The
editor-in-chief of Uutislähde, Unto Rönkkönen, interviewed Tapio
Sippoin for Uutislähde magazine on November 11, 2022. Below is the
English translation of the interview, and you can find the Finnish
version of the interview here: https://uutislahde.fi/terveys/tiedatko-mita-on-kehoaly/ and here https://sippoin.blogspot.com/2021/10/uutislahde-tapio-sippoinin-haastattelu.html
Tapio Sippoin is a creator, developer, and authority on Body Intelligence practices, as well as the Kehoäly® Body Intelligence® method. He has been teaching The Body Intelligence practices he developed since 1983. Both Body Intelligence® and Kehoäly® are registered trademarks that have been well-established since 2003.
Interview on November 11, 2022. Translation.
The editor-in-chief of Uutislähde, Unto Rönkkönen: What is Body Intelligence? It’s still a somewhat new and unknown concept for many Finns. How would you summarize what Body Intelligence is in one sentence?
Tapio Sippoin: Good question. Explaining Body Intelligence in one sentence is quite a task, as it is an exceptionally versatile, quite concrete method of gentle physical training that combines physical activity with a people-oriented philosophy that enhances the meaning of life, as well as clear, logical, and effective modern Western psychology. It’s nearly impossible to fully unpack such a concept in one sentence. However, if I try to summarize the significance of Body Intelligence in one sentence, I would say that Body Intelligence equals good mood and good health. Body Intelligence = good mood and good health.
Unto: Could you elaborate a bit on what the exercises of Kehoäly Body Intelligence are like? Is there something physical involved? Or is it meditation?
Tapio: A large part of Kehoäly Body Intelligence exercises involves gentle movement, but there are also calmer exercises that are more stationary, such as relaxation exercises done lying down, exercises specialized in stress relief, particularly gentle deep stretches in Body Intelligence, and of course, the Health Meditation closely related to Body Intelligence training. Most of the Body Intelligence exercises do involve gentle movement. Body Intelligence strongly believes that movement is medicine, and the gentleness of that movement distinguishes Body Intelligence from ordinary exercise.
Unto: What kind of movement does Kehoäly Body Intelligence training include?
Tapio: In Kehoäly Body Intelligence training, the movement is generally calm and especially safe from the perspective of human ergonomics and physiology. Body Intelligence holds that the movement should be soft, relaxed, and gentle to take care of a person's health holistically. From the standpoint of mental and physical health, it's very optimal to engage in that kind of movement, just like in Body Intelligence training, while of course adhering to the Gentle Approach of Body Intelligence. The gentleness and safety of Body Intelligence exercises strongly distinguish it from ordinary exercise and sports, and also from many commonly accepted beliefs generally associated with ordinary physical activity. Forcing the body or mind is foreign to Body Intelligence.
Unto: Is Body Intelligence some sort of physiotherapy? Or psychotherapy?
Tapio: Kehoäly Body Intelligence is neither physiotherapy nor psychotherapy per se. However, Body Intelligence integrates therapeutic self-help and psychotherapeutic body work to enhance awareness and reinforcement of a person's natural vitality. You can visualize a triangle where at the center, inside the triangle, is a Vitalizing Movement Sequence, which is the most important foundational exercise in Body Intelligence. Each of the triangle's three corners has one attribute: relaxation, natural vitality, and strengthening the nervous system. Relaxation is achieved in two ways, through active relaxation exercises and deep relaxation. The nervous system is strengthened with many specially developed exercises, for instance, NSB Form and Rebound Form are such Body Intelligence exercises. That triangle I mentioned kind of floats within or on top of Health Meditation.
Unto: What does FreeFlow really mean?
