What do you think?
Rate this book
The Thinking Body: A Study of the Balancing Forces of Dynamic Man
A classic study of physiology and the effect of psychological processes on movement that has a mind/body approach, which makes it a favorite of dancers. This brand new edition is an EXACT reproduction of the original 1937 edition and INCLUDES ALL ORIGINAL ILLUSTRATIONS!
359 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 2, 2015
71 people are currently reading
326 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
December 8, 2019
This book gets better with every read! Such a profound understanding of body dynamics and mechanics. It takes a few reads to really comprehend some of the material as it’s quite a heavy book when reading it. But for a deeper understanding of the body as a whole, it’s well worth it.
August 13, 2019
A 1930s classic, Todd's book is a dauntingly technical/scientific perspective on functional anatomy for non-medical readers like myself. Non-medical readers should consider highlight the stuff they understand and look for the evidence that supports this understanding. Even though I had 70 percent of content bounce over my head I got the gestalt of the book, and for that alone I am thankful. I learnt a great deal on the importance of body self awareness ('propioception'), posture, balance, breathing, etc. I learnt about the risks of poor management of the scaffolding of the human structure - the skeleton. I am more attuned to posture because I think about it now from an engineering standpoint versus my-yoga-teacher-told-me-so standpoint.
Supplement for fellow dancers: I chanced into this book based when reviewing Irene Dowd's Taking Root to Fly, and I am glad I did. I have not started reading Dowd's book in detail (more on that later) but a flip through and I knew what aspects of her instructions applies more to me as a social dancer versus say a modern dancer. Dowd's book also focuses on functional anatomy from a dancer's perspective. Todd's book, on the other hand, focuses on the same but from a human species perspective; you can understand what goes first. And, not surprisingly, I found myself moving better as a dancer and thinking through the dance, and I think you will found yourself in the same boat.
Supplement for fellow dancers: I chanced into this book based when reviewing Irene Dowd's Taking Root to Fly, and I am glad I did. I have not started reading Dowd's book in detail (more on that later) but a flip through and I knew what aspects of her instructions applies more to me as a social dancer versus say a modern dancer. Dowd's book also focuses on functional anatomy from a dancer's perspective. Todd's book, on the other hand, focuses on the same but from a human species perspective; you can understand what goes first. And, not surprisingly, I found myself moving better as a dancer and thinking through the dance, and I think you will found yourself in the same boat.
Read
August 20, 2019Ideally suited for students of anatomy
I chanced into this book when researching dance kinesthethia. The book, published in the 1930s, stresses the importance of body awareness, posture, balance, breathing and so on. However, as a nonmedical reader, I found the scientific explanations overwhelming but still plodded through. There is no doubt that a book written for the lay reader that maintains its science basis would be immensely invaluable. I would nonetheless recommend readers to flip through the book because the scientific basis is incredibly compelling. You will not look at posture the same way again. I do believe that any individual focused on body movements either through yoga or serious dance will benefit.
I chanced into this book when researching dance kinesthethia. The book, published in the 1930s, stresses the importance of body awareness, posture, balance, breathing and so on. However, as a nonmedical reader, I found the scientific explanations overwhelming but still plodded through. There is no doubt that a book written for the lay reader that maintains its science basis would be immensely invaluable. I would nonetheless recommend readers to flip through the book because the scientific basis is incredibly compelling. You will not look at posture the same way again. I do believe that any individual focused on body movements either through yoga or serious dance will benefit.
February 4, 2026
A Fascinating, Demanding, and Timeless Masterpiece
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Thinking Body: A Study of the Balancing Forces of Dynamic Man by Mabel Elsworth Todd is, without question, the most fascinating boring book I have ever read.
It has taken me nearly two years to finish, not because it isn’t valuable, but because it is dense, medical, and deeply analytical. This is not a casual read. It asks you to slow down, reread passages, look things up, and truly think about your body in ways most of us never have.
Written in 1937, this book feels almost prophetic. Todd explores how, as humans evolved intellectually, we paradoxically became less intelligent about how we use our bodies. Many of the ways we sit, stand, walk, breathe, and move today are wildly unnatural compared to how the body was designed to function. Our brains have gotten smarter, but what we ask of our bodies has, in many ways, gotten dumber.
One of my favorite quotes from the book says it all:
“Often the body speaks clearly that which the tongue refuses to utter.”
This idea runs throughout the entire work. Todd makes it clear that the body does not just respond to thought, but to emotion. We don’t store emotion only in the brain; we store it in muscle fiber, posture, movement patterns, and breath. Our bodies move in response to emotion, whether we are conscious of it or not.
