Ease on Skis is a fresh approach to how to learn alpine skiing. Simpler, easier and safer than many traditional approaches, it draws on basic principles of human movement learning discovered in the Alexander Technique and in Body-Mind Centering®. Ease on Skis was developed by Erik Bendix.
Ease on Skis workshops are available to anyone wishing to improve their skiing, no matter what their level of skill or experience. Participants are encouraged to get private Alexander Technique lessons prior to attending an Ease on Skis workshop. During a workshop, students get group and semi-private ski lessons in the morning hours when snow conditions are best. When not taking lessons, participants are welcome to ski together in small groups, and to get help from EOS ski assistants. Alexander Technique private lessons are given late in the day to untangle any build-up of anxiety and to allow learning to unfold in secure indoor surroundings. Spending winter in the mountains is a pleasure in itself, and is for all to enjoy. The Ease on Skis 2023 workshops will take place in Schladming, Austria from January 7th to 13th, and from January 15th to 21st. For information, click here.
“There is a mysterious joy I felt when I made that last run, with the turns going so well, at last. Oddly, it carried over into my walking and even my driving…everything involving motion and forward movement… Hugely gratifying.”
~Ellen Bierhorst~
I was feeling almost no anxiety about falling. Instead I could enjoy the sensation of gliding, and the scent of the snow….I feel both vulnerable and safe.
Skiing is a great, fun way to experience this.
…thank you for an inspiring week! I particularly liked the fullness and the simplicity of Erik’s ski program and how everything ‘clicked into place’ and matched my previous skills. Everything was understandable.
I can ski the field with more relaxation and control, I look more graceful and organized, and I feel much better at the end of the day.
Erik Bendix, an Alexander Technique teacher in Asheville, North Carolina, talks with Robert Rickover about the application of Alexander Technique principles to skiing.
This past February, I had the good fortune to travel to the Alps to take Erik Bendix’ one week Ease on Skis workshop. I am a passionate skier, and not too bad at it, but having started skiing late in life, I am always frustrated by how slowly I seem to progress and how hampered I am by fear.
I have been skiing for over 50 years. When I started skiing as a boy, skiing scared me so much I hardly could budge when my skis were on. Now skiing nourishes me so deeply that no other activity can compare.
