I was introduced to "Aplomb" (balance) in 1991. As a computer professional I sat a lot and over the years developed debilitating back pain. I tried exercise and therapy without success. When a friend suggested I take a balance class, I was ready to try anything.

In class I learned to sit, stand and bend differently, relieving my muscle spasms in weeks. My aches disappeared completely and balance became a passion.

Over the following years I took extensive classes and subsequent teacher training with Angie Thusius, Jean Couch and Esther Gokhale, all in Palo Alto, CA. In 1996 I lived in Paris for one year studying with the creator of the technique: Noelle Perez Christiaens. While there, I also completed coursework and ethnographic research at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes et Sciences Sociales.

Under the tutelage of Noelle I learned to observe people with traditional lifestyles in Portugal, Holland, Belgium and France. I watched how they sit, bend, walk, carry and keep moving all day long. Their stamina was beyond anything we know. From these observations I learned what natural, unadulterated body mechanics look like. From Noelle I learned how to teach it to others who, like me, live a sedentary lifestyle.

I continue to learn through travel, observing people across the world who still live "in balance". Yearly seminars in Paris keep me in touch with Noelle’s research. I have become a dedicated observer and student of the links between posture and lifestyle, lifestyle and pain.

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