Hands on the Back of the Chair (part 1)

This article is written for Alexander Technique teachers, teacher trainees and advanced pupils. It is the translated and rewritten version of Hender på stolrygg (del 1).

We like to say the Alexander Technique isn't exercises. Technique is something you can apply to any activity. This means, on the other hand, that anything can be used as an exercise for practicing the Alexander Technique. 

We Alexander teachers dislike the word exercise, however. We are in general sceptical of anything that can lead to mindless repetition of movements, so we prefer to call it ‘procedure’ instead. 

In the Alexander Technique tradition, some rather peculiar activities, or exercises, or procedures, have played an important role both historically and in practice. Maybe the most peculiar of all is ‘Hands on the Back of the Chair’, that strange activity of holding on to the top of the back of a chair with your fingers.

First traces

In 1908 Frederick Matthias Alexander described his method in a small booklet entitled ‘Re-Education of the Kinæsthetic Systems.’ A supplement was published two years later in which an early version of hands on the back of the chair was one of the exercises presented. Both papers can be found in Articles and Lectures (Alexander 1995).

Alexander had worked for several years with Dr. Spicer, a physician who had been one of the first to have lessons when Alexander arrived in London in 1904. By 1910, however, they had fallen out. Alexander accused Spicer for plagiarising his ideas.(1)

In Articles and Lectures, editor Jean Fischer writes in a comment to ‘Supplement to Re-Education of the Kinæsthetic Systems’:

These descriptions of two teaching procedures may well have been written (and copyrighted) in order to establish Alexander's prerogative in regard to his technique, and to counter Dr Spicer's attempts to usurp him. They appear to have been written with a certain urgency as, unlike Alexander's other writings, they do not contain the usual preliminary introductions or qualifying clauses. 

… Like the original, the supplement is concerned with giving examples of procedures for obtaining a position of mechanical advantage to “bring into use the proper muscular coordinations.” 

… The first procedure, “Chair Exercise” is the earliest description of what is more commonly known as “hands on the back of the chair,” i.e. The procedure of being in a position of mechanical advantage, whilst taking hold of the back of a chair (Alexander 1995, p.102). 

Prehistory 

Alexander did not invent the procedure completely by himself. It is based on a strengthening exercise that seems to have been popular at the time: 

He got the idea at an early stage in his teaching when he was working with a group of students in Australia. One of the group had picked up the idea that a good way to expand the chest - the thorax - was to take hold of the back rail of a chair with the hands and then pull on the rail. Alexander observed this and I'm sure tried it out for himself. However, he came to the conclusion that the way most people did it had exactly the opposite effect to the one intended. People did not widen the thorax but rather narrowed it, raised the chest and hollowed the back. But he also recognized there was a possibility of carrying out the procedure in quite a different manner and one that would, indeed, be useful (Carrington / Carey p.91).

The procedure may have been inspired by a world famous bodybuilder:

The precise origins of hands over the back of a chair remain somewhat mysterious. The most likely explanation is that while living in Australia someone showed Alexander a 'strongman' exercise that aimed to increase chest size, breathing capacity and upper body strength. That person might have been one of his students, a friend or even his brother AR, who one time developed a keen interest in the physical culture system propagated by the legendary Prussian-born bodybuilder Eugen Sandow. 

… The basis of this particular strongman exercise involved taking hold of the top rail of a conventional, straight-backed chair with both hands with what is now known as a 'power grip', in which the palm, fingers and thumb are flexed, and then trying to pull the chair apart. … Apparently Alexander observed others performing the chair-pulling exercise and tried it for himself before concluding that although the size of someone's chest could be significantly increased because of the bulking up of the chest musculature, the overall effect was often to reduce their respiratory capacity because the increase in muscle mass of the torso (and arms) caused significant rigidity and interference in the movement of the rib cage (Carey 2017, pp.118-9). 

First rendition 

Alexander observed that this strengthening exercise had a negative effect on the coordination of the respiratory system, but he also realized that a modified version could have positive potential. He made his own version and changed three factors. 

First, he secured general coordination by having the pupil lean forward while giving directions, thereby creating a ‘position of mechanical advantage’ which stimulated a dynamic elastic tone throughout the body.(2)

Second, he changed the grip from a ‘power grip’ to a ‘precision grip’, taking hold of the rail with straight, vertical fingers (Langford 2004, p.138, Carey 2014, p.152). (The benefits of this I will write about in a separate article). 

Third, he changed the exercise from one of strengthening to one of coordination by reducing the amount of force applied, replacing it with conscious directions. Instead of trying to pull the upper part of the back of the chair apart, the pupil was instructed to pull upwards “as if in an attempt to lift the chair,” and the elbows were directed out to the sides. The arm muscles were activated, but with length and thus increased sensitivity.

Alexanders writes in ‘Supplement to Re-Education of the Kinæsthetic Systems’: 

Chair Exercise (Standing) … Ask the pupil to stand at the back of the chair in such a position that he (the pupil) will be able to easily reach the top of the back of the chair with his hands. … The orders referred to being given, the teacher will cause the pupil's body to incline forward and upward in the direction of the chair and then cause the pupil to place his hands, some distance apart, upon the back of the chair. The hands are placed so that the four fingers are kept quite straight on one side of the back of the chair and the thumb on the other side of the back of the chair. Then the pupil should be told to order or desire relaxation of the muscles of the arm and to grip the back of the chair gently but firmly. Then the pupil must be asked to pull the top of the chair as if endeavouring to lift it and at the same time allowing the right elbow to point directly towards the right and the left elbow towards the left. This pulling movement is employed in supporting the body in such a way as to bring into use the proper muscular coordination and to prevent the defective use previously employed (Alexander 1995, p.103).

Alexander used this chair exercise himself:

Hands over the back of a chair is something that is gradually evolving. I know from talking to FM when he started teaching full time he found that by the evening he was unable to straighten his arms because of all the work and tension he had produced in himself. So he had to stop doing whatever it was that he was doing (Barlow 2011, p.121).

And he used it in the teaching of advanced students: 

Now he did not teach it to pupils when they first started lessons, but he did when they got somewhere with the work (ibid).(3)

Historical recurrence 

Gradually, Alexander developed Hands on the back of the chair into an increasingly subtle exercise. In 1923 he published a new description. Again, the occasion seems to be a case of plagiarism.

