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Ballroom Dance Resource - Articles on Dancing Dr. Wong goes into great detail with this article on posture, footwork and more. A must read for all ballroom/Latin dancers.~ by Dr SH Wong www.rpmerleon.com The Reflexology Dancer How-To Guide By Danielle Gault A general foot reflexology self-help method Reflexology, acupressure and foot massage are most effective when applied on a regular basis. Just as stress and tension are accumulative, so are the benefits of circulation work and the relaxation response. Following is a simple method anyone can use to relieve tension and ease the aches and pains through constant wear and tear of the foot. 1. Warm up: Start by rubbing your hands together generating warmth. Sit on the floor or on a comfortable chair. Bend the right knee so that you can place your right foot on your left thigh area with the sole of your foot [the plantar side of the foot] facing you. Rub and wring the foot as if you are trying to squeeze stuff out of it. This will increase the circulation in the foot. 2. Bottom side of foot (plantar) Section A - How to relax tension in the reflexes related to the head, neck, eye and ear reflexes: Hold your right foot with the left hand supporting the toes and work one toe at a time. Support a toe with your left fingers behind. Place your right fingers on top of your left fingers to give you a stable supportive position. Press either your right or left thumb (you may want to alternate which thumb to use depending on which toe you are working) into a toe pad giving it a pressure point circular massage - start at either the big toe or baby toe - whichever one you prefer. After working the toe pad, slowly inch your thumb in a press-release manner [referred to as the thumb walk] up the length of the toe from the base of the toe back to top pad. Complete each toe three times. 3. Webs - How to relax tension in the reflexes related to the neck and shoulder area: Massage and tug the web between the toes. This helps release tension in the reflexes of the neck and shoulder areas of the body. 4. Section B - How to relax tension in the reflexes related to the chest, breasts, lung areas: Work Section B by grasping the right foot with your left thumb on the plantar side and your left fingers behind. Vertically using your thumb walk method, inch upward between the valleys of the bones (called the metatarsal bones) starting where Section B and C meet. Do all four valleys. Repeat three times up each valley. 5. Section C - How to relax tension in the reflexes related to the stomach, liver, pancreas and spleen areas: Using your thumb-walk method, inch Section C in a diagonal and/or horizontal direction covering Section C three times. 6. Section D - How to relax tension in the reflexes related to reproductive and colon area: Thumb walk horizontally along the fleshy instep part of the foot in Section D. Cover the area three times. 7. Heel area on foot: Holding the heel area, take one of your knuckles of the left hand and make circular pressure point patterns in Section E. Press and stroke along the U-shaped sides of the heel with your knuckle. 8. Top of foot [dorsal] - How to relax tension in the reflexes related to the back: Using both of your hands, place your thumbs on the plantar side of the foot and wrap your other fingers around the top of the foot. Find the valleys between the metatarsal bones and press and release your fingers (use your index and/or middle fingers) down the valleys toward the ankle area. Complete your valley journey toward the ankle area three times. 9. Ankle area - How to relax tension in the reflexes related to the groin lymphatic area: With your left middle finger, press- release into the slight indentation that goes across from ankle bone to ankle bone. 10. Lateral side of foot - How to relax tension in the reflexes related to the lateral sides of the body such as the arms, legs, hips areas: With your left thumb on the plantar side of the foot and your left index finger on the top side of the foot, in a pinching-like fashion, pinch the lateral side of Zone 5 going from top to bottom and bottom to top three times. 11. Medial side of the foot - How to relax tensions in the reflexes related to the spinal area: Cupping the heel of your right foot in your left hand with the thumb resting at the heel area, thumb walk up the medial side of Zone 1 to the top of the big toe. 12. Conclusion: Rub and stroke your foot once again. Do the other foot. Once both feet are complete, take some lotion and work into your feet in a massaging manner. Pause and take a couple of deep breaths in through the nose and exhale out through the mouth slowly. Feel the effect of this circulatory work on the body. Notice the stimulating, yet grounding feeling throughout your whole system. Whether for pleasure, recreation or professional dancing, the pressure placed on the feet when dancing can be relieved through foot pressure point massage. Balance and ease can be returned by improving circulation using self-help tools combined with a self- help massage or regular visits to a Reflexologist. Don't let tender tootsies stop you from enjoying one of the most valuable and enjoyable pleasures in life. Shall we dance? Recognition of reflexology as a valuable natural healing technique has increased in recent years. National and international reflexology organizations now exist. For more information on research, associations, or training, refer to: http://www.rac.ca http://www.reflexology.org.au/www/national/research.htm http://www.myreflexologist.com/control.html http://www.icr-reflexology.org http://www.fdz.dk ABOUT THE AUTHOR Danielle Gault specializes in personal and professional development. She has a BA in Psychology and a post-graduate diploma in Human Resources Management. Trained in many natural healing art forms, she is a certified teacher in Hand, Ear, and Foot Reflexology with the Reflexology Association of Canada. She brings a deep understanding of energy work to her courses in Reflexology, yoga, personality awareness, stress management, teambuilding, and problem solving. For certification training or questions about Reflexology, Danielle can be reached at dbreflections@cs.com. |
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