The Thinking Body: A Study of the Balancing Forces of Dynamic Man

by Mable Ellsworth Todd, E.G. Bracket (Foreword)

A classic study of physiology and the effect of psychological processes on movement that has a mind/body approach, which makes it a favorite of dancers. This brand new edition is an EXACT reproduction of the original 1937 edition and INCLUDES ALL ORIGINAL ILLUSTRATIONS!

359 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 2, 2015

Reviews

[Ian Whyatt · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book gets better with every read! Such a profound understanding of body dynamics and mechanics. It takes a few reads to really comprehend some of the material as it’s quite a heavy book when reading it. But for a deeper understanding of the body as a whole, it’s well worth it.

[Mihir T Desai · Rating 4 out of 5]

A 1930s classic, Todd's book is a dauntingly technical/scientific perspective on functional anatomy for non-medical readers like myself. Non-medical readers should consider highlight the stuff they understand and look for the evidence that supports this understanding. Even though I had 70 percent of content bounce over my head I got the gestalt of the book, and for that alone I am thankful. I learnt a great deal on the importance of body self awareness ('propioception'), posture, balance, breathing, etc. I learnt about the risks of poor management of the scaffolding of the human structure - the skeleton. I am more attuned to posture because I think about it now from an engineering standpoint versus my-yoga-teacher-told-me-so standpoint.

Supplement for fellow dancers: I chanced into this book based when reviewing Irene Dowd's Taking Root to Fly, and I am glad I did. I have not started reading Dowd's book in detail (more on that later) but a flip through and I knew what aspects of her instructions applies more to me as a social dancer versus say a modern dancer. Dowd's book also focuses on functional anatomy from a dancer's perspective. Todd's book, on the other hand, focuses on the same but from a human species perspective; you can understand what goes first. And, not surprisingly, I found myself moving better as a dancer and thinking through the dance, and I think you will found yourself in the same boat.

[Mihir Desai]

Ideally suited for students of anatomy

I chanced into this book when researching dance kinesthethia. The book, published in the 1930s, stresses the importance of body awareness, posture, balance, breathing and so on. However, as a nonmedical reader, I found the scientific explanations overwhelming but still plodded through. There is no doubt that a book written for the lay reader that maintains its science basis would be immensely invaluable. I would nonetheless recommend readers to flip through the book because the scientific basis is incredibly compelling. You will not look at posture the same way again. I do believe that any individual focused on body movements either through yoga or serious dance will benefit.

[Pamela Byarlay · Rating 3 out of 5]

kind of a bore and difficult to keep track of all the names of the different parts within my body. wasn’t what i was expecting but very educational… if i can retain it cuz good lord that was something

[Elena Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Highly technical examination of the engineering of the body

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Keep on living

Excellent read. Lots of good solid ideas and exercises. At times a little to deep in the science department for me but easy to pass over if not interested. For me, the best foundation for understanding the body.

[Glawton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun tour of imagery

Nice intro to using imagery to reprogram movement. It works.it is a nice complement to feldenkrais and yoga. A little heady