Victoria E. Hamilton on wed 17 nov 04
Hi Dori -
How much of your body are you using when you center? Are you sitting over
the wheel or behind it? I find that the more of your body you use during
the centering process, the easier it is to center, not to mention easier on
your body. Move your bench right up to the wheel so that, bending from the
hip, you are right over the clay. Assuming you are throwing with the wheel
going counter clockwise, keep your upper arms and elbows right on your ribs
while wedging your left elbow on the inside of your left thigh. As you
apply pressure to the clay, you have your left thigh right behind your left
arm (and elbow) leaning in on the clay (that's a lot of leverage) as your
right hand (and arm)work in concert with your left to bring the clay into
center. This is a little awkward at first, but worth training yourself to
do it.
Vicki Hamilton
Millennia Antica Pottery
Seattle, WA
-----Original Message-----
From: Clayart [mailto:CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG]On Behalf Of Dori
Grandstrand
Sent: Wednesday, November 17, 2004 13:26
To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
Subject: Pottery: A Pain in the Neck?
Hello All,
I have been increasing my time throwing on the wheel and increasing the
size of my pots. Right now I am trying to go larger, working with about 11
pounds of clay to make bowls and platters. This might not seem like much
clay to some, but I started with only 1/2 to 1 lbs of clay (mugs, etc.), and
am working my way up. I would like to go much larger for platters, bowls,
planters, vases, etc. At 11 pounds of throwing I am experiencing quite a
bit of pain/discomfort in my neck and upper shoulders. I realize that as a
relatively new thrower I am probably "fighting" the clay more than
cooperating with it at this stage -- centering has been a bit of a
challenge, and I think that is where most of the pain/effort is coming from.
Once the centering and opening is made it is much easier to finish the pot.
My question is, do other potters experience this "pain in the
neck/shoulders" syndrome? Is it due to being fairly new at throwing? Am I
doing something wrong? Is there a way to "fight" less and cooperate more,
especially when I continue beyond 11 lbs of clay? What do other production
potters do about pain, or preventing it, and taking care of themselves might
be a great thread, and would quite possibly and literally, save my neck.
Would love to hear your feedback!
(BTW, I can't help but add that in light of the recent Walmart thread, if we
can't play with the big boys, maybe we should all just pick up our marbles
and run for home where it's safe .... :>)!
Dori G., in a small town that is safe, for now
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Ben on wed 17 nov 04
I find if I make a conscious effort to sit up straight and keep my head
straight (over my shoulders) it helps alot. Obviously you can't do this at
every stage of throwing but every little bit helps.
>Hunching over a wheel will cause them to
> contract. >
Dori Grandstrand on wed 17 nov 04
Hello All,
I have been increasing my time throwing on the wheel and increasing the size of my pots. Right now I am trying to go larger, working with about 11 pounds of clay to make bowls and platters. This might not seem like much clay to some, but I started with only 1/2 to 1 lbs of clay (mugs, etc.), and am working my way up. I would like to go much larger for platters, bowls, planters, vases, etc. At 11 pounds of throwing I am experiencing quite a bit of pain/discomfort in my neck and upper shoulders. I realize that as a relatively new thrower I am probably "fighting" the clay more than cooperating with it at this stage -- centering has been a bit of a challenge, and I think that is where most of the pain/effort is coming from. Once the centering and opening is made it is much easier to finish the pot.
My question is, do other potters experience this "pain in the neck/shoulders" syndrome? Is it due to being fairly new at throwing? Am I doing something wrong? Is there a way to "fight" less and cooperate more, especially when I continue beyond 11 lbs of clay? What do other production potters do about pain, or preventing it, and taking care of themselves might be a great thread, and would quite possibly and literally, save my neck. Would love to hear your feedback!
(BTW, I can't help but add that in light of the recent Walmart thread, if we can't play with the big boys, maybe we should all just pick up our marbles and run for home where it's safe .... :>)!
Dori G., in a small town that is safe, for now
Kathi LeSueur on wed 17 nov 04
sultanarts@COMCAST.NET wrote:
> At 11 pounds of throwing I am experiencing quite a bit of pain/discomfort in my neck and upper shoulders............
