Karate, Feldenkrais and Dynamic Action - An Interview with Victoria Worsley

In this month's first SenseAbility Podcast interview we discuss how the Feldenkrais Method can be an effective support for martial artists.  In the interview, Victoria describes using Feldenkrais to reorganize her body alignment so she could handle the dynamic demands of karate. She has a lot of knowledge and clarity about the relationship between Feldenkrais and the fast, powerful movements that are required in both martial arts and sports performance.  During the interview she explores the subject of "cross-motivation" - the psychological and physical pulling in two directions at once - as an internal form of resistance against effective movement and how the Feldenkrais Method can help you clean up your movement leaving you with a singular focus and an assertive action.  ---------- Victoria Worsley discovered the Feldenkrais Method at the age of 17 while training in physical theatre with Monika Pagneux (and Philippe Gaulier) in Paris. After 20 years as an actor and theatre maker, she trained as  Feldenkrais Practitioner with Garet Newell in Lewes (2003-2007) and became an Assistant Trainer in 2021. Her book ‘Feldenkrais for Actors’ was published by Nick Hern Books in 2016. Karate has been a part of her life since about 2008, when her 5-year-old daughter dragged her to a class that turned out to be ‘family training’. After a slow start she got hooked. It turned out to be GoJu Ryu karate, a traditional Okinawan style, and the club was part of the English Goju-Ryu Karate-do Association (EGKA), affiliated to a global organisation, the Internatational Okinawan Goju-Ryu Karate-do Federation (IOGKF) headed at the time by Morio Higaonna Sensei 10th dan, now Tetsuji Nakamura Sensei 9th dan. Lineages are important in Karate. Theirs goes back directly to Chojun Miyagi Sensei, founder of Goju Ryu. Victoria has always trained with Sensei Kevin Goodman 4th Dan in North London, but has also regularly visited the club in south London run by Sensei Linda Marchant (8th dan) and attended many of the big gatherings (Gassukus) held by the EGKA with senior instructors from UK and abroad. Victoria is currently a 2nd dan and is finally, (very belatedly!), building up to her 3rd dan grading, hopefully in 2027.  Victoria's Website: www.feldenkraisworks.co.uk ----- If you would like to sign up for the monthly SenseAbility newsletter (which includes written articles and other resources) please use the following link: http://bitly.ws/sFBT Please like, comment and subscribe to the channel! For more information about the Feldenkrais Method or to find a local practitioner near you please visit our website: https://feldenkrais.com/practitioner-...