Alexander had a pupil named Gerald S. Lee. He was an American priest and author of self-help books. After a long stay in London where he had lessons with Alexander for 18 months, he wrote enthusiastically about Alexander's method in the book The Ghost in the White House. 

Two years later, Lee wrote a new book. This time a self-help book entitled Invisible Exercises. Some of the content was clearly inspired by Alexander, but without Alexander being mentioned. Lee wrote as if he had figured everything out by himself. (See, for example, pages 49-50).

Alexander was furious. Frank Pierce Jones writes in Freedom to Change: 

Incensed at this travesty of his technique, Alexander threatened the publishers (ironically they were the same as his) with legal action unless they withdrew Lee's book. Without waiting for this to happen, he decided that he must prove to the public there was something more to his technique than “invisible exercises.” Accordingly, he wrote out a long description of what he did with a pupil in a lesson. He chose the hand-behind-the-chair procedure (which he had been using, he said, since 1910) and went through it step by step, explaining fully what part the teacher played and what the pupil, what the “orders” meant and how they were related to the manipulation of the teacher. Where Lee had been content with half a page of description, Alexander used sixteen. Satisfied that the account was accurate and complete, he looked for a way to have it patented. Since this was not practicable, he incorporated it into his new book, where it was protected by copyright. (Jones 1996, pp. 38-39).

The book in question was Alexander's second, Constructive Conscious Control of the Individual (Alexander . The fourth chapter of the second part of the book is entitled ‘Illustration.’ Here you will find Alexander's most detailed description of ‘hands on the back of the chair’. This chapter, in addition to the one preceding it, ‘Imperfect Sensory Appreciation,’ and together with the The Use of the Self (Alexander 1985), make up the clearest explanation of Alexander's practical technique (3).

Second rendition

Alexander opens the chapter by listing and describing the basic directions or ‘preventive orders.’ This is the only time he does so in such detail. Alexander was otherwise very restrictive in giving examples of specific instructions. 

Then Alexander describes a situation where the teacher guides his pupil through the exercise. Unlike the 1910 version, the pupil is seated. Any use of muscular force is all but gone. Instead, great emphasis is placed on the pupil continuously and repeatedly giving the preventive orders. The teacher is the one responsible for making changes come into effect by the use of his hands. 

Here is a shortened version where I have largely omitted Alexander's comments so that the remaining text shows the practical execution of the exercise. Capitalisation is Alexander's own: 

When he is seated, his body being supported by the back of the chair on which he is sitting, another chair is placed before him with its back towards him. THE PUPIL IS THEN ASKED TO GIVE THE FOLLOWING PREVENTIVE ORDERS. In the way of correct direction and guidance, HE IS ASKED TO ORDER THE NECK TO RELAX, TO ORDER THE HEAD FORWARD AND UP TO LENGTHEN THE SPINE. … In the present instance, it is explained to him that the order given is to be merely preventive -- a projected wish without any attempt on the pupil's part to carry it out successfully. THE TEACHER REPEATS THE ORDERS AND WITH HIS HANDS HE PROCEEDS TO BRING THE PUPIL'S BODY GENTLY FORWARD FROM THE HIPS. 

THE PUPIL MUST NOW AGAIN ORDER THE NECK TO RELAX, THE HEAD FORWARD AND UP, WHILST THE TEACHER WITH HIS HANDS SECURES THAT POSITION OF THE TORSO IN WHICH THE BACK MAY BE SAID TO BE WIDENED. These orders should be repeated several times and be continued WHILST THE TEACHER TAKES THE PUPIL'S RIGHT ARM WITH HIS HANDS, AND MOVES IT FORWARD UNTIL THE PUPIL'S HAND IS ABOVE THE TOP RAIL OF THE BACK OF THE CHAIR. THE PUPIL SHOULD THEN BE REQUESTED TO REPEAT THE ORDERS SET DOWN AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS PARAGRAPH, AND THEN TO TAKE THE WEIGHT OF THE ARM ENTIRELY, AS THE TEACHER DISENGAGES HIS HANDS FROM THE SUPPORTED ARM. Great care must be taken to see that the pupil has not interfered with the mechanism of the torso in the effort to take the weight of the arm. 

… If the pupil has not interfered with the mechanism of the torso in the effort to take the weight of the arm, HE SHOULD NEXT BE REQUESTED TO GRASP THE TOP RAIL OF THE BACK OF THE CHAIR GENTLY AND FIRMLY, KEEPING THE FINGERS AS straight AS POSSIBLE AND QUITE FLAT AGAINST THE WOOD OF THE FRONT PORTION OF THE TOP RAIL OF THE CHAIR, THE THUMB ALSO TO BE KEPT AS STRAIGHT AS POSSIBLE, BEING CALLED UPON TO DO DUTY ON THE BACK PORTION OF THE TOP RAIL OF THE CHAIR, WITH THE WRIST CURVED SLIGHTLY INWARDS TOWARDS THE LEFT. The teacher will, of course, as far as possible, assist the pupil with these hand movements.

… THE PUPIL MUST THEN BE ASKED AGAIN TO ORDER THE NECK TO RELAX, THE HEAD FORWARD AND UP, AND THE TEACHER WILL REPEAT HIS PREVIOUS EFFORT TO ESTABLISH THAT CONDITION OF THE TORSO AND BACK ESSENTIAL TO SATISFACTORY ARM WORK, WHILST HE REPEATS WITH THE PUPIL'S LEFT ARM THE EVOLUTION JUST PERFORMED WITH THE RIGHT, SO THAT THE PUPIL WILL BE GRASPING THE BACK OF THE CHAIR WITH THE LEFT HAND IN THE SAME WAY AS HE HAS BEEN HOLDING IT WITH THE RIGHT, … 

… When the teacher is satisfied that his pupil has succeeded up to this point, he may go on to give him the additional guiding orders, and proceed to help him to put them into practical effect during the completion of the evolution. The following are the new directive orders. The pupil is asked: -- 

(1) TO CONTINUE TO HOLD THE TOP OF THE CHAIR BY KEEPING THE FINGERS QUITE STRAIGHT FROM THE FIRST JOINTS OF THE FINGERS TO THEIR TIPS, WITH THE THUMBS AND FINGERS KEPT FLAT AGAINST THE TOP RAIL OF THE CHAIR AS PREVIOUSLY INDICATED. 

(2) TO ALLOW THE WRIST OF THE LEFT ARM TO BE CURVED INWARDS TOWARDS THE RIGHT, AND THE WRIST OF THE RIGHT ARM TO BE CURVED INWARDS TOWARDS THE LEFT. 

(3) TO ALLOW THE ELBOW OF THE LEFT ARM TO BE CURVED OUTWARDS TOWARDS THE LEFT, AND THE ELBOW OF THE RIGHT ARM TO BE CURVED OUTWARDS TOWARDS THE RIGHT. 

… The teacher's aim is now to give the pupil the experiences necessary to a gentle, forearm pull from the fingers, and to this end HE WILL TAKE HOLD OF THE PUPIL'S ELBOWS AND DIRECT THEM OUTWARDS AND SLIGHTLY DOWNWARDS, and, following this, will give the sensory experiences required in DIRECTING THE UPPER PARTS OF THE ARMS (ABOVE THE ELBOW) AWAY FROM ONE ANOTHER (THE RIGHT ARM TOWARDS THE RIGHT AND THE LEFT ARM TOWARDS THE LEFT), IN SUCH A WAY THAT THE PUPIL WILL BE SUPPORTING THE TORSO WITH HIS ARMS. THE PUPIL WILL NOW BE ASKED TO CONTINUE TO SUPPORT THE TORSO IN THIS WAY, CONTINUING TO REHEARSE HIS ORDERS, whilst the teacher so adjusts the torso that the large "lifting" muscles of the back will be employed co-ordinately with the other parts of the organism in bringing about such use of the respiratory mechanisms that they will function to the maximum at the particular stage of development reached from day to day. Success in this part of the evolution will bring about a change in the condition of the back which would be described by the ordinary observer as a "widening of the back." (Alexander 2004, p.114-120).

This is generally more or less how ‘Hands on the back of a chair’ is practised to this day. Nowadays it seems to have become more usual to do it standing in a ‘monkey’ position rather than sitting down. In a teaching situation it will vary how much the teacher helps the pupil, and the use of words will vary. Today a teacher would hardly use the word “relax.” Alexander himself stopped using the word later on. There are a great many minor variations among Alexander teachers in the performance of this procedure. Some of these variations I will touch upon in another article. 

Potential properties

What's so special about this procedure that Alexander repeatedly uses it as an example when documenting his technique? Initially, Alexander was probably interested in this type of exercise because of his preoccupation with breathing. Performing the procedure may stimulate coordination in such a way that the breathing process can function more freely. 

Obviously, the procedure is also relevant for the coordinated and delicate use of the hands that is required of anyone claiming to be an Alexander Technique teacher. Alexander writes in Constructive Conscious Control that the procedure described is 

… an illustration of the means whereby we may develop a reliable sense appreciation of the minimum of so-called "physical tension"; for in this sphere of sensory appreciation, the most difficult problem to be solved, in most cases, is concerned with the matter of developing a correct register of the due and proper amount of so-called "muscular tension" necessary at a given time (Alexander 2004, p 109). 

He then continues:

It is not possible, of course, to tell the pupil in terms of relativity the degree of muscular  tension which will be his or her required minimum at any particular moment. Furthermore, even if this were possible, what chance is there that the pupil will be able to register this minimum accurately, when the very factor upon which he will rely for guidance in this connexion (viz., his sensory appreciation) is unreliable, inaccurate, and often positively delusive? … If ever a plan of development by means of exercises to be performed according to written or spoken instructions - minus manipulative help - is to be evolved, this problem will have to be satisfactorily solved. I claim, however, that in its particular application to the evolution about to be described, this problem has been solved, and in a very practical way, and the unfolding of this part of the technique should prove of great interest to the student (ibid, pp 109-110). 

According to Alexander, then, the procedure of putting hands on the back of a chair is something the readers of his books can do on their own, ‘minus manipulation,’ with potential beneficial effect.

If we take a closer look at this weird and wonderful procedure it turns out that it may be stimulating certain intrinsic, potentially dynamic, properties in our physiology. I will tell you more about this in the following articles in this series. 

Notes 

1) Spicer was a throat specialist and had even before he met Alexander been considering the connection between breathing habits and physical symptoms. Spicer borrowed ideas from Alexander, but does not seem to fully have understood Alexander's method. 

2) In Think More, Do Less Carey claims that the exercise described in ‘Supplement to Re-Education of the Kinæsthetic Systems’ is performed in ‘monkey,’ i.e. with bent knees. This is a misinterpretation. There is nothing in the description to indicate this. The exercise is performed without bending the knees. But it is possible that the pupil may be supposed to be leaning the upper body forward from the hips. 
3) The article ‘The Philosopher’s Stone’ from 1919, reprinted in the book by the same name, is written by a pupil of Alexander and contains text that may be a reference to Hands on the Back of the Chair: – to grasp a chair without implicating the muscles of the upper arm or shoulder, to manage your legs without using the abdominal muscles or contracting the neck (Fischer 1998, p.10). See also the relevant page on The Mouritz Companion to the Alexander Technique. 

4) By practical technique I do not mean teaching methodology. The educational model that underpins Alexander's examples of teaching is old fashioned and outdated. 

Related articles 

The Lost Element

Hands on the Back of the Chair (part 2)

Literature 

Alexander, Frederick Matthias. 1985. The Use of the Self. Victor Gollancz.

Alexander, Frederick Matthias. 1995 Articles and Lectures Articles. Mouritz. 

Alexander, Frederick Matthias. 1996. Man's Supreme Inheritance. Mouritz. 

Alexander, Frederick Matthias. 2004. Consctructive Conscious Control of the Individual. Mouritz.

Barlow, Marjory. 2011. The Ground Rules: Marjory Barlow in Conversation with Sean Carey. Hite Books. 

Carey, Sean. 2014. Alexander Technique in Everyday Activity: Improve how you sit, stand, walk, work and run. Hite Ltd.

Carey, Sean. 2017. Think More, Do Less: Improving Your Teaching and Learning of the Alexander Technique with Marjory Barlow. HITE Books. 

Carrington, W; Carey, S. 1992. Explaining the Alexander Technique: The Writings of F. Matthias Alexander. The Sheildrake Press. 

