The Exercises

I have trouble with this. But it has improved over time with this work. Just flex when you need to, but keep working the toes and arches through their full range of motion. I too have been nipping bunions in the bud by working the feet and also keeping the toes separated and never squished into bad shoes. I actually have toe separators that I wear. Got this idea from Christine.

Isn't it amazing what this does for your back and hips and feet? Head-to-toe, and the mind and spirit too! - Surviving

Hi steadele,
Congratulations on your back pain being resolved, and your toe is nearly pain free - great news!

I get cramping at times - a bit more often recently, and have upped my water intake dramatically, and eat magnesium rich foods like sweet potato which helps with the bathroom also, and keeping more active.

Surviving -thanks for your tip from Christine about toe separators - I would like to separate my little toes as they curl inward a bit - on the whole I have good feet - love the foot exercises, & my balance is so much better. The bunion which was forming on my right foot is not complaining anymore and not as obvious now, so maybe separate the big toes also...
I hope steadele, that you feel encouraged to persevere and take all the time you need to learn and become used to the exercises, as the benefits I enjoy today I would not have dreamed of before.
Even though I am still a work in progress I am loving the exercises and WWP so much ( never thought I would say I love exercise)!

Best wishes,
Aussie Soul Sister

You're not alone in being alone. That's pretty much how all of us grasped this posture work. Christine gives us a ton of information, and there is always this forum where you can ask questions. There are also practitioners if you are lucky enough to have one in your part of the world. But yes, we have to do this work for ourselves, which is why we have to immerse ourselves in the concepts.

The exercises are to reinforce what the body needs to learn and remember in order to stay in Whole Woman posture. Staying in Whole Woman posture is what moves the organs forward. You learn to do it, and then you do it for the rest of your life; ideally, whenever you are standing, sitting, walking, running, driving, lifting, carrying.

No one can tell you exactly what to expect or what your results will be. The organs are on the move all the time. I have symptoms every day. But I've learned what they mean and I've learned to manage them. Try to visualize yourself as a centaur - horizontal from the hips down, and vertical from the waist up. Constant attention to posture will eventually make it more or less automatic much of the time, but you will always have to be vigilant and your symptoms will guide you. - Surviving

Most of us do not have a practitioner near us either. Christine has been slowly growing her network over the course of the last 3 years. But these folks are available for consultations by phone or Skype even if you cannot travel to one. If you feel at a standstill with something, it's worth considering.

This will demand your attention and that is not going to end any time soon. I was into my second year of the work when I finally reached a point of being able to stay in posture without constantly having to remind myself. Even after 4+ years, I have to watch myself when I bend and lift, I get careless about supporting lumbar curvature when I drive, I occasionally get in a rush and have to strain on the toilet.....these things are life! You will always be doing this work and you will always slip and have to get back on the horse.

You do understand that you are learning to stay in correct WW posture all the time, right? Not only while you exercise, but the rest of the time too. You can do these exercises all day long, but they won't be helping your prolapse unless you are doing them in posture, and then staying in posture the rest of the day. Sometimes new members do not initially grasp the fact that this is not merely an exercise program. In fact, I sometimes go for long periods without doing any routines. I have no good place or good time to work out. I take care of my elderly mom and work full-time. I try to take posture walks most evenings, but I can't always do even that. BUT I STAY IN POSTURE. Furthermore, the moves I have learned from these DVDs come in handy all day long. I work them into my day. There is a difference between awareness of prolapse, and worry over prolapse. You can lose the second one, but not the first. - Surviving

Hi Steadele,
The posture is the end result that we are looking at. The exercises helps to lengthen and strengthen our bodies working muscle groups that help us to hold the posture better, but they do so much more than that. For me and many others that do them, they help us get a good stretching of the whole body, as well. After doing a DVD in strong whole woman posture I can feel my inside pulling into their proper position as well as outside muscles. Even my slouchy vagina feels like it is being pulled in the right direction as my pelvic organs move into/toward my lower belly.
This is only a temporary feeling though if I don't try to keep the posture going after doing the exercises. Personally, I wouldn't have been able to do any of this without them, they have helped me so much!

Dear steadele,
As Surviving says learning the posture first is paramount for every day living and with time restraints that many of us have, at least that is the foundation we can live in. You should start to notice that your thighs will become stronger, which makes walking, rising from sitting and using the toilet easier - that is what I noticed first.
Like Ageing gracefully, I have the time to do the DVDs, however I did not start learning them seriously until about 18mths into this work. I believe I was subconsciously waiting so that I could start with the Hips DVD ( released last year ) as a foundation to other DVDs and living in WWP. (I was also not active enough).
JUST with the posture my hip immediately stopped its dislocating feeling, with accompanying debilitating crunching pain.
So the exercises are a valuable adjunct to the posture.
I have learned and studied as much as I can from Christine's research and various resources - this forum, her blog articles, online course, books and all her DVDs have comprehensive background information, exercises with instructions and relevant benefits, all narrated by Christine, much of it with her in person.

I often use the arm & neck/head exercises, for example while sitting at the computer, in the car and while walking. I feel safer while driving as my neck is noticeably stronger, and I am able to turn it repeatedly left and right much more easily, and my head is supported much more strongly. Just one of the many benefits of WW.

I do this alone also, however I think of all the people across the world practicing the posture and exercises, and the wonderful support of the people here, and the absolute gift Christine has shared with people she has never met.
Take this slowly and consistently, it is a journey.
Best wishes,
Aussie Soul Sister

The posture and exercises definitely CAN stabilize and even reverse your symptoms, that's what all this is about. But your posts gave me the feeling that you were expecting to get your organs back into position by doing some exercises for awhile, after which time you could just forget about the whole thing (this is an exaggerated version of what you said, but hopefully you will get the idea). I have all of Christine's dvds and even when I can't set aside blocks of time for workouts, I use her moves all day long and I stay in posture all the time. But even 4+ years into this work, it never ever goes on the back burner. So......take your time as Soul Sis says. There is no shortcut, you'll be doing this forever, so don't burn yourself out now thinking that you can get it all over with if you work hard enough. Rather, it is the joyous work of a lifetime. - Surviving

PS: Be sure to learn and master firebreathing, and do it throughout the day. I do it in my morning shower, in the evening, and before/after using the toilet. Next to the posture itself, it is the best tool in the toolbox, in my opinion. Also, the simple act of jiggling your organs into your belly at opportune moments is another great trick. I like to jiggle and then firebreathe and then stand back up slowly with my lower half as horizontal as I can keep it.