Happy Monday!
I hope you are enjoying the beginning of our Autumn season (or Spring if you are in the South Pacific).
We are savoring our remaining days of our late summer here. It has been beautiful, alternating between hot Santa Anna conditions (winds blowing in from the desert) and cooler ocean breezes.
We’ve had a dry summer and a couple local fires, but I’m welcoming any rain we may get during the winter season.
Today in my blog I will share:
1. Heart and Happiness (Pt. 2): A Healing Practice
2. Announcements
3. Family Happiness
Heart & Happiness Pt. 2: Transforming Challenges
Today, we continue our journey with part two of our three-part series on Heart and Happiness.
In my vlog, I share the combination of a healing art therapy practice and some modern shamanism.
I learned the basic elements of the modern shamanism elements from the study of Arnold Mindell’s book, Process Mind – A Users Guide to Connecting with the Mind of God.
This is a fantastic book with a number of self-help exercises that I really enjoyed doing myself.
As you can see in the blackboard diagram above, I take viewers through a three-stage process:
1. Access an inner-image of a current challenge.
2. Ask your heart for its view or resolution of your challenge.
3. Choose your “Power Spot” somewhere on the planet, and work with the spirits of the land to support you with an experience of integrating the two previous images.
This is a simple, yet practical, method of becoming aware of how the heart views and handles challenges.
After you’ve seen what your “ego/head” has to say about the issue (as presented in the first image of the series suggested in this blog), you’ll have a tool to shift those challenges.
I have used this method and variations of it many times in my own life and healing practices, as well as when working with my clients.
It is a great way to open us to the power and support of both our hearts, and the healing power of Mother Nature. I hope you enjoy it.
Announcements
SWIS Symposium (Society of Weight-Training Injury Specialists) 2016
I’m excited to return to the SWIS Symposium 2016 next week in Toronto to present Back Pain as Emerging Consciousness.
My presentation looks at how back pain (and pain in any part of the body in general) can be seen as part of a process of conscious growth and development in the individual.
I will show how the subtle anatomy related to archetypes, energy fields and chakras integrates with the physical body.
In addition, I’ll share how an understanding of stages of conscious development can help doctors, therapists and coaches better identify and address the etiology (cause) of their client’s back pain, instead of treating it like a problem.
Although for many, this presentation will seem quite “out of the box,” the truth is, what I’ll be sharing, is now backed by hard science.
Most physicians and therapists are just so caught up in their daily work life they don’t have the time to study the stream of scientific advancements.
This presentation will open the perceptual lenses of the audience, and I will share a great case history to make my points very clear.
The reason I keep presenting at the SWIS symposium is because the founder, Dr. Ken Kinakin DC, CSCS, a highly skilled therapist and healer, brings his passion and expertise to help reduce injuries through scientific research. He runs the conference beautifully, and brings a diverse group of professionals to discuss a variety of meaningful topics.
SWIS Symposium 2016 will bring hundreds of personal trainers, chiropractors, massage therapists, nutritionists, strength and conditioning coaches, powerlifters, bodybuilders, gym owners, industry thought leaders and key influencers together Oct. 13–15 for a three-day experience by optimizing every point of training, diet, treatment and rehab for themselves and their clients.
Have a look and register here: www.swis2016.com
I look forward to meeting you there.
C.H.E.K Institute 2016 Renewal for all (CHEK ITPs)
It’s renewal time, and the C.H.E.K Institute is offering some really grand bonus packages for renewing early!
Why is this important?
All current CHEK ITPs receive monthly support through our CHEK Coaching Calls, and regular opportunities to improve your skill set during our CHEK Monthly Webinars as well as exposure to thousands of potential clients via our CHEK Connect System for starters.
Here’s the online renewal link, if you’re ready to get started:
https://chekinstitute.com/chek-itp-renewal-2016/
Also, you can call the education office at (760) 477-2620.
