Meet Eric Sutz: A Lifelong Music Educator on a Journey of Self-Care Via Motion and Music
With a wealthy background in music, Eric Sutz graduated with a Bachelor of Music from DePaul College in 1980. All through his profession, he has labored as a music director, conductor, arranger, and instructor for over 47 years. He has introduced applications for lecturers and faculties since 1985 and his ebook: “Learn how to Play and Train Common Music Creatively” was first revealed in 1986.
Now deeply immersed in self-care by motion and music, Eric’s exploration of posture, alignment, and myofascial launch methods has remodeled each his life and the lives of these he teaches.A person all the time looking to maintain his thoughts sharp, Eric considers himself a endlessly pupil of life and far of his data of anatomy and our bodies has been self-taught and a journey of remembering what he already knew.
Concerning the creator: Interview led by Erin Wen, Tune Up Health content material author. Erin works as a Osteopathic Manipulative Therapist (OMT) and motion specialist for over 15 years. She has a background in classical ballet that ultimately led her to develop into a yoga and motion teacher. She can be an authorized Yoga Tune Up® teacher and at present affords a number of remedy modalities together with osteopathic manipulation, pelvic ground and being pregnant help, and motion coaching and workshops.
Erin: How did you come about Jill’s teachings and Tune Up Health?
Eric: Jill actually is considered one of my private heroes. I took place her by the Deal with Whereas You Practice program she supplied with Kelly Starrett that was really helpful by a coach of mine from the Egoscue System. It’s a program developed by Pete Egoscue that focuses on postural alignment. His first ebook is known as Ache Free. At the moment, it was a forerunner to all the pieces we predict and find out about ache now. It was data that was forward of its time. With the Egoscue System, you’re looking at somebody’s alignment, they’ll watch you stroll and from there they may discover if one hip is larger or in case your toes flip in or out whilst you stroll. From that data, they’ll develop a menu of workout routines, stretches, and drills that should get your gait to be even. The strategy is utilized by many athletes. So my coach really helpful that I look into Kelly Starrett. I noticed this system that was supplied with Jill and purchased it instantly.
I noticed Kelly and Jill do their factor and instantaneously I used to be like “oh my god!”. It made a lot sense to me, it was like one thing I already knew however it had been dormant in me. It felt like data my physique knew however had forgotten, and it fully modified my view of self-care. I spotted that each one the years of accidents I had had from athletics and martial arts, and after spending a whole lot of 1000’s of {dollars} in therapies that I may have handled myself.
I felt like the knowledge supplied by Jill and Kelly was a re-awakening of data that I already knew in some way. Through the years, I grew to become extra observant of individuals and their misalignments and I’ve been in a position to repair individuals just by their posture.
Erin: Are you able to share a narrative about the way you helped anyone utilizing the data you realized from Tune Up Health?
Eric: One time I used to be on an airplane going to Europe and I had gotten up and was utilizing the Yoga Tune Up® balls on my shoulder when this younger man who was ready for the toilet requested me: “What are you doing?” and I mentioned nicely, I’m engaged on my shoulder and he went on to inform me he had had a shoulder drawback for years and if what I used to be doing may assist. And positive sufficient, within the span of 6 minutes on a airplane flying to Europe, I helped this younger man repair his shoulders and he was completely astounded.
Erin: Though you’re not essentially a health instructor, you’re a instructor in your area of music. Do you will have a instructing type?
Eric: I’ve been instructing for about 47 years. The lecturers I had rising up for piano, jazz, and classical music had been very ferocious. After I began instructing I used to be extra like that, I suppose extra hardcore and all the pieces needed to be precisely proper and precisely good. Through the years, I’ve tailored extra of a Zen strategy, like water washing over a rock strategy. I can get stuff completed, and perhaps much more, however doing it in a softer approach. Virtually just like the distinction between Taiji versus Karate. I nonetheless have excessive expectations for myself however I don’t maintain these expectations for others. I do prefer to push my college students to develop and be taught.
It’s essential to know that as we age, we have now to adapt our practices.
– Eric Sutz
Mobility and Restoration for Musicians
Erin: As your instructing type has softened, has your individual follow of martial arts additionally advanced all through the years?
Eric: It’s essential to know that as we age, we have now to adapt our practices. While you’re very younger you are able to do extra athletic-like actions, perhaps excessive kicks or flying kicks. After which as you grow old you need to use extra leverage, perhaps be taught higher foot placement; you need to use different talent units. You additionally must be taught the place your limitations are. While you’re younger you’re feeling you are able to do all of it. Hopefully we will put up a very good battle as we age.
Erin: Are you studying one thing new nowadays?
Eric: At all times. I’ve 8 languages occurring in numerous apps. I’m studying French, Spanish, Serbian, Hebrew, Yiddish, German, Italian, and Japanese.
There may be an App that I take advantage of known as Elevate. What I like about it’s that it offers you velocity assessments in numerous areas comparable to math, percentages, languages, punctuation, and others. I need to hold my thoughts and reminiscence sharp. I additionally need to keep bodily and mentally sharp. I prefer to problem myself. I’ve additionally been learning chess for many years. I’m all the time concerned in studying, I like listening to lectures and historical past.
Erin: Do you will have any accidents which have healed with myofascial launch methods?
