Whether it's because of an achy back or some sudden bout of self-awareness, at some point or other, each of us has said, "I need to work on my posture." Usually, this calls to mind images of walking around stiff as a board with a book perched on your head. Or maybe it's your third-grade (or fourth- or fifth- or ...) teacher yelling at you to sit up straight. Go to the gym and ask for help and you'll typically be given a couple of exercises to strengthen your upper back or be told to take a yoga class (probably because they do "postures" in yoga).

But, once in a while, someone with a little bit of knowledge will direct you to the Alexander technique. To its proponents, Alexander is much more than a postural technique. It is a way of life. Alexander Technique teaches you different ways of moving and thinking about moving so that standing straight takes less energy than slouching. It makes you think about conserving energy and relaxing in everything you do.

The Alexander Technique is the brainchild of Frederick Matthias Alexander (1869-1955), an actor who began his career as a Shakespearean orator and developed chronic laryngitis while performing. Determined to restore the full use of his voice, he carefully watched himself while speaking and observed that undue muscular tension accounted for his vocal problem. He sought a way to eliminate that restriction. Over time, he discovered and articulated a principle that profoundly influences health and well-being: When neck tension is reduced, the head no longer compresses the spine and the spine is free to lengthen. Alexander restored his own natural capacity for ease of movement by changing the way he thought while initiating an action. From this work on himself and others, he evolved a teaching method that encourages all the body's processes to work more efficiently -- as an integrated, dynamic whole.