Thank you to all my students for working hard to set the bar so much higher than everyone else, and for your dedication to our shared vision of global, holistic body-mind health and optimal performance!
A Fantastic C.H.E.K Institute Blog Post by Vidya McNeill
Vidya recently posted an excellent article on the C.H.E.K Institute Blog looking into the issues of Wholeness, Happiness and Body-mind Consciousness.
I really thought Vidya hit the nail square on the head with this blog article, synthesizing the absolute essentials of the issues of wholeness, happiness and body-mind consciousness in a concise article, which is hard to do.
She did it very well and I encourage all of you (particularly if you see and practice the exercise I share in my vlog today) to read her beautiful article.
You can read it here:
https://chekinstitute.com/blog/wholeness-happiness-and-bodymind-consciousness
Great Job Vidya!
Podcast Interviews
PT Prophet Podcast Interview with Hayden Wilson
I had a lovely interview with Australian blogger, Hayden Wilson last week. He and I covered a variety of topics, and this is what he shared about the interview with me:
It was great to speak with Paul Chek again recently on my podcast. I last spoke to Paul two years ago and a some crazy (awesome) stuff has happened since then, therefore we had a lot to talk about.
I love the wisdom Paul has to share with the world. Although some people may not agree with his theories, you cannot help but appreciate the time and knowledge that he can back it up with.
In this interview we cover:
- Why Paul doesn’t come to Melbourne (which was a joking question, but I think he took it seriously).
- How he got started in the certification and education game.
- Where he has felt the most resistance from his theories.
- A limiting belief he once had that he has overcome.
- One of Paul’s many unique healing cases and life transformations.
- Using didgeridoos as healing tools.
- Going off the grid…how often?
- What does a typical day and typical diet look like?
- Paul Chek’s favourite show on TV!
- Paul explains ‘negative bias’ and what it can mean for you.
Hayden has released the show and it’s available here if you are interested in listening or subscribing to receive Hayden’s future podcasts:
https://haydenwilson.com.au/episode110
Podbean Interview 102 with Robbie Bourke
In July, I was interviewed by Robbie Bourke, a blogger who lives in Ireland.
On this episode, Robbie and I discussed everything and anything to do with child development, and how to optimally guide a child to reach his/her full potential!
The areas we cover on this episode were:
- My essentials for optimizing child development.
- The lessons I learned from raising my first son Paul Jr. and how this experience will shape my parenting with my son Mana.
- Why it’s important to get the balance right between guiding a child’s development versus interfering with a child’s development.
- Many other relevant points about life!
To listen to this podcast, please click here: https://robbiebourke.podbean.com/
I hope you really enjoy it!
Explore Alexander Technique with a Master!
Many years ago (20 or more) when I owned a physical therapy clinic (Golden Triangle Rehabilitation in La Jolla, Calif.), I began studying books, audios and videos about the work and teachings of F.M. Alexander.
Through addressing some health challenges of his own (just like Feldenkrais), he developed a method that was first popularized among professional orators but, through application, was found to have a broad scope of application.
I wanted to experience the method so I could tie my intellectual understanding gained from my studies with practical experience (this is my way of learning and mastering things).
I did some research and found that there was a very skilled Alexander practitioner very close to me. This was Eileen Troberman.
I saw her several times and was always amazed at how much ease of movement I gained from her sessions.
The Alexander method teaches us to be more effortless, and more efficient in our movements, which helps us establish optimal static and dynamic posture in all that we do.
I really liked the fact that, unlike my training in the Feldenkrais method, where I spent 100 hours on the floor doing movement exercises, the Alexander technique can effectively be applied while laying down, sitting or standing.
I began referring clients with challenging movement patterns to help me resolve their issues and help them gain freedom from pain, and she did her magic every time!
She even helped Angie become much more efficient with her movement after having Mana. Angie really enjoyed the lessons with her.
The C.H.E.K Institute is now working with Eileen to develop a series of workshops at our new future San Diego location (we are still working on getting into the new location), and I’m very excited about that.
