A carpenter finds a straight line to the earth by dropping a weighted string from a height. It falls straight down, with the flow of gravity. Imagine if your body lined up in that flow—your ears, shoulders, hips and ankles would all follow the plumb line of the body. Instead for most of us our calves fall backward, our thighs sink forward, our lower back overarches, our upper back rounds back and our head juts forward. What the FitzGordon Method does is align us with gravity, making it our ally instead of our nemesis

Let’s look at a three-point plan you can use to begin to make your way into gravity’s flow:

· Imagine a string is pulling you up from the back of the neck. It is important to initiate all lengthening movements from the back of the body. The chin should lower and the throat should soften when this string pulls you up.

· Another string is pulling you backwards from the base of the rib cage. Try breathing into your back ribs as you walk. Imagine that you are walking backwards as much as forwards, balancing all sides of the body.

· Always keep your legs equally underneath you. The back leg should be as far back as the front leg is forward. If the right leg steps forward one foot in front of the pelvis, the left leg should be one foot behind it.

Jonathan FitzGordon is the creator of the FitzGordon Method Core Walking Program. You can find more information at http://www.fitzgordonmethod.com or visit his blog at http://www.fitzgordonmethod.blogspot.com Jonathan has been practicing yoga since 1995 and has been teaching since 2000, having studied with some of the yoga community's leading teachers. In addition he is a Level II Reiki (healing art) practitioner. The FitzGordon Method is uniquely influenced by the Universal Principles of Alignment as created by John Friend of Anusara Yoga. The program synthesizes years of inquiry and practice and was born out of FitzGordon's personal and professional experience with changing neuromuscular patterning through self-awareness and repetition. The program's philosophy rests on the rock solid belief in our ability to change and evolve as we age.