JAMES JACKSON

When I tell my story about how I became a Feldenkrais practitioner, it’s more that the method found me than the other way around. The Feldenkrais Method kept revisiting me at various points in my life until I realized I had to become a practitioner.

Welcome to my world of movement exploration and holistic wellness! My name is James Jackson, but I've been affectionately known as "Go-Go" since childhood. I’m from Essex, UK, and from an early age, I was drawn to the arts, which led me to pursue studies in Theatre at Bretton Hall and then Dance at the Northern School of Contemporary Dance in West Yorkshire. This training laid a great foundation for my future career.

When Pilates was rising in popularity nearly twenty years ago, I followed the guidance of esteemed instructors at Michael King Pilates, Stott Pilates, and Polestar Pilates to become a fully qualified Pilates instructor, specializing in Mat, Reformer, and Studio Pilates. I was a lecturer in Pilates for dance at York St John University and the Northern School of Contemporary Dance and helped hundreds of clients in the Leeds area move well, have fun, and feel great at Leeds Pilates Place.

My journey then took me across continents to Thailand, where I began and continue to work as a Visiting Practitioner for the wellness hotel group Aman. It was during this time, amidst the trauma of a serious knee injury, that the calling became very clear: to deepen my understanding of awareness and mindfulness in relation to movement wellness.

Enter the Feldenkrais Method—a profound approach to movement re-education and somatic awareness. Inspired by my own journey of rehabilitation and my desire to bridge the gap from movement to wellness for my clients, I immersed myself in Feldenkrais training under the guidance of Educational Director Alan Questel in Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA.

The biggest lesson from this experience was that it wasn’t my knee that had to change—it was my whole self. I had to learn about how I was dealing with stress, anxiety, and my relationship to exercise—my "GO-GO" nature, everything! By getting to know myself, I could find long-term strategies for improvement that extended far beyond a torn knee.

Now, not only am I pain-free, but I’m calmer and much healthier in the way I exercise and prioritize self-care. Life is always going to throw challenges, so my resilience comes from my ability to adapt physically and emotionally in times of stress. I learned this through the Feldenkrais Method.

Now, it’s time for me to share this learning and see if others can benefit from the method as I did.

The more I work with the Feldenkrais Method, the better I feel, and my goal is to see Feldenkrais gain the recognition it deserves for improving lives, just as so many other movement wellness practices have.

Today, I proudly hold dual expertise as a Pilates studio practitioner and a fully certified Feldenkrais practitioner, affiliated with the Feldenkrais Guild of North America and the UK. My approach is a unique fusion of these two modalities, each informing the other to create a personalized journey of self-discovery and transformation for my clients.

I love moving—hiking, dancing, yoga, surfing, weight training, and more. However, my non-moving practices have made the most significant changes in my wellness journey. As an attendee of Quaker meetings, I have a strong spiritual practice of "waiting and listening," which grounds me in mindfulness and balances out my "GO-GO" nature.

Through this website, I invite you to explore the transformative power of movement and wellness. Whether you're seeking online Awareness Through Movement classes or private Feldenkrais lessons, I’m here to guide you on your journey to greater vitality, freedom, and joy.

I teach group and 1:1 Pilates at various venues across Norwich city, so please reach out if you are interested in catching a Pilates class with me as well.

Move well, friends,

James.