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NEWS from Alignment & Mobility

February 19th, 2019

2/19/2019

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I'm in Greece again (photo at left explains what Grandma Sarah's been up to) and I'm coming back to Berkeley on Feb 28. I'm excited because I found this great space, a very cool gym in my neighborhood that's perfect for the kind of group classes and workshops I want to offer more of. 

Do you want to understand your body better and feel really good?

I'm offering four different targeted, eye-opening, and therapeutic Restorative Alignment & Movement workshops this March and April. 

I hope you'll come. You should come! This is information you don't find everywhere. 

(See below, and click on links for more information.)
  • Come discover the hidden stuck spots in your body that cause injury and pain 
  • Learn how to unstick them to take stress off your joints and open up flow throughout your body.

             VIBRANT ALIGNMENT SPRING WORKSHOP SERIES

Sunday March 10, 2019 11am-2pm   HealThy Feet!  (Steps To a Healthy Body)
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Sunday March 24, 2019 11am-2pm    KNEE ELIXIR  
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( ... lubricating and nourishing your knee joints)
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Sunday April 7, 2019 11am-2pm  HIP EASE – CORE STRENGTH 
(... mobility and strength for hips, butt, thighs and waist)
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Sunday April 21, 2019 11am-2pm SHOULDER FREEDOM 
 (... the shoulder bone’s connected to the core and neck and finger bone!)
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SEPTEMBER EVENTS IN BERKELEY - 2018

8/5/2018

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 HI Friends!

I'm back in Berkeley now from Greece (the most amazing wonderful trip -if you'd like to see pictures and hear more, just ask!)

I'm excited to offer you options for group classes here in Berkeley next month, just for this September.
SOUTH BERKELY LOCATION (NOT THE USUAL STUDIO LOCATION).
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Included below are details of these SEPTEMBER OFFERINGS:
1) MOVE YOUR DNA WORKSHOP
2) 3 Fridays MYDNA Flow Series
3) Two 2-hour stand-alone workshops: Meet Your Feet and Knee Elixir
4) Free sessions for new Foot Mobilization and
Scar Release Techniques.
(I want people to practice on! STARTING NOW.)
(WARNING FOR ALLERGY SUFFERERS: CAT AND DOG PRESENCE LIKELY.)
1) MOVE YOUR DNA WORKSHOP on the weekend of September 15-16 in South Berkeley (94702 near Alcatraz and Sacramento). Exact address will be available to you upon registration, since it's in a private space.  Register with Nutritious Movement™: CLICK HERE.
Cost $289
I am one of the few teachers certified to teach this workshop, under the auspices of Katy Bowman and her organization, Nutritious Movement™. We'll spend 2 full days exploring the ins and outs of all of the exercises described in Katy's book, MOVE YOUR DNA:  Restore Your Health Through Natural Movement, along with venturing out and about to put our new understandings to work (i.e. play). You will have the most fun and comprehension if you have read the book beforehand!

(Want to see photos of previous MYDNA workshops with Sarah (me)? CLICK HERE)
2) Three Fridays MYDNA Flow Series:  One hour & 15 minute movement classes.

 In these three classes, we'll practice the three Exercise Flows in
Katy Bowman's book, Move Your DNA. You learn how to check
 your own alignment,
and how to personalize the use of props and exercise modifications. 

Cost: $20 per class 

3 Fridays (Sept. 7, 14, & 21)  7:45 - 9:00 AM at our south Berkeley 94702 location (near Sacramento and Alcatraz, address available on registration, contact me here).  

7:45 - 9:00 AM
Three Fridays Schedule, September 2018
September 7: Restorative Flow 
September 14: Foundational Strength Flow
September 21: Bigger Moves Flow
(with slight modifications for inside studio)

Very limited class size (under 10) and very personal instruction.
No need to attend all of them, but pre-approval required.

CONDITIONS: 
  • My approval (contact me) is required at least one day before first attendance. All fitness levels are welcome, but some familiarity with this work is needed and a few health conditions may not be appropriate for the group setting.
  • After we've spoken, just come to whichever class you want.
  • FIRST-TIME students need to arrive 5-10 minutes early to fill out a bit of paperwork.​​

Working with Katy Bowman's Restorative Exercises and Whole Body Alignment paradigm, you'll learn and practice how to check your alignment during exercises and other movements and positions (AND WHY), plus how to introduce more movement into your life.