The sections on breathing were especially eye-opening. Todd emphasizes the role of the diaphragm and the trunk of the body in breathing. While oxygen exchange happens in the lungs, effective breathing is driven by the trunk, particularly the diaphragm and core, not shallow chest breathing as most of us are taught. I’ve applied these breathing concepts, including rhythmic breathing patterns, to help my daughter with both her athletic performance and her ability to focus and learn.
Another surprising takeaway is how Todd frames everyday movement. Walking and running, things we do constantly without thinking, are described as some of the most dangerous activities humans perform, not because they are inherently risky, but because we do them so poorly. Poor posture, collapsed alignment, and inefficient movement patterns compound over time.
Todd challenges the modern obsession with “good posture” as rigid and forced, instead advocating for dynamic balance and natural alignment. Posture, in her view, is not something you hold; it’s something that emerges when the body is working in harmony.
I’ve even used Todd’s ideas in learning environments. Letting my daughter to lie on her back instead of sitting upright for long periods has helped her absorb information better. This book reinforces the idea that stillness, alignment, and freedom of movement are deeply connected to cognition and learning.
Yes, this book is slow. Yes, it’s medically heavy. Yes, I had to reread sections and look up terminology that predates modern language and technology. But that’s part of what makes it extraordinary.
The fact that so much of this work still holds true today, and in some cases articulates ideas we are only now “rediscovering” through modern science, is astonishing.
This book isn’t just about the body. It’s about how we live inside it. And even if it takes you years to finish, it’s absolutely worth the journey.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Thinking Body: A Study of the Balancing Forces of Dynamic Man by Mabel Elsworth Todd is, without question, the most fascinating boring book I have ever read.
It has taken me nearly two years to finish, not because it isn’t valuable, but because it is dense, medical, and deeply analytical. This is not a casual read. It asks you to slow down, reread passages, look things up, and truly think about your body in ways most of us never have.
Written in 1937, this book feels almost prophetic. Todd explores how, as humans evolved intellectually, we paradoxically became less intelligent about how we use our bodies. Many of the ways we sit, stand, walk, breathe, and move today are wildly unnatural compared to how the body was designed to function. Our brains have gotten smarter, but what we ask of our bodies has, in many ways, gotten dumber.
One of my favorite quotes from the book says it all:
“Often the body speaks clearly that which the tongue refuses to utter.”
This idea runs throughout the entire work. Todd makes it clear that the body does not just respond to thought, but to emotion. We don’t store emotion only in the brain; we store it in muscle fiber, posture, movement patterns, and breath. Our bodies move in response to emotion, whether we are conscious of it or not.
The sections on breathing were especially eye-opening. Todd emphasizes the role of the diaphragm and the trunk of the body in breathing. While oxygen exchange happens in the lungs, effective breathing is driven by the trunk, particularly the diaphragm and core, not shallow chest breathing as most of us are taught. I’ve applied these breathing concepts, including rhythmic breathing patterns, to help my daughter with both her athletic performance and her ability to focus and learn.
Another surprising takeaway is how Todd frames everyday movement. Walking and running, things we do constantly without thinking, are described as some of the most dangerous activities humans perform, not because they are inherently risky, but because we do them so poorly. Poor posture, collapsed alignment, and inefficient movement patterns compound over time.
Todd challenges the modern obsession with “good posture” as rigid and forced, instead advocating for dynamic balance and natural alignment. Posture, in her view, is not something you hold; it’s something that emerges when the body is working in harmony.
I’ve even used Todd’s ideas in learning environments. Letting my daughter to lie on her back instead of sitting upright for long periods has helped her absorb information better. This book reinforces the idea that stillness, alignment, and freedom of movement are deeply connected to cognition and learning.
Yes, this book is slow. Yes, it’s medically heavy. Yes, I had to reread sections and look up terminology that predates modern language and technology. But that’s part of what makes it extraordinary.
The fact that so much of this work still holds true today, and in some cases articulates ideas we are only now “rediscovering” through modern science, is astonishing.
This book isn’t just about the body. It’s about how we live inside it. And even if it takes you years to finish, it’s absolutely worth the journey.
September 13, 2024
kind of a bore and difficult to keep track of all the names of the different parts within my body. wasn’t what i was expecting but very educational… if i can retain it cuz good lord that was something
January 26, 2024
Highly technical examination of the engineering of the body
June 30, 2016
Fun tour of imagery
Nice intro to using imagery to reprogram movement. It works.it is a nice complement to feldenkrais and yoga. A little heady
Nice intro to using imagery to reprogram movement. It works.it is a nice complement to feldenkrais and yoga. A little heady
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews