Learn How Your Eyes Organize the Movements of Your Body 

By Al Wadleigh, GCFP

Article Summary

Eye movements participate in how the body prepares to turn, orient, and act. This article examines two ideas used in Feldenkrais lessons: the direction of the gaze can influence whole-body organization, and differentiating eye movement from the head, neck, and shoulders may make turning feel easier. It includes a brief seated exploration and introduces five audio lessons devoted to the relationship between vision and movement.

How Eye Movement Prepares the Body for Action

There are two key concepts in understanding how your eyes organize your body for action. First, the direction your eyes move presupposes action in that direction. Second, you can increase the range and ease of motion by differentiating the movements of your eyes from the movements of your head, neck, shoulders, and other parts.

When your eyes move to the left or right, your brain and nervous system begin preparing your musculature to move your skeleton in the direction your eyes are moving.

Have you ever been out for a walk and heard a sound to one side? Your eyes move in the direction of the sound, your head turns, and your shoulders turn. Your system organizes you to turn toward that side, determine what made the sound, and evaluate it.

I was recently preparing a meal in my kitchen when I noticed movement outside the front window in my peripheral vision. My eyes quickly turned to the right, and the rest of me followed to see a child rolling by on her scooter.

My eyes led and organized my movement for swift action.

That morning, I headed upstairs to do my Awareness Through Movement® lesson. When I reached the top landing, I stepped on something cold and wet. Even though it was dark, my eyes immediately dropped to see what it was. As my gaze dropped, my head lowered and my back rounded so I could see what I had encountered.

In both examples, sensation, sound, or something visual triggered an automatic eye movement. My eyes moved toward the source of the sensation and helped prepare the rest of me for action. We can also use this relationship intentionally to explore and improve movement and sensing through Feldenkrais lessons.

Differentiating the Eyes from the Head and Neck

Movements of the eyes, head, and neck are closely coordinated. Although we can move each independently, habit often binds them together into a single pattern.

Our habits of daily life can constrain the movements of our eyes along with the movements of our head, neck, shoulders, and other parts. These constraints are simply the result of how we use ourselves every day.

Most of our work is done directly in front of us. We may be chopping carrots, reading a book, scrolling Instagram, digging in the garden, or—as I am right now—typing an article on a computer with the eyes and head barely moving.

Our eyes, head, neck, shoulders, and other parts lose their separateness; they move more as a block.

This loss of differentiation can contribute to stiffness, pain, and fatigue. By learning to move the eyes separately from the head, neck, shoulders, and back, we create new options. Turning may become smoother, the range of motion may increase, and the action of the whole person may feel more harmonious.

Try a Seated Eye-and-Head Exploration

Sit toward the edge of your chair with your feet on the floor and your hands resting on your thighs. Keep every movement comfortable. This is an exploration of coordination, not a test of how far you can turn.

1. Turn your head and eyes to the left without straining. Notice how far you turn and how far you can see. Return to the front and make the same movement to the right.
2. Pick a spot on the wall in front of you. Keep your eyes on that spot as you turn your head to the left and return to the front. Your eyes will move toward the right corners of their sockets as your head turns left. Repeat this movement about ten times, then rest.
3. Turn your head comfortably to the left. From this position, move your eyes farther to the left and then bring them back in line with your nose. Repeat this movement about ten times, then rest.
4. Turn your head comfortably to the left and rest your eyes on a spot in the direction your face is oriented. Keep your eyes on that spot as you turn your head to the right and then return your head until it is in line with your eyes. Repeat this movement about ten times, then rest.
5. Once again, turn your head and eyes to the left without straining. Notice how far you turn and how far you can see. Do you turn farther? You may notice that your shoulders have freed themselves without any prompting and turn more easily with your head and eyes.
6. Turn to the right and notice whether the movement feels different from the movement to the left.

This simple exploration demonstrates the effect of differentiating the eyes from the head. It is one of the strategies we can use in Feldenkrais lessons to facilitate learning and change.

How Moshe Feldenkrais Explored the Eyes and Movement

In his book Awareness Through Movement, Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais presents a lesson entitled “Movement of the Eyes Organizes the Movement of the Body.” The lesson uses both ideas discussed above: the direction of the eyes presupposes action in that direction, and the eyes can be differentiated from our habitual use of the rest of ourselves.

Dr. Feldenkrais presented many variations of this lesson in the Alexander Yanai series, the Esalen series, the Amherst Training, and other settings. I believe this speaks to how much he valued these ideas. He also used them in lessons that explored the depth of the eyes’ influence on the organization of the whole person.

In “Alexander Yanai Lesson 57: Lifting the Head on All Fours,” Feldenkrais explores how the use of each eye may be reflected differently in the organization of the back. A person may rely more strongly on one eye, use one eye for distance and the other for close work, or have difficulty using both eyes together. The lesson invites the student to sense whether these differences are accompanied by differences in the muscular organization of the back. Through the exploration, a more balanced use of the eyes and back may become possible.

Five Lessons in How Your Eyes Organize Your Movement

Inspired by these concepts, I created a constellation of five lessons called How Your Eyes Organize Your Movement. Some are inspired by lessons from the Alexander Yanai series, and others are my own creations. In each lesson, I explicitly accent the role of the eyes in organizing movement.

1. Eyes Organize Your Turning

This lesson explores two key ideas. You will learn how the direction in which your eyes move presupposes action in that direction. You will also discover how differentiating the eyes from the head, neck, shoulders, and back can improve the range and smoothness of turning.

2. Becoming Aware of Both Eyes When Turning

When you move your eyes to follow an object while turning, one eye may be suppressed while the other follows. In this lesson, you will become aware of when you favor one eye and explore how to maintain awareness and convergence of both eyes while following an object.

3. Passive Eyes in Movement

When you sweep your eyes across your environment, they tend to catch on objects. The eyes stop momentarily, and this stopping may also be reflected in the neck muscles. In this lesson, the eyes remain passive during the movement of the head. This can reduce unnecessary eye and neck tension and allow the eyes to move more smoothly across the environment.

4. Eyes Free Your Hip Joints

By watching the movement of an imaginary object, you will explore the connection between your eyes and hips. Working with the eyes in this way may allow the hip joints to participate with a greater range and ease of motion.

5. Eyes Organize Your Back

By following an imaginary object with one eye at a time, you will explore how the use of each eye may be reflected differently in the muscles of the back. You will become more aware of these differences and investigate a more balanced relationship between the eyes and the muscular organization of the back.

Explore the Complete Audio Series

These five lessons develop the ideas introduced in this article through guided movement explorations. The series includes an introductory talk and five complete Feldenkrais lessons that can be streamed online or downloaded as MP3 audio.

Explore How Your Eyes Organize Your Movement

The work is not a conventional program of eye exercises or a form of vision therapy. It uses the movements of the eyes as part of an inquiry into how the nervous system organizes turning, balance, coordination, and the movement of the whole person.

Al Wadleigh is a Guild Certified Feldenkrais Practitioner and the creator of the How Your Eyes Organize Your Movement *audio series.