Meet Sarah
I know what it's like to feel like your body is working against you.
After two serious car accidents in my teens and twenties, plus a lifetime of questionable posture, I lived with chronic back pain for years. I tried physio, chiropractors, massage and yoga. They all helped for a while but the pain always came back. Eventually I was told, "This is just how it is now."
I wasn't ready to accept that.
Then I discovered the Feldenkrais Method®. Through gentle, mindful movement I stopped fighting my body and started understanding it. Within two years my pain was gone. My posture improved, I stood taller, moved more freely and finally felt at home in my body again.
I'm Sarah McAllum, a Feldenkrais® Practitioner and movement coach based in Napier, New Zealand. I work with people locally and online, helping them discover easier, more comfortable ways to move so they can stay active, independent and keep doing what they love.
Before all this, I spent more than 20 years in the corporate world. From the outside I looked successful. But behind the scenes I was stressed, sore and constantly pushing through.
Learning to listen to my body changed far more than how I moved. It changed how I lived.
I knew I wanted to help other people experience the same transformation.
So I retrained as a Feldenkrais® Practitioner, completing my professional training in 2010 and continuing with hundreds of hours of postgraduate study in Feldenkrais, anatomy, neuroscience and movement.
As Moshe Feldenkrais said,"What I'm after isn't flexible bodies, but flexible minds."
That idea sits at the heart of everything I do.
What it's like to work with me
My approach is gentle, practical and tailored to you.
I won't ask you to push through pain or force your body into positions that don't feel right. Instead, I'll help you understand how you move, discover easier options and build confidence in your body.
There are a few different ways we can work together:
One-to-one sessions
Individual sessions are ideal if you're finding everyday movement more difficult than it used to be. Perhaps walking isn't as comfortable, your balance feels less reliable, you're stiff when you get out of bed, turning your head is difficult, breathing feels restricted or you'd simply like to get back to doing the activities you enjoy with more confidence.
Group classes
My "Not Yoga" Awareness Through Movement® classes are a relaxed and supportive way to explore movement alongside others. Each lesson helps you discover easier, more efficient ways to move, improving flexibility, balance, posture and overall comfort in your everyday life.
Online
Can't make it to the studio? You can join live classes via Zoom or access guided movement lessons online from wherever you are in the world. You can learn at your own pace, in the comfort of your own home.
Whichever option you choose, you'll gain practical tools to reduce tension, move with more ease and confidence and keep doing the things you love.
This isn't about quick fixes or perfect posture. It's about learning easier ways to move that last.
I created Movement Works because I believe getting older doesn't have to mean becoming stiffer, slower or less confident. I believe it can mean getting more awesome.
Move well.
Feel fabulous.
Age brilliantly.