Reflexology Live

Thursday, April 8, 2010

Tone: The Communicator

© Eraxion. Image from BigStockPhoto.com.

Body's self repair operates at a certain tension level. Create a relaxation response with Reflexology and body starts to auto self repair. (This morning's Twitter)

This early morning tweet by me lead to a discussion on "tone". One person wanted to know more on tone so we are putting up snippets of any article dating back to 1982. We were really into tone back then and even built it into our book, Hand and Foot Reflexology: A Self Help Guide.

The way we maintain tone is a complex yet beautiful system. So here are some quotes from Tone: The Communicator.

"The body is in constant communication with all parts of itself providing the ability to move and survive. The ability to move calls for knowledge of the position of every muscle, joint and tendon. The ability to survive requires a perception of the chemical levels, in case of emergency changes in them.'

"Tone describes such a communication system. Tone is usually recognized as a state of readiness. It is most often associated with muscles but it also exists in the internal organs.'

"Tone is the background against which events of the day are played. It is however an active background as if each blade of grass in the background of a movie set were also playing a role in the picture.'

We were very deep into tone back then as we saw it as the connection between various body parts. The body sets a certain tension level or tone in the background in order to respond quickly to changing demands.

It would be impossible to survive without well regulated tension levels. Sleeping is different than being awake. Sleeping is a different level of tone than being awake and it could be a catastrophe if the two tonal levels were mixed up.

The feet help set the tone or tension level of the body. This is so we can stand upright successfully and move properly. It takes an enormous amount of information about the proper tension levels to make this happen. If this communication is miskeyed or inadequate we fall down.

I always use the story of falling asleep with my legs tucked under me to explain this concept. When the phone rang I jumped up to get it and immediately fell down. Since my legs were asleep I didn't have the proper tone or tension to stand upright must less run for the phone.

Why is tone important in reflexology? The feet help set the tension level for the rest of the body. Reflexology with it's applications of pressure alter the tone of the body. The patterns of stress formed in the feet are "broken up" by applications of new signals.

Shoes and flat surfaces send the same tonal messages into the system. Boring. The stress of not having a variety of signals to respond to makes the body work within tight ranges of tension or tone.

Feet have incredible capacity to respond to a wide variety of input as we pick our way over uneven terrain. Yet with shoes and flat surfaces the same signals are inputted over and over again. A lack of variety is stressful.

There is a new concept that states the system finds stability through change. Change is a must or as one researcher put it, "Variety is not just the spice of life. It is the very stuff of life itself.

We experience high degrees of tension when the tone of our internal conversation doesn't change. A little change or shift in your tone is good for you. If fact it may be the very stuff of your life's rich experience.

Kevin Kunz

Monday, April 5, 2010

Reflexology Paths Gone Mad, Reflexes Gone Wild

Revisiting the newest in reflexology paths, I couldn’t help but think, Yes these are reflexology paths gone mad with creativity. But, they’re also vehicles to drive reflexes wild.

A reflexology path as the flooring for a walk through hot and cold water jets? As the flooring of a shower? That’s creative. On reflection, I’m most struck by what reflexology path / spa equipment from Exar of Italy are made to do. They’re there to provide multiple sensory experiences—and drive reflexes wild. Yes, taking the reflexes to places they’ve never been before. After all, one of them “The Wellness Route is much more than a Kneipp route—a never felt sensation is expecting you.” I like that idea— a lot.

Here reflexology paths, built to exercise the pressure sensors of the feet, are paired with the exercise of multiple reflexes simultaneously. Exposure to hot water, cold water and light are built in to the spa equipment with reflexology path floors. (Carrara marble reflexology paths? Wow). The Wellness Route: “provide(s) the sole of the foot with an efficacious massaging effect.” Water jets in the path’s perimeter columns “offer legs a healthy hydrotherapy massage.” The hydromassage Scottish shower cabin includes the reflexology path floor, 15 jet nozzles on three levels and “optic fiber sequence with relaxing effect” in the ceiling. Benefits of water jets are noted as: “The hot-cold effect of dilatation-constriction make blood vessels exercise: the skin is better nourished and oxygenated, looks tighter and brighter.”