Fischer, Sean ed. 1998. The Philosophers Stone. Diaries of Lessons with F. Matthias Alexander. Mouritz.
Jones, Frank Pierce. 1996. Freedom to Change: The Development and Science of the Alexander Technique. Mouritz.

Langford, Elisabeth. 2004. Only Connect: Reflections on Teaching the Alexander Technique. Alexandertechniek Centrum vzw.

Hands on the Back of the Chair (part 2)

This article is written for Alexander Technique teachers, teacher trainees and advanced pupils. It is the translated and rewritten version of Hender på stolrygg (del 2).

In the Alexander Technique, any activity can be used as an 'exercise,' anything from simple everyday movements to highly skilled movements related to sports or playing a musical instrument. We can also use activities especially adapted for the purpose of learning and practising the Alexander Technique. The 'Hands on the Back of the Chair' procedure (HOBC) is such an activity, developed by Alexander himself. 

Last time I wrote about the origins and history of this exercise, or 'procedure' as we Alexander Technique teachers prefer to call it. In this and following instalments I'll have a look at the details of the procedure, and the physiological features that underlies its functioning.

In the Alexander Technique we always give priority to the central structure, the head, neck and back. This time I will for once go the other way and begin by taking into consideration the use of the fingers. When performing the HOBC procedure, we take hold of the top of the chair in a particular way. Why do we do that?

The Precision Grip

Alexander stressed the importance of following the instructions with regard to the particular use of hands and fingers when doing HOBC:

Special attention is directed in this connexion to the instructions given in the following illustration to the pupil in regard to the work to be done with his hands and arms, associated with a more or less co-ordinated body, and particularly to the position of his fingers, wrists, and elbows when placed on the chair as directed (Alexander 2004, p.110).

When performing HOBC, we take hold of the top rail of the chair with fingers and thumbs in a precision grip, more precisely defined as a type of pinch grip.(1)

It is clear from the very first description we have of this procedure, from 1910, that the fingers should be straight: 

The hands are placed so that the four fingers are kept quite straight on one side of the back of the chair and the thumb on the other side of the back of the chair. (Alexander 1995, p.103).

In the later and more detailed exposition in Constructive Conscious Control from 1923 he writes that the fingers should be as straight as possible, and also the thumb. (The italisation is Alexander's own): 

... GRASP THE TOP RAIL OF THE BACK OF THE CHAIR GENTLY AND FIRMLY, KEEPING THE FINGERS AS straight AS POSSIBLE AND QUITE FLAT AGAINST THE WOOD OF THE FRONT PORTION OF THE TOP RAIL OF THE CHAIR, THE THUMB ALSO TO BE KEPT AS STRAIGHT AS POSSIBLE, BEING CALLED UPON TO DO DUTY ON THE BACK PORTION OF THE TOP RAIL OF THE CHAIR, WITH THE WRIST CURVED SLIGHTLY INWARDS ... (Alexander 2004, p.117).(2)

If the fingers are kept straight, one is ensured, according to Alexander, that the minimum amount of tension is applied:

If the pupil will carry out the act ... whilst continuing to recognize as factors of primary importance the keeping of the fingers straight and the wrists curved inwards, the minimum tension will be exerted (ibid, p.121).

He adds that the position lends itself to observing one's hands and wrists to ensure correct performance:

... It should be remembered here that the pupil's position in this act is an ideal one for watching the hands and wrists. Therefore, if the pupil will watch carefully any tendency to the incorrect movements described above, these can be checked as soon as they show themselves (ibid).

I would anyway recommend doing HOBC in front of the mirror from time to time. There is always more to discover if you observe yourself from another angle. 

If your wrist or fingers deviates from the position, it is an indication that too much tension is applied:

Immediately the pupil interferes with the position of the fingers or wrists (in the latter case, tending to curve them outwards instead of inwards), this will indicate that the point of minimum muscular tension has been passed (ibid).(3)

Not allowing the wrists tending to go outwards is most easily achieved if the fingers are not only kept straight, but also vertical:

Straight in themselves and vertical (i.e. not slanting to left or right) (Langford 2004, p.138. See also: Dimon 2015, p.25; Soar 1999, p.27, Carey 2014, p.152).

The Earthworm Muscles 

If we are going to try to understand the rationale behind the position of hands and fingers in HOBC we have to have a closer look at the muscles involved.

The skeletal structure that makes up your palm consists of the carpal bones and the four metacarpal bones, (we disregard the thumb for now). Between the metacarpals there are three groups of small muscles. The dorsal interossei, closest to the back of your hand, spread your fingers. The two other groups, the palmar interossei and the lumbricals gather the fingers. All three groups contribute in the action of straightening the last two joints of the fingers. The main muscle responsible for extending the fingers (extensor digitorum) is not capable of performing this on its own.(4) 

Additionally, these muscles are used for flexing the fingers at the knuckle joint (metacarpophalangeal). In cooperation with the muscles moving the thumb, the interossei and lumbricals can perform the task of taking hold of the chair with straight fingers, involving mainly the small intrinsic muscles of the hands. 

The lumbricals, meaning 'earthworm' in Latin, plays an important part. What is special about these muscles is that they do not connect directly to bones. They arise from the tendons of the deep flexor muscle (flexor digitorum profundus) and ends in the ligaments of the extensor. (Dimon 2008, p.180). It could be said that by their function the lumbricals engage the deep flexor muscle to work partly as an extensor.(5)

The lumbricals are relatively weak, but very sensitive. They have a high density of muscle spindles and contribute to the precise and sensitive use of the fingers. They make it possible to take hold of the chair 'gently and firmly' as Alexander instructed (Alexander 2004 p.109).(6) 

To sum up we can describe three aspects characterising the particular use of the hands and fingers in HOBC:

1. This way of using the fingers and hand distributes the work among a high number of muscles, necessitating a lower level of tension in each, thereby leading to potentially higher sensitivity. (7)
2. The involvement of the intrinsic muscles of the hand reduces the demand on the larger muscles in the lower arm, facilitating release and 'lengthening,' particular of the flexors. (Dimon 2008, p.180)
3. The hold on the chair involves extensors as well as flexors. (Some Alexander teachers call this an 'extensor grip' (Dimon 2015, s 27).(8) Activating the extensor musculature counteracts the normal tendency of excessively engaging the flexors of the fingers, arms and shoulders when taking hold of something. Avoiding flexor overactivation is crucial to other physiological effects of the HOBC procedure.

A simple experiment illustrates the difference in the functioning of muscles between this type of precision grip and the commonly used 'power grip.' 

Hold a pencil or pen pointing vertically, using minimal amount of force, just sufficient to not drop it. Alternate between using a power grip, holding it as you would the shaft of a hammer; and using a precision grip, keeping fingers and thumb straight as when performing HOBC. 

With your other hand, lightly palpate and squeeze your lower arm, especially the area closest to the elbow. The differences in the organisation of muscular tension should be observable. 

Gently and firmly 

Alexander's instruction was to take hold of the chair ‘gently but firmly,’ (Alexander 1995, p.103). How firm is firmly? Walter Carrington is reported to have illustrated in it this way: 'If you are drying a good wine glass, you hold it firmly enough not to drop it, and gently enough not to crack it' (Langford 2004, p.138).

The contact with the back of the chair is to be a stable and neutral point of reference. You are not to put any weight on the chair, nor at the outset actually lift or pull. Alexander writes about a 'gentle forearm pull' and 'supporting the torso with [the] arms' (Alexander 2004 p.120). This primarily describe sensations which are the result of the process of directing and the organisation of passive muscular pulls, not necessarily something performed directly. I will return to this in later instalments. 

Exercises

To take full advantage of the HOBC procedure you ought to be able to perform the grip on the rail of the chair with straight fingers. Not everybody can do this. Below are some exercises that highlights this way of using fingers and hands. In the exercise instructions, pausing and planning, Inhibition and direction, is taken for granted.(9)

A) Forearm on table. (Dimon 2015, p.27, Grennell, p.52)

Sit at a table, (alternatively you can stand by a shelf of suitable height). Place your forearm on the table and let your hand find its natural position. Normally there will be a space between the table surface and the knuckle joint of the index finger. 

Lift the index finger so that it forms a straight line with the metacarpal bone. Do this with each finger in turn as you gather them one by one (except the thumb), keeping them all lifted. Your hand and fingers makes one single surface. 

Leaving your wrist and thumb on the table, extend your hand so that the fingers point more in an upwards direction. Go only as far as you can comfortably go. 

Next, let your hand itself (metacarpals) stay in the position while you flex the fingers at the knuckles. One or more fingertips will probably end up touching the table. 

Letting the fingertip(s) stay in contact with the table as you move your wrist and and arm upwards so that the fingers are pointing vertically into the table.

In this position, let the thumb lengthen and move to touch the fingers, which and where depends on the flexibility of your hand, fingers and thumb. 

Having formed this grip, you can lift your hand from the table and move it around, maybe use this grip to take hold of an object if you wish.

B) Knuckles on Wall (Dimon 2015, p.28).

Stand (or sit) in front of a wall. Place the knuckles of you hand(s) against the wall so that the fingers are pointing down, and the bones of the hand, the metacarpals are pointing straight into the wall. In other words – you are using the contact with the wall to help flex the fingers at the knuckle joint. 

Next, gather and straighten the fingers, (they will normally be more or less gathered and straight already). And then let the thumb move to touch a finger of your choice. 

If you are performing this with one hand, you can use the other hand to put an object, like a pen or small book, against your fingers before placing the thumb on the object. Then take your hand away from the wall, holding the object in a ‘precision grip.’ If performing this exercise with both hands, you may want to place the hands sufficiently close together so that the wrists are pointing slightly inwards and the elbows out.

C) Thumbs first.

Sit, or stand in a ‘monkey’ position behind an ordinary straight backed dining room chair, close enough to easily take hold of the sides of the chair. 

Start by gathering the fingers, except the thumb, and point them towards floor. Avoid engaging the thumb. 

Lift your hands and place the thumbs against the side of the back of the chair, in such a way that the other fingers are pointing forward by the side of the chair. 

Move you hands forward, slightly stretching the thumbs, until you are able to place the fingers on the front of the side of the chair by bending at the knuckles. (If you find this difficult, you can easily modify the setting by letting you elbows move out to the sides and/or lean forwards so that less flexion is required in the hand and fingers). 

To finish, move the hands to the top of the chair. 

As a rule of thumb, (literally), it can be advantageous to place the fingers against the rail of the chair first, then the thumb, when performing variations of HOBC. This exercise is an exception. 

D) With the help of a book.

Variation 1

Hold a book with one hand, the front of the book towards you. Begin by letting the other arm hang by your side. Point and gather the fingers, leaving the thumb alone. Lift your hand and place the flat, straight fingers against the back of the book. The elbow will be pointing out to the side. 

Next, let the thumb touch the front of the book. Then, let it slide towards the centre of the front of the book, taking the rest of the hand with it. The knuckles will have to bend, the wrist will have to bend, and the elbow will come closer to the body. You will end up holding the book between the thumb and the straight fingers. Let go of the book with the other hand. 

While keeping the position of hand and fingers holding the book, turn you hand so that the fingers are pointing down. Allow the weight of the book help directing length in the fingers and thumb, and to stimulate lengthening up the rest of the arm.

Variation 2

Before performing this variation, take a look at the palm of your hand. Ask yourself whether you know exactly where the knuckle joints are, looking at your hand from this side. As an experiment, place the index finger of your other hand on the innermost or bottom crease of the middle finger. Try to bend this middle finger at the knuckle joint. You will discover that the joint itself is not where the crease is, but a little bit towards the palm. Unlike the other finger joints, the location of this joint does not correspond to the location of the crease. (Johnson 2009, p.110. Langford 2004, p.138. Langford 2008 p.140).

Begin as in the first variation with the book in one hand, the front of the book facing you, the other arm hanging by your side. Straighten and gather the fingers, pointing towards the floor, leaving the thumb alone. 

Lift your hand and place it against the spine of the book so that the spine of the book lies across your palm, and sufficiently close to the base of the fingers that it just allows you to freely move your fingers at the knuckle joints. 

Next, bend you fingers at the knuckle joints so that the straight, flat fingers are resting against the back of the book. 

Then, let the thumb come into contact with the front of the book. Let it glide along the front surface until it opposes the index-, middle-, or maybe even ring finger. 

As in the first variation, let go of the book with your other hand. Turn the hand holding the book so that the fingers are pointing down, allowing the weight of the book to lengthen you fingers and thumb, and subsequently your lower and upper arm.