> My question is, do other potters experience this "pain in the neck/shoulders" syndrome? Is it due to being fairly new at throwing? Am I doing something wrong? Is there a way to "fight" less and cooperate more, especially when I continue beyond 11 lbs of clay? What do other production potters do about pain, or preventing it, and taking care of themselves might be a great thread, and would quite possibly and literally, save my neck.>>
>
There are a couple of exercises that can help relieve the stresses that
are causing the pain. On of the things you need to do is stretch the
muscles in your upper chest. Hunching over a wheel will cause them to
contract. Stand in a door way. Put your arms up level and parallel with
your shoulders and on the door frame. Lean into the frame so that the
muscles in your shoulder stretch. Hold for 10 seconds. Repeat five time.s
Another thing is to lie on the floor with a rolled up towel between your
shoulder blades. Have your knees bent when you do this. Lie there for
about 10 minutes several times a day.
This might help.
Kathi
Ivor and Olive Lewis on thu 18 nov 04
Dear Dori Grandstand,
Good to hear that you are making progress, but sorry to learn that you
are starting to have the aches and pains.
Sounds as though you are no longer in contact with a teacher so there
is no one at you elbow to explain the finer points as you progress to
heavier pug weights.
My suggestion is that you need to do two things to alleviate the
stress on your body.
The first is to spend more time preparing your clay and making sure it
is rather softer than that which you have used in the past.
The second is to slow down the speed of your wheel
As you start to get more mass on the wheel head the force you have to
apply to make the clay behave must be increased. This is question of
leverage and speed. Over exertion needed to apply enough force is
putting strain on your muscles, tendons and bones. So you are starting
to ache.
If these two things do not work then you have to think about an
alternative throwing technique.
I will be interested to read what some of the others have to say.
Best regards,
Ivor Lewis.
Redhill,
S. Australia.
Earl Brunner on thu 18 nov 04
Sitting down throwing caused me to develop major
muscle spasms in my neck and sholders. It took a year
of chiropractic to get rid of the spasms. I used to
lock up about once a month and be in pain for 4-5 days
each time, now I might lock up once a year. Something
about going to the chiropractor, I learned how to feel
the spasms coming on and learned how to take the
tension off so that they didn't happen as often. But
I attribute the whole problem to sitting at the wheel
with my head bent sideways.
--- Ben wrote:
> I find if I make a conscious effort to sit up
> straight and keep my head
> straight (over my shoulders) it helps alot.
> Obviously you can't do this at
> every stage of throwing but every little bit helps.
>
> >Hunching over a wheel will cause them to
> > contract. >
>
>
______________________________________________________________________________
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change
> your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be
> reached at melpots@pclink.com.
>
=====
Earl Brunner
e-mail: brunv53@yahoo.com
Linda Mosley on fri 19 nov 04
Dear Dori,
Here are a few things that have helped me throw larger
pots with less stress. The first is to warm up and
stretch before and after working. Preparing the mind
is also important. I focus on what I'm about to do and
previsualize myself making wonderful pots.
Secondly, I don't try to center the whole piece of
clay at once. I "cone" up and down several times. As
I'm pushing the cone back down into a loaf shape, I
center as I go.
You will get stronger with practice, but remember that
there are 2 sources of power when throwing. You are
one and the wheel is the other. If you push a little
for a long time, the power of the wheel will do a lot
of the work. If the wheel is going really fast, then
you will have to push hard too, so slow the wheel to
the speed that allows you to push without making your
hands or arms feeling weak and shaky. Take your time
to coax it into place - the old tortoise and hair
story. As you build strength and experience, you will
center in less time because you will use your own
strength more efficiently.
Another thing to consider is that soft clay is easier
to center but more difficult to raise into thin walls.
For me, it's worth the effort to center stiffer clay
so that I can make bigger and thinner-walled pieces.
Most of all, remember that you do not have to fight
the clay. Wedging and centering can be an opportunity
to sense the responsiveness of the clay, to get "in
tune" with it. If you take time to build a strong
foundation, there is a better chance for creating the
form you have imagined.
Best wishes,
Linda
=====
Linda Mosley
Studio Potter & Teacher
lmpots@yahoo.com
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