Technique and Feldenkrais.[2][5] Gokhale, raised in India herself,[6] then further refined the method through her observations of people's posture in less industrialized societies, a process which took her ten years.[1][5]

Features

The result of Esther Gokhale's observations was an eight-step method that emphasized a posture that is different from the postures recommended by many forms of physical therapy, with a J-shaped spine as the ideal form, created through repositioning the pelvis.[2][4]

The method emphasizes training posture through everyday activities, rather than exercise,[3][7] and involves as much unlearning former habits of poor posture as learning new habits of good posture. Postural training involves the shoulders, neck, back, hips and knees,[5][8] and incorporates yoga and dance.[9] Moreover, the method aims to elongate the spine and lessen the burden on the lower back.[10]

The method consists of consecutive steps, with instructions on how to sit, stand, lie down, bend over, walk, and lift up heavy objects.[11]

Using kinesthetic, visual and intellectual teaching methods, the Gokhale method is taught through private classes and workshops.[9][12] Backing up her method with medical literature and anatomical arguments,[9] Gokhale has made statements that certain medical conditions such as liver stagnation and RSI (Repetitive strain injury) are strongly related to posture and can be solved by improving posture.[13][14] She has published a book and a dvd about the method, the book winning a National Book Award.[15][failed verification]

Gokhale's lessons also include advice about practicalities such as choosing healthy shoe wear, how to text, and how to sit in an airplane seat without back pain.[16][17][18]

According to the website What Doctors Don't Tell You, the method does require much self-awareness, as the exercises are subtle and the method deals with deeply-ingrained habits.[7]

Despite these perceived difficulties, Gokhale said in interviews that her ultimate aim of teaching the Gokhale Method is to make the method widespread and thereby change the very culture of posture, with parents and teachers playing an active and exemplary rol in educating children in posture.[19][20]

Reception

Esther Gokhale demonstrates good posture.

Gokhale started teaching in a studio at Palo Alto, California. The method quickly caught on in the Bay Area, as she has been described as the "posture guru of Silicon Valley" and taught at many well-known companies such as Google and Facebook.[4] Apart from the US, the method has been taught in the UK, Germany and The Netherlands.[6]

The medical community has responded with positive interest and praise.[21][22] However, as of June 2015, the method had not been scientifically studied yet, and neither had its main assumption, that is, people in less industrialized societies have less back pain because of better postures. Other causes, such as a more active lifestyle, may also affect differences in back pain.[1][4]

Gokhale has, however, spoken against the widespread notion that "sitting is the new smoking", stating that "we are much better designed than that".[19][23]

Regardless, as one neurologist has commented, the method may prove useful in itself: if ideal posture is not the reason the method works, then the muscle training required to accomplish such a posture is.[4][21]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Khaleeli, Homa (June 10, 2015). "A simple cure for back pain: grow up in the Ecuadorian mountains". The Guardian. Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  2. ^ a b c Schoenfeld, Amy (May 11, 2013). "Soothing Back Pain by Learning How to Sit Again". The New York Times. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
  3. ^ a b c Kriegman, Mitchell (May 13, 2014). "The Gokhale Method". Santa Barbara Independent. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
  4. ^ a b c d e Doucleff, Michaeleen (June 8, 2015). "Lost Posture: Why Some Indigenous Cultures May Not Have Back Pain". NPR. Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  5. ^ a b c Vaswani, Anjana (January 23, 2017). "Sit up smart". Bangalore Mirror. Bennett, Coleman and Co. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
  6. ^ a b Wallace, Charles (December 16, 2013). "Exercises to tackle bad posture can avert back surgery". Financial Times. Archived from the original on April 18, 2017. Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  7. ^ a b Montana; Bowman; Baniel. "The end of back pain". What Doctors Don't Tell You. Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  8. ^ Sen, Sohini (February 6, 2017). "Bad posture is not just about having a hunched back". Live Mint. HT Media. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
  9. ^ a b c Ben-Shachar, Rotem (August 8, 2007). "Good moves for a better back" (PDF). Palo Alto Weekly: 21–2.
  10. ^ Browne, David. "Rethinking the Right Way to Sit". Men's Journal. Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  11. ^ Buckley, Joan (host); Cooks, Roberta (Gokhale Method trainer). Your Family's Health: Gokhale Method (Podcast). Retrieved April 24, 2017.
  12. ^ Cristo, Paul (host) (January 27, 2014). Posture Guru and Pain Relief (Podcast). Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  13. ^ Gokhale, Esther (2009). "The Posture-Liver Stagnation Connection" (PDF). Qi: 35.
  14. ^ Gokhale, Esther (2009). "Shoulder Posture Contributes to Syndromes Involving Multiple Meridians" (PDF). California Journal of Oriental Medicine. 20 (1): 8.
  15. ^ Bell, Misha. "Back Pain: Is Your Yoga Practice Hurting You?". Yogi Times. Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  16. ^ McMorris, Megan (November 17, 2010). "No More Back Pain" (PDF). Woman's Day: 108. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  17. ^ Gokhale, Esther (24 May 2010). "Avoiding Back Pain on Airplanes". Amateur Traveler. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  18. ^ Bayless, Kate. "How to Fix the Worst Posture Mistakes". Live Strong.
  19. ^ a b Bryant, Lauren. "Esther Gokhale: Primal Posture For Wellness". Wellness Force. Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  20. ^ Hobelsberger, Bernhard (March 1, 2013). "Eine Frage Der Haltung" [A matter of posture] (PDF). Donna (in German). p. 135. Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  21. ^ a b Worley, Becky (June 22, 2015). "'Posture Guru' Explains How to Get Rid of Back Pain". ABC News. Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  22. ^ Vesely, Carolin (February 11, 2010). "Get it straight". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  23. ^ Cohn, Meredith (June 10, 2010). "When it comes to back pain, don't believe the myths". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved April 22, 2017.

External links

Further reading

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