In this last exercise the contact between the palm and the spine of the book is used to create awareness of where the movement takes place when you bend at the knuckle joint. When we are performing HOBC, the palms of the hands are not to touch the rail of the chair, only the fingers and thumbs.

Some further remarks on the position of fingers and thumbs

Some of the above exercises requires you to bend fully at the knuckles. This is not necessary when performing HOBC.

Alexander Technique teachers perform ‘Hands on the Back of a Chair’ with lots of variations when it comes to the detailed position of hands, fingers and thumbs. Some gather the fingers, flex fully at the knuckles, rotate the thumb and place it more or less opposite the tips of the fingers, with the back of the hand more or less horizontal. Others flex only a little at the knuckles, leave the fingers spread out, and do not rotate the thumb but place its side against the back of the chair, keeping the wrists higher than the fingers.

These differences are largely associated with the different teaching styles stemming from prominent first generation teachers.(10) One can wonder how and why these differences developed. Maybe it had to do with whether HOBC was performed mainly sitting or standing in ‘monkey’; or maybe it had to do with the furniture available? (A tall teacher standing using a low chair would probably tend to have the wrists fairly high in relation to the hands). 

Or maybe it had direct relevance to the positioning of the hands in teaching?(11) Or could it be that different teachers were emphasising or seeking different physiological effects when performing the procedure?(12)

One thing is certain: there is more than one way to perform ‘Hands on the Back of a Chair’. This means that the procedure can be a rich source for experimentation and exploration. 

The only requirement during exploration is that there is no strain anywhere caused by the chosen position. Also, based on the description above, I would suggest that to utilise fully the inherent properties of our physiological make-up the fingers should be straight and vertical, and that at least some flexion in the knuckle joint would be useful.(13)

Gripping without gripping

I have heard comments, even from Alexander teachers, that the grip we use in HOBC is not ‘relaxed’. This is true. We engage much of the musculature in the hand, especially the sensitive lumbricals. Some versions of the grip demands a high degree of flexibility in the fingers, thumbs and hands. When practised it will help develop suppleness that is useful in many instances, not the least when putting hands on someone's neck.(14)

We are securely anchoring the hands in a sensitive ‘extensor’ precision grip which facilitates other effects of the procedure. One way of putting it is to say that we grip the chair in a way that makes it possible to ungrip the shoulders. Gripping the chair with straight vertical fingers also facilitates the dynamics of the lower arm, with opposition between hand and elbow. This will be the subject of the next article in this series. 

Related blog posts

Hands on the Back of the Chair (part 1)

Hender på stolrygg (del 2)

Notes

1) The pinch grip is a form of precision grip where by an object is pinched between the palmar surface of the fingers and the opposing thumb. (precision-pinch-grip)

In Mind and Muscle Elisabeth Langford uses the term 'pincer grip', giving an example of a person reading a newspaper holding it between straight fingers and thumb (Langford 1999, p.188)

Several Alexander teachers describes this as 'cortical opposition' (Grennell 2002, p.6, Carrington D. 2017, p.275). I have not been able to find an exact definition of the term. 

2) Alexander Technique books where you can find descriptions of the positioning of the fingers and hands on the back of the chair (the list is not exhaustive): 

Alexander Technique in Everyday Activity (Carey 2014, p.152/156), Alexander Technique Workbooks (Nicholls 2014, p.36), Articles and Lectures (Alexander 1995, p.103) , An Evolution of the Alexander Technique (Carrington, Dilys 2017, p.275), Body Breath and Being (Nicholls 2008, p.149), Constructive Conscious Control (Alexander 2004, p.117), Defining the Alexander Technique (Soar 1999, p.27), Directed Activities (Grennell 2002, pp.6, 65, 75, 77, 94, 129), Mind and Muscle and Music (Langford 2008, p.138-139), Notes on the work of Dilys Carrington (Nicholls 2013, p.92) , Only Connect (Langford 2004, p.138), Secrets of the Alexander Technique (McDonald/Ness 2001, p.122), The Ground Rules (Barlow 2011, p.122) , The Use of the Hands in Teaching (Dimon 2015, p.22-23), Think More Do Less (Carey 2017, p.120-122), Thinking Aloud (Carrington 1994, p.142), You Guide to the Alexander Technique (Gray 1994, p.128-127).

3) In her Alexander Technique Woorkbooks 1 Carolyn Nicholls says: 'If you let your fingers curve, you have allowed the flexor muscles to come into play too much' (Nicholls 2014, p.36). Wrong position of hands and fingers could of course just as well be caused by general collapse, or too little muscle tension where tension is needed. 

4) Several species has some degree of opposable grip but: 'The pad-to-pad pinch between the thumb and index finger is made possible because of the human ability to passively hyperextend the distal phalanx of the index finger.' https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thumb 

5) In a note to his article 'The Emancipation of the Upper Limbs: "Hands of the Back of a Chair' Revisited" Malcolm Williamson cites David Gorman's The Body Movable: Vol. II, The Upper Limb: 'In effect because of their diagonal course, contraction of [the] lumbricals displaces functionally the insertion of flexor digitorum profundus from the front to the back of the distal phalanx and transforms it into an extensor muscle (Gorman 1981 p.121)' (Williamson 2019, p.59).

6) ‘With the smallest physiological cross-sectional area in the upper extremity, the lumbrical muscles have weak motor function, which is only 1/10 of the interosseous muscle. Because it is spindle-rich, the lumbrical muscles play an important role in the sensory feedback of the distal interphalangeal, proximal interphalangeal and metacarpalphalangeal joints of the fingers’. A Biomechanical and Evolutionary Perspective on the Function of the Lumbrical Muscle 

7) As a general rule the higher the tension, the lower the sensitivity. This is related to the Weber-Fechners Law.  

8) One of the exercises in The Use of the Hands in Teaching is titled «Extending Hand at Wrist to Form an Extensor Grip» (Dimon 2015, p.27). This exercise is more or less identical with exercise A) in this article.

The sources and inspiration for these exercises are to be found in The Use of the Hands in Teaching (Dimon 2015), Directed Activity (Grennell 2002), Body Breath and Being (Nicholls 2008) and Alexander Technique Workbooks 1 (Nicholls 2011).

10) The ‘Carrington style’ is to bend more or less fully at the knuckles. An example: ‘Drop and rotate your thumbs to bring them opposite your finger tips, allow the palm to drop and the wrists to curve inwards’ (Nicholls 2014, p. 39)

The version with high wrists is typical 'Macdonald style’: ‘Can I ask you about “Hands on the back of a chair” again? I was trained to raise my wrists. “Wrists up and in”. You don't do that. Pat did that. I don't know where that came from – I suppose it's to get a lengthening of the fingers, isn't it? Did Pat develop that later on, or was that something that he was doing while with F:M.? No, he wasn't doing it in the training course. F.M. didn't. It was always like that (flat wrists) and then flat fingers‘ (Barlow 2002, p.254). 

11) Ted McNamara showed me during a workshop in Oslo in September 2014 how the ‘Macdonald style’ hand position was directly transferable from the back of the chair to a pupil's neck and chin. Place the hands ‘Macdonald style’ on the back of the chair, lift the hands and rotate so that the fingers are pointing towards each other, and you will more or less have the hand positions seen at about 30 seconds out in this youtube video of Macdonald teaching in 1966: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDuKWWo8EnU. You can see that even when putting hands on the pupil's neck Macdonald keeps the fingers relatively straight, as in the HOBC procedure. 

12) According to Marjory Barlow, thumb placement could influence shoulders and back: ‘Marjory told me that the pad of the thumb can be placed opposite any of the other fingers but that through experimentation she had found it useful to place it in opposition to the second finger as that action facilitated release in the armpit and a widening of the back’ (Carey 2017, p.124).

13) Pedro de Alcantara points out in the first edition of his book Indirect Procedures that: ‘The positions of the arms and hands are much less important than their directions’ (Alcantara 1997, p.124). He is correct, of course. Any contact with the chair can be taken advantage of by directing. But why not take advantage of the inherent properties of our hands as well?

14) My own experience from practicing HOBC extensively when researching this article is that performing the procedure is, maybe counterintuitively, a very efficient means for limbering up the hands.

Literature

Alcantara, Pedro de. 1997. Indirect Procedures. A Musician's Guide to the Alexander Technique. Oxford University Press. Alexander, Frederick Matthias. 1995. Articles and Lectures. Mouritz.
Alexander, Frederick Matthias. 2004. Consctructive Conscious Control of the Individual. Mouritz.
Barlow, Marjory; Davis, Trevor Allan (ed). 2002. An examined Life: Marjory Barlow and the Alexander Technique. Mournum Time Press.Barlow, Marjory. 2011. The Ground Rules: Marjory Barlow in Conversation with Sean Carey. Hite Books.
Carey, Sean. 2017. Think More, Do Less: Improving Your Teaching and Learning of the Alexander Technique with Marjory Barlow. HITE Books.
Carrington, Walter. 1994. Thinking Aloud: Talks on Teaching the Alexander Technique. Mournum Time Press.
Carrington, Walter and Dilys. 2017. An Evolution of the Alexander Technique: Selected Writings. The Sheildrake Press. 
Dimon, Theodore Jr. 2008. Anatomy of the Moving Body: A Basic Course in Bones, Muscles, and Joints. North Atlantic Books (2.ed).
Dimon, Ted 2011. The Body in Motion Its Evolution and Design. North Atlantic Books
Dimon, Theodore. 2015. The Use of the Hands in Teaching. Dimon Institute (egenpublisert).
Gray, John. 1994. Your Guide to the Alexander Technique. Victor Gollancz Ltd.
Grennell, Gerard. 2002. Directed Activities: A Diary of Practical Procedures for Students and

Teachers of the F.M.Alexander Technique as Taught at the Constructive Teaching Centre (1989-1992). Mouritz.
Johnson, Jennifer. 2009. What Every Violinist Needs to Know About the Body. GIA Publications Inc.
Langford, Elisabeth. 1999. Mind and Muscle. An Owner's Handbook. Garant Uitgevers.
Langford, Elisabeth. 2004. Only Connect: Reflections on Teaching the Alexander Technique. Alexandertechniek Centrum vzw.
Langford, Elisabeth. 2008. Mind and Muscle and Music: A companion to Mind and Muscle: an owner's handbook. AT Centrum vzw, Leuven.
Nicholls, Carolyn. 2008. Body, Breath and Being. A new guide to the Alexander Technique. D&B Publishing.

Nicholls, Carolyn. 2014. Alexander Technique Workbooks 1: Hands on the back of the chair. Blurb (egenpublisert). 
Soar, Tim. 1999. Defining the Alexander Technique. Publisert privat.

Williamson, Malcolm. 2019. ‘The Emancipation of the Upper Limbs: “Hands of the Back of a
Chair” Revisited’ in The Alexander Journal 27, 2019.

The lost element

According to various sources, F.M Alexander used to say that the procedure of doing "hands on the back of a chair" gave you all the experience you needed for using your hands in teaching. (See for instance Carrington &Carey 1992 p. 93; Carrington & Carey 2001 p.21; Carrington & Carrington 2017 p. 180; Dimon 2015 p. 4).

There is of course more to hands-on teaching than this. We do for instance put our hands on a living being, not furniture. But the procedure does give you the basic skills and understanding of how to organise yourself to achieve the necessary quality and sensitivity of touch. 

Put another way I would say that if you don't understand the dynamics of "hands on the back of a chair" (HOBC) you have not understood the basics of using the hands in teaching. Understanding the procedure is of vital importance. 

Whether we actually use it as a practice procedure procedure is another matter, as is the question whether it should have a place in the lessons of the average pupil. We teachers have to understand it. Here I am going to write about something I have noticed when doing HOBC assisted by a teacher.

Assisted

I have done the procedure assisted by a teacher many times over the years, as a pupil, as a student, and as a teacher myself. Very often, even maybe more or less always, one thing has not been clear: what to do with the weight of my arms. 

This is not a problem when performing the procedure on my own. Then I have the control and responsibility of the weight myself. The problem arises when the teacher takes the weight of the arm, which by the way is not necessary but probably the most common way of doing it. It is the most common way probably because it is part of Alexander's description in Constructive Conscious control.

The curious thing is that Alexander is very clear in his description about what to do with the weight of the arm, yet hardly any teacher I have ever worked with seem to have taken notice of this important point. 