Other equipment from Exar includes machines providing benefits of exercising multi reflexes at once. A vibrating platform combines the benefits of “aroma-enriched oxygen inhalation to those from color therapy in a new high-tech concept, and Combiplate, a vibrating oscillating platform ideal for toning muscles and weight loss. … “Stress, smoke, wrong lifestyle and overweight reduce our capacity to absorb oxygen, while our oxygen need doesn’t decrease. Oxygen improves circulation, gives mental lucidity, helps metabolism, stimulates body's defences, revitalizes tissues, detox blood.Many reasons to choose oxygen, many reasons to choose.”

Bottom line: Reflexology ideas are taking a step into the future, being included in cutting edge, high tech, top-of-the-line spa equipment and taking a place as a valuable health resource.

Barbara Kunz

Friday, April 2, 2010

Is There an Alzheimer Sign?

Is there a sign of Alzheimer's reflected in the toes? Note the slant of the toes. Also see how the flap of skin is under the second toe. Could this be an indicator for Alzheimer's? Could early detection help stave off this pandemic?

The picture above is not someone diagnosed with Alzheimer's but her mother had it. The next picture is of someone diagnosed with Alzheimer's. Again notice the flap of skin going underneath the second toe. At times there is an overlap across to the third toe.

Can you help us? We are looking for people with Alzheimer's and what their feet look like in a photo. Would you send us a digital photo whether or not this sign exists of a person diagnosed with the disease? Please don't include their face if possible. But we can crop it out.

And written permission to use it would be nice. We will preserve their privacy. Please send it to our email.

Let's see if this holds up. thanks.

Kevin Kunz

Thursday, April 1, 2010

Reflexology Paths Gone Mad

Latest in Reflexology Paths
Reflexology paths have gone mad—with creativity. Or, so you’d think looking at the latest batch of photos from around the world. From a Shoez store in Singapore to a Kneipp path/bath in Italy, you’ve never seen anything like them.

The Kneipp Path Wellness Route is from Exar of Italy, maker of relaxation and stress therapy equipment. It includes water features that spray the legs with warm water as one walks through the reflexology path surface of Carrara marble. “The Wellness Route is much more than a Kneipp route—a never felt sensation is expecting you, but first of all look at its structure. It is a wellness system featured by an unusual shape. To occupy the minimum space the course expands like a spiral: this gives it the attractive look of a big snail, evoking babies’ toys. The floor is made in spheroid cobblestones (diameter 25-40mm) of Carrara marble to provide the sole of the foot with an efficacious massaging effect. The perimeter is made of 22 columns in anticorrosive metal, epoxily painted linked together by 21 sheets of tempered crystal.” http://www.exar.it/prod/camminoe.htm

Another product from the company is the Hydromassage Scottish Shower Cabin, “…an advanced wellness device that gives beneficial, pleasant, immediate results. Its working is based on hot water cycles (38° C) alternating with cold water ones (10° C), according to a program regulated by a microprocessor. You can choose one of the automatic programs or set the session manually as you like. In the automatic programs the hot-cold cycles massage separately calves, thighs, thorax and head, with the special programs more parts are massaged together. … “On the basis of Sprizzy you find Carrara marble-made cobblestones for true plantar reflexology, on the ceiling optical fibres light sequence with relaxing effect. The wellness feeling is immediate.” http://www.archiexpo.com/prod/exar/kneipp-path-63613-174782.html

In Singapore the Shoes retail store was designed by a student at the Temasek Design School. The store provides “A unique retail environment concept which (is) inspired by the shoe sole patterns that is applied as the flooring texture and material. Creative and innovative display of the merchandise attracts the attention of shoppers. A “trendy” shopping experience which includes its glowing floor, variations of horizontal plane height thus an elderly-friendly store concept which integrates the anti-slip rubber flooring and foot-reflexology pebbles path at two corners.”
http://www-des.tp.edu.sg/des_home/des_alumni/des_graduate_portfolio08/des_grad08_iad/des_grad07_iad_iskandar/des_grad08_iad_iskandar_1.htm

Barbara Kunz