Tapio: Understanding and strengthening a person's natural vitality is learned through targeted exercises called FreeFlow™. These exercises relate to contemporary Western science, neuropsychology, and the body's electromagnetism. In English, this subject matter includes scientific concepts such as electromedicine, electromagnetism, and electropollution. There isn't much significant literature in Finnish on these topics yet, but in English, figures like Robert O. Becker and Gary Selden have popularized this branch of science. Western medicine, for its part, is also evolving towards electrically based treatments and diagnoses. An example of this is the use of pulse-measuring watches and similar devices.
FreeFlow™ exercises are mainly performed standing with gentle movement. They are pleasant to do, for example, in beautiful weather outdoors. In these exercises, one learns well the Body Intelligence way of relating to and practicing breathing on the body's terms. This is a good example of how Body Intelligence differs from yoga or Pilates. In Body Intelligence, we respect the body's own rhythm and do not manipulate breathing, as is commonly done in yoga. There are certainly also other FreeFlow exercises besides those done standing. For example, I practice FreeFlow exercises that improve sleep and rest quality almost every evening in bed just before falling asleep.
Unto: Can Body Intelligence exercises treat insomnia?
Tapio: Yes, Body Intelligence is an excellent tool for treating insomnia, as many of its exercises are quite suitable for that purpose. The best results come when one gets advice and concrete instruction from a qualified Body Intelligence teacher. A beginner might want to try Body Intelligence's deep relaxation just before bedtime. There are many cases related to sleep problems in Body Intelligence that strongly and concretely demonstrate that Body Intelligence can significantly improve the quality of sleep.
I personally use Body Intelligence exercises to enhance my sleep and rest quality, as sleep and sufficient rest are particularly important for health. Many of my friends and family often express amazement at my ability to fall asleep and sleep almost anywhere, and my ability to wake up when necessary, even in the middle of the night, and fall asleep again immediately once the situation requiring being awake has passed. This is actually an internal joke within my family because Body Intelligence training has developed this somewhat unusual skill in me.
Unto: Is the Health Meditation part of Body Intelligence training?
Tapio: Yes. The Health Meditation is an integral part of Body Intelligence, based on contemporary Western psychology. It draws heavily from the influences of Viktor Frankl and the trends of positive psychology. Health Meditation is a notably health-centric, logical, and rational activity in which a person’s feelings and core needs are understood and valued. This is connected to the Body Intelligence principle that effectiveness is a measure of truth. Health Meditation is usually performed sitting on a chair at the beginning. More advanced practitioners also do Health Meditation simultaneously with other Body Intelligence training, and they are seamlessly interconnected.
Unto: Do you sweat during Body Intelligence training or is it strenuous?
Tapio: Most Body Intelligence exercises strictly adhere to the Gentle Approach to training. Generally, one does not sweat significantly. For example, in Health Meditation or FreeFlow training, one hardly ever sweats. Body Intelligence offers a wealth of rational, effective, and gentle exercises. Sometimes one might sweat, but not in the same way as during sports; it’s more pleasant. Of course, in Vital Walk, which involves brisk walking exercises, one is expected to sweat. In that exercise, one takes a faster-paced walk during which the walker performs a series of nerve-strengthening and relaxing Body Intelligence exercises. Vital Walk is an excellent form of training and has significantly stronger positive health effects than ordinary walking. It's worth noting that even ordinary walking is quite healthy, at least according to exercise medicine.
Unto: What equipment do you need to buy in order to practice?
Tapio: You can do Body Intelligence exercises in normal everyday clothes. At work, when you do Body Intelligence as a break exercise, just take off your jacket and loosen your tie, and it works. In guided Body Intelligence exercises, people often wear sweatpants, for example. Inside, sometimes a mat is used. In Finland, people usually wear wool socks, but in summer heat, they can go barefoot. I often wear Japanese toe socks. Generally, when training outdoors, shoes are worn. Many do Body Intelligence exercises at home and wear whatever they like. So, to answer your question, you really don't need to buy any fancy gadgets or trendy workout clothes to do Body Intelligence exercises. Your home or any space at work where you can turn around with your arms spread out will work. In this sense, Body Intelligence is very eco-friendly and sensible. I personally train a lot outdoors in good weather, especially in summer. When I go to the gym, I often start with about an hour of Body Intelligence exercises and then follow that with about an hour of weight training. This way, resistance training is much more sensible because the Body Intelligence exercises balance and warm up the body in the best possible way.