All levels of fitness are welcome, since we use awareness and props to find the best ways to work into the movements.

Questions? 
 Email me with questions or to register.
3) Two 2-HOUR WORKSHOPS:
Feet Treat Sat Sept. 8,
10 AM to 12 PM
Knee Elixir Sat Sept. 22, 10 AM to 12 PM

For workshop details click here
​

Cost: $35 for one or $60 for both

 at our "mystery" South Berkeley location.

(These times and even these days are negotiable. If you'd love to do it but can't at those times, let me know when you can and it could change or get added.)


These are movement workshops with lots of specific analysis during movement. Learn about how limitations in our tissues affect the bone alignment and health of the respective body parts, touching on how the whole body affects and is affected by what these joints are doing. They are introductory presentations, but even if you are an old hand at exploring these areas, I promise you will get something new to work on!  Email me with questions or to register.
4) Also: from now until the end of September I am offering 2 free 15-20 private sessions to each of the first 10 people to sign up, for me to practice on you one of two new techniques I am studying: Foot Mobilisation Therapies and McLoughlin Scar Tissue Release. Check out the links and take your pick! The times I have available willl be limited, so please contact me soon if you are interested.

If you want to add it on to a regular scheduled session with me, that is fine for the Foot Mobilisation, but the Scar Tissue work needs to be done initially as a stand-alone short treatment. Days available are Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays.  Email me with questions or for your first appointment.
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October 19th, 2016

10/19/2016

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I'm near the end of my time in Greece this fall, returning to Berkeley on October 27. I haven't managed to post any blow-by-blow updates for whoever's interested, but I will write more soon about at least these three topics:
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1) The logistics, complications, and enjoyment of bringing our beloved dog Alice to Greece with me; Also how much I loved teaching during 2) the week-long island retreat, teaching two Restorative Exercise classes per day, lots of long hikes and great meals with GREAT PEOPLE; and 3) the very first formal introduction of Restorative Exercise and Katy Bowman's natural alignment concepts on Greek soil - the Move Your DNA workshop I taught this last weekend. (update on 11/3/16: Because of technical issues with posting, you can look at previous posts below for some more on those topics.)


​Also
I have lots to say about the dire economic situation for Greeks, and personal stories about how it's affecting people.  I just have trouble getting myself to write. I wish I could have long conversations with all of you!  (I certainly will with some of you!)

I've only gotten to "work on" a few people in Greece on this trip (meaning Hendrickson Method manual therapy), but each time it has reminded me how it actually gives me energy. Yay, Hendrickson Method and alignment info and helping people get moving! I can't wait to see you in my studio! (You know who you are.)      with love, Sarah

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 A+M RETREAT IN GREECE 2016

10/10/2016

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Our A+M Retreat on the island of Kea has been over now for a couple of weeks, and I want to say just a few things right now: We had a wonderful time, every day was full and interesting, and I am overflowing with gratitude toward all of you sweethearts, for being amazingly attentive, serious-and-humorous students during our twice daily classes.  I mean it, you all made teaching immediately gratifying and inspiring for me. You helped me be a better teacher with your questions and sincere attention and responsiveness.
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​​Look, you even sent me this photo of Calf Stretching at the airport on your way home!
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Thanks especially to Peru for all the immense logistical help, quiet assistance during classes, and her bright and brave spirit of celebration that keeps it fun for us all, and to Erich for not only participating in the classes (yay!) but also taking so many amazing photos.
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And thanks to all of you for taking things as they come, so very sweet-tempered about things like ferry strikes, unseasonably cool weather, getting bossed around by me, and for being nice to our Alice. It was a great experience of everyday community for me, and I love you all! ​​

