Aston-Patterning® is the application of the Aston Paradigm to human movement, matching human function to its environment. It was developed by Judith Aston, a pioneer in the field of movement education and bodywork. The process includes a combination of bodywork, movement coaching and ergonomics.
The joints of our bodies provide endless possibilities of movement. However, how bones come together to form those joints and function within the soft tissue holding them together can create ease and freedom of movement or they can cause restriction in movement and pain. Bones are held in place by ligaments, tendons, muscles and fascia. If these soft tissues become damaged or stressed they affect how bones come together to form joints, affect how joints function and can be another source of pain. If muscles become contracted from overwork or injury and/or fascia becomes restricted in movement this can pull bones out of optimal alignment. How we use our bodies over time also wears patterns of tension and restriction in our muscles and fascia that can also cause our bones to shift in time to less functional positions.
The focus of Aston-Patterning® is not to attain good “posture” by holding body parts in specific positions, but to recognize what “balance” is, both within the body and in the use of the body. The combination of bodywork, movement and ergonomics help to create a more “functional neutral” alignment which reduces the stress and strain on the body. The movement and ergonomics that a client learns in sessions helps the client to maintain this functional alignment at home, work and at play.
Body Awareness
Pain is an indicator that something is not quite right in our bodies. The pain could be from an injury or from a chronic condition that has built up slowly and sometimes does not have a known cause. Whereas pain is one of the first indicators that something is wrong when we injure ourselves, pain is often the final indicator that things are not quite right in our bodies with chronic conditions.
The habits of movement that we develop often wear patterns of strain in our bodies. These habits can affect our skeletal alignment and cause tension patterns in our muscles and cause the muscles and joints to wear down over time or function less effeciently. Eventually, we experience pain, tiredness and/or weakness. Robbin helps her clients to identify and become aware of these movement habits and then provides her clients with options for using their bodies differently to decrease the amount of strain going through it.
Robbin also helps her clients to become aware of how their bodies feel within certain areas and the alignment and movement of these areas. With every session, Robbin provides information on the anatomy and physiology of the structures affected. She brings to her clients attention what alignment issues feel like so that when they experience such sensations again they can often self-correct.
What are the benefits of Aston-Patterning®?
Bodywork: By bringing a person’s body into a more functional neutral alignment through Aston Patterning® bodywork, pain is decreased or eliminated and mobility and flexibility is increased.
Movement & Ergonomics: Outside of the sessions, clients are able to sustain the positive effects of the bodywork:
● by using movement exercises to keep the body flexible and aligned
● by being aware of how the body is used in everyday activities and using the body in ways that put 
less stress on and through it
less stress on and through it ● by adapting the surrounding work, home and play environment to be ergonomically supportive
Robbin Blake, LMP
Body Aware Massage
4500 9th Ave NE
Ste 300 Rm 24
Seattle, WA 98105
206.853.6875