Unto: Why do people practice Body Intelligence? What do they gain or what are the results?
Tapio: Another excellent question. I have gathered feedback and concrete results from Body Intelligence training for over 30 years. There are many quite surprising results indicating that in those cases, Body Intelligence has worked excellently for the health of the practitioners. Through this feedback, we also know that, in addition to physical health, Body Intelligence training significantly improves mental health. However, people most commonly practice Body Intelligence to improve their quality of life and to free themselves from stress.
Unto: Could you share a few of those surprising results that have been achieved through Body Intelligence training? I’ve heard rumors that Body Intelligence truly works in many ways.
Tapio: Certainly. I'll try to keep these brief. These are verified matters, but perhaps a bit too bold to put in print. I won't mention individuals' names to protect their privacy. In any case, since you ask, it’s essential to note that most commonly, Body Intelligence increases life quality and health in a pleasantly smooth manner. In the morning, you don’t feel as much pain, and in the evening, you don’t feel as much frustration. With regular Body Intelligence practice, stress reduces significantly.
During the pandemic, I gave private Body Intelligence lessons to a retired individual. She suffers from high blood pressure and continuously measures it with an expensive smart watch. When we did Body Intelligence foundational exercises, her blood pressure quickly dropped to normal levels, meaning it fell to a point where she began to question whether there was something wrong with the fancy device. Only after this happened several times did she begin to believe that the balancing of her blood pressure was due to Body Intelligence exercises. This certainly set off the "good bells," as she began to share her "miracle" with others. However, I did advise her against removing her blood pressure medication because those matters should be discussed with a doctor. In reality, Body Intelligence training only functions effectively and sustainably when you start practicing consistently. If someone has a severe health issue or illness, Body Intelligence should ideally be practiced daily.
Then there are these more significant cases. One middle-aged woman had been on strong antidepressants for seven years due to trauma, having lost her child in an accident. Following the accident, she had lost sensation in one leg, spanning the entire length of the leg, and she had a significant lump on her neck, practically no visible neck. According to neurology experts, sensation would never return to the leg. After about six months of regular Body Intelligence practice, her psychiatrist stopped her mood stabilizers because she had recovered so well in that aspect. After just four months of practicing, feeling returned to the woman’s leg, and the lump on her neck had practically disappeared. The woman began wearing necklaces, as she metaphorically expressed, "found her neck again."
Tapio continues: Another anecdote involves an elderly yoga teacher and relaxation therapist who then transitioned primarily to Body Intelligence training. She enthusiastically recounted that the reason for her switch was the concrete health benefits. Her weeks-long constipation had resolved very quickly after starting Body Intelligence training. To provide an honest comparison, even yoga had not helped her with that. This situation demonstrates the immense joy a functioning bowel can bring. (Tapio laughs joyfully).
A fun anecdote involves the toes of a woman. When she began regular Body Intelligence training, she had gray, pale skin and a very serious liver-related illness. I helped her recover from that illness for which she had already received a fatal diagnosis. Treatments from Western medicine were successful, and it’s possible that the Body Intelligence exercises contributed to her recovery. But those toes—when she started Body Intelligence training, all the nails on her toes were completely damaged and looked terrible. Almost miraculously, her toes’ appearance changed to normal, and her nails fully healed. Western so-called normal medicine did not contribute to this change in any way, and even the doctor said he believed the cause was "somewhere else."
Tapio continues: Once, a middle-aged man provided feedback that he had lost seven kilograms in four months thanks to the regular Body Intelligence practice. He claimed he had not made any other significant changes in his life, but I do suspect that Body Intelligence motivated him to improve his lifestyle in general. However, he did not admit this to me. Healthy, or let’s say normal, weight loss without deliberate dieting is quite common during regular Body Intelligence training.