For those of you in love with ELDOA stretching, you may find it very interesting to study with Eileen and learn about some of the motor deficiencies and habit patterns that causes you to need perpetual use of ELDOAs or any other form of corrective stretching.
If you would like to experience a true master of the Alexander technique before we can begin our series in San Diego, I encourage you consider enrolling in her Las Vegas workshop below.
This is what Eileen has to say:
I’m Eileen Troberman, a certified Alexander technique teacher with over 34 years experience in teaching the Alexander technique worldwide and I’ll be offering two three-hour workshops in Las Vegas this Oct. 23 and 24.
If you want to move better, have effortless posture and easy, confident presence, avoid pain, avoid stress and injury and know how to regain the natural grace, comfort and ease that you had as a child, come join me in these two workshops in Las Vegas!
I want to help you understand and utilize this Technique for yourself, with all its amazing benefits.
You will leave these workshops with practical application methods and practices that you can use on your own right away. You can use this practical technique to:
- Prevent aches and pains.
- Improve any motor skill or activity.
- Release pressure, stress and unnecessary tension quickly and efficiently.
- Rediscover the sense of effortless buoyancy as your move.
- Improve posture and presentation.
- Know how to practice self-care to avoid overuse and repetitive motion injuries.
- Move with grace and ease.
In these workshops, you’ll receive group instruction as well as individualized help in carrying out those instructions. You will learn to release stress and tension in the basic motion of common activities such as sitting, standing, walking, breathing and using your arms and hands.
We’ll also look at how to undo excess stress and tension for specialized skills and interests of the individual participants.
Each workshop will include:
- The basic concepts of the Alexander technique and how to use them to improve your life.
- The three-step process to use anytime to undo stress and unnecessary tension.
- Individualized gentle hands-on guidance to give you a physical experience of ease.
- Ways to troubleshoot your movement habits and understand which ones are causing your problems and how to change them.
- The two simple questions that help change your brain’s habit signals< ./li>
- Simple functional anatomy to accurately change your mental body map to signal more freedom in all of your movements.
- A unique way to positively affect others with your body language, whether in performance or in everyday life.
- Understand how to free your natural breath.
The dates are Sunday, Oct. 23 from 1:30-4:30 p.m. and/or Monday, Oct. 24 from 2:30-5:30 p.m.
Take either one or both workshops!
The Alexander technique is a cumulative education and experience. Taking a second workshop will build on what you have learned in the first workshop, giving you an advanced understanding and physical experience and even greater improvement.
In order to allow for individual attention and individual guidance, workshop size is limited. Register soon to ensure your space in the workshop.
Register at: www.AlexanderTechniqueLasVegas.com
Workshop cost: $135 for single-day workshop or $250 for both workshops
Location: West Charleston Public Library at 6301 West Charleston Blvd. in Las Vegas.
Family Happiness!
Mana
I can’t resist sharing my little man’s growth and development.
Mana and Angie went to visit her mother Maria recently. They all had a great time.
Mana has been eating solid foods for a couple weeks now and boy does this kid love to eat!!
Interestingly, he’s much more interested in high-fat and high-protein foods like liver, lamb, and the most solid foods like chicken, ostrich, and duck than he is with the fruits and sweeter items.
You can see how Grandma Maria is enjoying feeding Mana.
I love seeing how he knows just what he wants!
Angie recently took Mana shopping. He picked out his new shoes.
Angie is committed to her sprint workouts. Here you can see the sprinter buggy with Maggie, her pug.
Angie loads them in, then she hits the pavement, up and down hills.
I thought this was a really cute video of Mana and Maggie swinging at the park.
Mana loves being outside! It’s a perfect way for him to drift asleep while Angie gets her workout in too!
We are all so in love with our little Mana, and I can’t wait to get home to see him every day.
I hope you’ve enjoyed my blog this week.
I look forward to sharing part three of Heart & Happiness with you next week.
Love and chi,
Paul Chek