Eric: Sure, I developed Dupuytren’s contracture (set off finger) in all probability as a consequence from utilizing the pc extra throughout Covid occasions . It grew to become very aggressive and painful. It affected my complete hand a lot that I might put on a brace through the evening in order that my finger would keep straight. Throughout that point, I primarily centered on myofascial launch methods for ache reduction for my hand and forearm. I did it A LOT and it helped tremendously. Even an orthopaedic surgeon I had was impressed by the results from the rollouts.
Music Instructor Wellness Routine
Erin: How does TUF help your private practices?
Eric: The instruments that I’ve realized from Jill have had a large impact in my life. I’m doing one thing with the data I’ve realized on a virtually every day foundation – I really feel being educated about anatomy, muscle, and fascia is simply so priceless and essential. At the same time as we communicate now I’ve a pair of Yoga Tune Up balls beneath my thigh!
For points which might be mushy tissue associated, which is what most individuals have, whether or not it’s again, neck, shoulder, knee ache or stiffness; these issues are ubiquitous in our society due to the kind of society and sedentary life-style that many have. Due to these causes, this can be very essential to pay attention to our our bodies and take a crack at it, to know that it is best to have a look at your self-care instruments. You’ll save your self an unlimited quantity of time and money. You’re placing extra of the duty in your individual fingers and know that these instruments can empower you to deal with your self.
That’s the reason I really feel that the abilities that Jill teaches together with others which have a lot data comparable to Tom Myers and Kelly Starrett are so priceless.
Erin: How do you assume your physique advantages from the myofascial launch methods?
Eric: What I really feel is that the varied rolling methods comparable to a contract & chill out, stripping, or shearing assist me discover set off factors and acupuncture factors which may be needing some consideration. Even when I’m sitting, I’ll use them beneath my ft to chill out and tackle any points that may come up from sitting for too lengthy.
Erin: What’s your go-to rollout/train?
Eric: The one that’s in all probability my favourite that I’ve gotten quite a lot of return on is any form of scrubbing alongside my lats to my subscapularis; I simply discover it so useful. I really like any work alongside my scalene and trapezius muscle groups. Kelly Starrett and Jill would in all probability say the identical factor, that it is very important take into consideration the physique in programs. So perhaps if there’s quite a lot of stiffness across the shoulder blade, it’s not solely working that space however perhaps it’s essential go to your rhomboids and your thoracic backbone to handle the problem.
When I’ve buddies asking me to assist them with a particular a part of their physique, I usually prescribe them a rollout which may be farther from the realm they’re complaining about and though they won’t assume it’s related, after they do it, they notice the way it usually alleviates ache the place they had been complaining about initially. I don’t inform them an excessive amount of as a result of I need them to expertise it themselves.
Erin: How do you assist individuals in your group with the data that you’ve about self-care?
Eric: When I’m working with each lecturers and college students, it’s truly fairly easy. I like to coach individuals on how you can help their bodily our bodies by consciousness, rollouts to launch stress, and schooling about anatomy. I train individuals how you can transfer mindfully and really feel potential knots as a result of gathered stress.
Erin: What are your prime self-care ideas?
Eric: I believe it is rather essential to get sufficient relaxation. I believe it’s crucial to not get hooked up to social media. I couldn’t suggest that sufficient. I believe it’s crucial to keep up a nutritious diet and a wholesome weight. It is very important perceive that as you age, you could preserve your muscle groups. I believe strolling and performing some form of cardio is essential. Any motion routine that you simply like and revel in can be essential, whether or not it’s yoga, Pilates, martial arts or Jill’s lessons. And a few kind of energy coaching is a should. There is no such thing as a different approach round it, if you wish to preserve a wholesome physique, it’s essential follow energy coaching.
Erin: How do you take care of your individual stress?
Eric: Among the best methods is to maintain all of the information out. It’s not that I’m encouraging individuals to be willfully ignorant however we have now to attempt to dwell second to second, your day after day as greatest you’ll be able to and keep away from as a lot of the chatter, the background noise as a lot as potential. I’m a giant believer in mindfulness meditations. I’ve been doing mindfulness meditation for many years. I benefit from the teachings of Sadguru Deepak Chopra.
There may be an app that I like rather a lot that is known as “calm”. I take advantage of it practically on a regular basis. Fairly often, one of many first issues I do within the morning is I observe considered one of these meditations. I attempt to hold my thoughts clear and centered. I attempt to get up my greatest self, hopefully.
Erin: Are you able to give me 3 sources of data that make you who you might be in the present day?
Eric: Effectively, I might say normally, it is very important find out about historical past. The extra educated you might be, the extra you’ll be able to put in context what you see. As a result of historical past does repeat itself. I take heed to lectures, watch documentaries which might be associated to all varieties of historical past.
When it comes to philosophers, I’ve all the time been into stoic philosophy. I discover it helpful in day after day residing as a result of it’s not like you might be residing in an ashram indifferent from society however you might be truly residing on the planet and having to take care of day after day life. I like to recommend it rather a lot.
Third, I might say a very powerful is self-knowledge, no matter that embodies, whether or not it’s bodily or mentally. Asking your self why you behave the best way you behave? What makes you’re feeling good? What triggers you? Looking for trustworthy, actual solutions. As I grow old, I’ve realized that it’s much less essential to consider objectives and it’s actually concerning the journey on how you can get there. The journey and the pathway is far more essential than the vacation spot.
Erin: How can we make the world a greater place?
Eric: I might say to do all the pieces potential to raise the veil of ignorance. I believe ignorance is the best supply of evil. The extra ignorant persons are, the much less data they’ve, and the better it’s for horrible issues to occur.