In CCC Alexander writes: 

The pupil must now again order the neck to relax, the head forward and up, whilst the teacher with his hands secures that position of the torso in which the back may be said to be widened. These orders should be repeated several times and be continued whilst THE TEACHER TAKES THE PUPIL'S RIGHT ARM WITH HIS HANDS, AND MOVES IT FORWARD UNTIL THE PUPIL'S HAND IS ABOVE THE TOP RAIL OF THE BACK OF THE CHAIR. THE PUPIL SHOULD THEN BE REQUESTED to repeat the orders set down at the beginning of this paragraph, and then TO TAKE THE WEIGHT OF THE ARM ENTIRELY, as the teacher disengages his hands from the supported arm. 

GREAT CARE MUST BE TAKEN TO SEE THAT THE PUPIL HAS NOT INTERFERED WITH THE MECHANISM OF THE TORSO IN THE EFFORT TO TAKE THE WEIGHT OF THE ARM. This interference can take place in various ways, but it always implies that the pupil has forgotten his orders and has harked back to one or other of his subconscious habits. What is essential here is a coordinated use of the arms, and the only way by which he can secure this is, first, by giving the necessary preventive orders, and then by rehearsing the series of new orders given by the teacher, in which the movement of the arms is linked up with the use of the other parts of the body  

IF THE PUPIL HAS NOT INTERFERED WITH THE MECHANISM OF THE TORSO IN THE EFFORT TO TAKE THE WEIGHT OF THE ARM, he should next be requested to grasp the top rail of the back of the chair gently and firmly ... (Alexander 2004, p 117. For clarification I have changed the capitalisation from the original).

You can see that Alexander emphasises the importance of the process of reintegrating the weight of the arm into the pupil's body. 

What normally happens when working with a teacher is that the teacher takes the arm as Alexander describes, but proceeds to place the fingers against the rail of the chair while I as 'pupil' am supposed to somehow at some point in time regain control of the weight. 

It can be argued that an experienced teacher is able to communicate through his/her hands in such a way as to elicit the correct response by the pupil. Even so, I am most often, even when the procedure could be categorised as successful, left feeling uncertain. Uncertainty causes unclear thinking and unclear thinking causes breakdown in the process of directing. The success of the procedure is then dependent on some degree of luck. It should not be.

If any amount of the weight of the pupil's arm is taken by the teacher, then this weight must at some point be transferred back to be supported by the pupil's own body. The grip on the back of the chair should as a rule be a neutral one. (Variations like pulling or lifting or adding weight should be treated as subsequent steps). 

If the transfer of weight is done automatically and subconsciously , it will also be done habitually and most probably will include tensing in the armpits and pulling in of the arms and shoulders. 

Resting the arms 

The confusion about how to support the weight of the arms is potentially aggravated by the way HOBC is performed in the Carrington tradition where the hands are first put palms up on the rail of the chair. 

Resting the hands in this way has some obvious advantages. It facilitates the release in the armpits, the 'upper part of the arms', the area where the latissimus and pectorals insert into the humerus. Tensing up in this area is possibly the most important tendency to inhibit during hands-on work or when performing HOBC. But resting the hands on the rail of the chair also accentuates the need for reintegrating the weight of the arms in a constructive manner. 

The "support" described further on in CCC achieved by the widening of the back is extremely subtle and not the same as you get from this way of resting the hands on the back of the chair. 

In the newly rerelased DVDs of the Carringtons, (Walter and Dilys Carrington Demonstrate The Alexander Technique), you can see Walter Carrington demonstrate HOBC with a student. The student is resting the arms on the back of the chair palms up, (from 01:57:00). Then Carrington takes one arm at the time and places the hands in position for "hands on the back of the chair". The student, being experienced, seems to cooperate very well and is, (as far as I can see) having no problem dealing with the reorganisation of weight. For an ordinary pupil or less experienced student the story could have been another one. 

Weight confusion 

It is interesting that this redistribution of weight goes on unnoticed during a procedure which should be the ultimate in conscious use of oneself. The reason could be that with a skilled teacher and not too inexperienced pupil it tends to go reasonably well thanks to hands on skills. And if it doesn't go well the tendency (and tradition) is to blame the level of inhibitory/directing skills (unfortunately normally on the part of the pupil) rather than the lack of a clear conception of the required means-whereby. 

I have met the same confusion when working on activities like walking or going up on the toes, being instructed by teachers who claim it is possible to lift one foot without adding a corresponding amount of weight on the other, or going up on the toes without any forward displacement of the centre of gravity. Denial of physical facts causes confusion and leads to bad teaching. 

Weight dilemma 

The taking of weight in any hands-on procedure is associated with a dilemma. The more weight the teacher takes, the more the pupil can let go and the easier it can be for the teacher to facilitate physical change; at the same time, the more the responsibility is taken away from the pupil, the more the situation differ from the pupil's real life and its usefulness as a situation for practical learning can be questioned. 

If the pupil never gets to perform the movement/procedure with full responsibility of his/her own weight, it can not be said that the pupil has learned to perform the procedure. How can we know whether the pupil is able to perform it satisfactorily on his/her own? 

Anything that the pupil learns, they should be capable of performing independently. This means that the teacher must refrain from taking weight at least some of the time. (The same goes for initiating movements). 

When the teacher decides it is a good idea to take the pupil's weight, as for instance when guiding in HOBC the traditional way, the teacher must be clear about how this weight is managed, and if necessary make this explicitly clear to the pupil. But most important of all this must be clear to the teacher him-/herself, which in most cases in my experience it isn't.

Related blog articles:

An adventageous position 

Exercise or experiement

Literature:

Alexander, FM. 2004 (1923). Consctructive Conscious Control of the Individal. Mouritz
Carrington, W;Carey, S. 1992. Explaing the Alexander Technique. The Sheildrake Press.

Carrington, W;Carey, S. Personally Speaking. 2001 (1986). Mouritz. 

Carrington, Walter & Dilys . 2017. An Evolution of the Alexander Technique: Selected Writings. The Sheildrake Press

Dimon, Theodore. 2015. The Use of the Hands in Teaching. Dimon Institute (Self-published).
Walter & Dilys Carrington Demonstrate the Alexander Technique. (1985/1986). 2016. [DVD]. Constructive Teaching Centre Ltd, UK.