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"ALICE AND ME" NEWS

9/18/2016

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... is what A+M News stands for, today.
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ALICE IN GREECE
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ME IN GREECE
Normally this is Alignment and Mobility News (different from my also-severely-neglected BLOG, where I think aloud about how or why to do a particular body-related thing). But: Alice is with me in Greece! She's with me on the plane! She's with me on the ferry boat! She's with me at the ruins, and by the sea, and in my room! So here's a report on how this can be done, in case you have a similarly pig-headed determination and NEED to do something like this.
PicturePuppy Alice!
Alice is my Emotional Support Animal. When I first heard of such a thing, I felt overwhelming relief that I could have her on the plane with me. My incapacitating anxiety at the thought of leaving for 2 months without her convinced me and my therapist that I needed to do this. Plus, there is no way I am putting Alice in the cargo hold of an airplane. Some of them die, some of them don't die but merely shit and vomit all over themselves in their panic and trauma. So I have a diagnosis, Anxiety Disorder something-or-other, which actually would get the better of me without all the tools I utilize like TRE and Restorative Exercise, and moving my body a lot, and also the responsibility, companionship, and joy of Alice.
​ 
You can find what the therapist's letter needs to say HERE. You let the airline know at the time you book your ticket. If you are taking your dog to Europe, here are 2 important points to consider:
1) Any airline taking off from the U.S. is obliged to honour the ESA letter but if you change planes in Europe, I have heard that the next flight may not allow it. I took Delta Airlines, and changed planes in New York then flew directly to Athens.  (Since then, I have heard that some European airlines do allow it, but I don't know specifics. Do you have any information? Please comment!)
2) There are all kinds of regulations about taking your dog to another country. In Greece, European Union rules apply. You must have a certain kind of microchip. Rabies shot has to be AFTER the microchip is put in. Examination by a USDA certified vet, within 10 days before the trip and at least 21 days after the Rabies shot, and then all the paperwork gone over by the USDA. ETCETERA. These rules are spelled out HERE.  It seems overwhelming at first, but if you map it out and take it step by step (several months in advance), it is doable.

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Alice amazed me by not peeing for a full 20 hours, but didn't seem to suffer (though I worried). At JFK they have a "Pet Relief Area," which I was counting on, but it is so badly designed that I saw 3 other dogs besides Alice go in and not one of them thought it was a place for "relief." (I hovered, hoping that the remains from one dog "going" would encourage Alice to do the same.) A tiny metal cell with a 15 inch strip of soaking wet (from rinsing) plastic turf, regularly sprayed with floral deodorizing chemicals. Not a dog-intelligent plan.

She stoically sat at my feet, and the airline was fairly understanding about getting me a seat with leg room. The first flight was pretty tight, but the next one was better. We did a lot of trotting up and down the aisle, and people didn't seem to mind at all. (I do have some worry for people who are allergic, but don't know what to do about that!) 

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I was anxious about getting my papers for her examined on arrival, and if they would have the right microchip detector, and Greek bureaucracy, but the customs inspector was a lovely young woman whose reply to my nervous question, "Where do I show the papers for my dog?" was a nice grin and: "You .. don't!"
​Ah, what a sweet welcome to hospitable Greece!

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11/5/2016: Update after getting back home

I adore Alice more than ever! She was consistently an amazing companion for me and everyone we encountered. Everything went smoothly on the trip back, and she broke her record for bladder control: 23 hours this time!

JFK's Pet Relief Area was again a non-starter (see below, middle pic).
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Stoicism in the plane.
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"What are we doing in here?"
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Ecstatic to see Erich!
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OCTOBER 2016 Move Your DNA in ATHENS Greece  

8/25/2016

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MOVE YOUR DNA: Oct. 15-16, 2016 in Glyfada, a lovely seaside suburb of Athens, Greece
​MYDNA workshop presented by Sarah Kotzamani Sat-Sun, October 15-16, 9AM - 6PM 
Location: "Star Talent" Dance Studio and out and about in Glyfada, Athens, Greece 
PictureEvening in Glyfada - Hills, City, Sky, and Sea
Weekend workshop offered by Nutritious Movement™ under the direction of Katy Bowman, MS, and taught by Sarah Kotzamani.  A fun and intensive two full days of learning, refining and practicing all of the exercises and skills from the book “Move Your DNA.” These are "Restorative Exercises," designed to restore our alignment for natural human movement.
During the workshop you will also put your new understanding into practice, walking down to the seashore and up into the unbuilt hills of Glyfada.

Move Your DNA workshop curriculum focuses on the exercises described in  Katy Bowman's groundbreaking book, Move Your DNA.
  • Prerequisite: HAVING READ THE BOOK.
  • COST: $179, with a maximum of 10 students per teacher. 
  • CLICK HERE for registration (only available through Nutritious Movement™ website).
  • ​ CLICK HERE to contact Sarah for questions.​​

Star Talent Dance Studio (click on address for Google Maps)
Gounari 240 
Ano Glyfada 
Athens Greece

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    Sarah Kotzamani

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