A 90-minute private session, one to one, over Zoom
Every movement method was designed for a body that has passive stability. Yours does not.
So the exercise is not wrong. It is untranslated.
That is the whole of what I do. I take the movement you have already been given, by a physical therapist, a Pilates teacher, a yoga class, or the internet, and I translate it for a body that has to create its own stability rather than borrow it from ligament.
90 minutes · one to one on Zoom · $250 · Wednesday to Saturday
Pick a timeIt is 45 minutes and it costs nothing. If it does nothing for you, you have lost 45 minutes and you should not book a session.
Of 684 people who gave a usable answer, 653 had already done this class before we ever spoke.
728 people brought up physical therapy without me asking. Of the ones who told me how it turned out, about four out of five said it did not hold. Not because the therapist was bad. Because the protocol assumes a joint that stops where it is told.
They raised it themselves, so it is not a clean sample. I am telling you the number anyway, with that caveat attached.
Built on finding your end range and holding it. For a body that has too much range already, that is practice at the exact thing that hurts you.
One sequence, sent to everybody. Katie put it better than I can, so I will let her say it in her own voice further down.
Most methods teach positions. I teach an organising principle, and then apply it to the movement you already have. It means you are not starting over, and you are not adding a sixth routine to the five that did not stick.
It also means the session is not a class. I am looking at your body, in your room, on your setup, and translating in real time.
We start with what your body is doing right now, not with a protocol. You move, I look, and I tell you what I see. Then we build a short sequence on your body, in your room, and you practise it with me until it is yours.
You keep the recording. That is not a bonus, it is part of what you are buying. A 90-minute program built on your own body, that you can return to for as long as it is useful.
Drew has completely changed my movement practice and helped me effectively manage chronic neck pain. I am a Pilates and Gyrotonic teacher and long-time yogini, and I have studied with master instructors across the country. Drew is among those masters — he is a teacher for teachers AND a teacher for students brand new to mindful movement. themonkeybody™ is a beautifully simple system and an accessible approach to guide our bodies towards natural (primal) movement patterns. I have worked with Drew 2-3 times a week for five years and every single session has been wonderful. Cathy F., Pilates and Gyrotonic instructor, Boston
For over 20 years, I have tried assorted combinations of just about every type of bodywork I could find. What Drew does is difficult to describe, but, suffice it to say, after a session I feel like I’ve been to a massage therapist, acupuncturist, physical therapist, and Pilates instructor (not necessarily in that order) all-in-one. With only a session every other week by Zoom, in spite of a seriously non-ergonomic set-up working from home, I am continuing to improve. I feel better than I did 20 years ago! Alexandra G., Clinical Research Coordinator and violinist, Boston
On what a one-size-fits-all program does to a hypermobile body.
After three hip surgeries and a spine surgery, I relied on their wisdom and their care plans to keep me as high functioning as possible. Never had I imagined that I would be introduced to an entirely new way of approaching movement and rehabilitation. His method is revolutionary yet based on classic fundamentals. Patterns that I thought were permanent, lasting side effects of surgery are changing, allowing me to move and walk with an ease and grace that I never thought again would be available to me. Christine M., Registered Nurse, San Francisco
Drew Ricciardi has guided me to integrate my playing into my whole body. I feel like I am floating in my legs, the air flows out creating an exciting resonant sound that is both expressive and flexible! Vanessa M., Body Mapping instructor, Longy School of Music flute faculty
You have changed my life, my career. I would not be who I am as a person and a musician without your mentorship and your healing, and the wealth of knowledge you have given me. Elias M., oboist, Bloomington
It is probably for you if you have a stack of exercises you were given, none of which held, and you have started to suspect the problem is not that you did them wrong.
90 minutes, one to one, $250. Wednesday to Saturday.
If the full fee is out of reach, ask. Email me at drewricciardi@gmail.com or message @themonkeybody on Instagram and tell me what is workable. I keep a small number of first sessions at a reduced rate, and asking costs you nothing.