An older woman living on the Riviera cured a whole-leg varicose vein with two months of regular Body Intelligence practice. At first, her doctor couldn’t believe it, as she had already been scheduled for surgery to remove the varicose veins. She had traveled from France to Finland to study Body Intelligence in my group. At that time, I also gave her private lessons.
Tapio Sippoin continues: Perhaps the strongest example is the case of Armi Hammarberg. Armi has given me permission to use her name, but in other cases, I will not disclose names. Armi's daughter, Tuula, had studied to become a Body Intelligence instructor. When this situation occurred, Armi was 87 years old, and Tuula was around 60+. Armi injured her back. I no longer recall exactly how the back was injured, whether from a fall or something else, but in any case, Armi became bedridden and could not walk or even get up from bed. After several doctors and physiotherapists assessed the situation as "impossible," the doctors considered only a motorized bed and a wheelchair as options. They said there was nothing else that could be done and that Armi would never walk again.
Fortunately, Armi's daughter Tuula knew about Body Intelligence. I regularly visited Armi and guided Tuula on how to act in this situation. Initially, Tuula helped her mother perform Body Intelligence exercises in bed. The outcome was extremely convincing. It took only two weeks for Armi to get up and stand relatively firmly while doing Body Intelligence exercises. In less than three weeks, Armi was walking like a sprightly 87-year-old! Armi's walking ability was restored, and she lived to be 92 years old. Even her mental faculties functioned well until almost the end. Thus, she gained about 4-5 years of active, high-quality life thanks to Body Intelligence training.
Unto: That was quite a lot of information. Surely there must be cases where Body Intelligence hasn’t worked as well? I’ve heard that, for instance, in yoga, people have injured themselves, knees, and backs, etc. Although Body Intelligence is a Western concept, doesn’t it share similar traits with yoga?
Tapio: You are both right and wrong, Unto. You are wrong about its danger. I cannot answer on behalf of yoga practitioners as to why people sometimes get hurt in yoga. Over the years, I have certainly treated people who injured themselves in yoga, so you know this does happen. Kehoäly Body Intelligence and yoga are quite different, there is a significant distinction. Body Intelligence training is always safe, as such training in which a person injures themselves is fundamentally contrary to perhaps Body Intelligence's most important training approach, which I refer to as the Gentle Training Attitude.
In Kehoäly Body Intelligence, there are also no extreme positions or otherwise painful stretches, as can occur in yoga. I have personally participated several times in yoga classes where the instructor encouraged enduring pain and focusing on breathing. Such absurd situations. In Kehoäly Body Intelligence, we adhere to the Gentle Training Approach. In fact, Body Intelligence is quite well known for its pleasant training method. If someone injures themselves in this sense, one can immediately conclude that they have not truly practiced Body Intelligence, but have instead neglected the training methods and probably done something superficial or otherwise questionable for health.
You are also partly correct, Unto. If a person does not practice Kehoäly Body Intelligence often enough, it won’t work very well. This can be compared to running or weightlifting; if you don’t train, your fitness won’t improve or your muscles won’t grow. Body Intelligence is the same. If you only take the basic Body Intelligence course and don’t apply what you’ve learned, meaning you don't train Body Intelligence, then it’s unlikely to achieve those previously mentioned significant health results, as it involves regular gentle Body Intelligence practice and the adoption of the Body Intelligence methods and approaches. The psychology of Body Intelligence and the health-oriented attitude stemming from it are closely related to the practical training of Body Intelligence and the positive health effects derived from it.
Unto: Many people will likely now be interested in Body Intelligence. You have been teaching Body Intelligence exercises for over 30 years. Is there any material available to become acquainted with Body Intelligence?
Tapio: Yes, certainly. I have written three non-fiction books related to Body Intelligence. One book discusses the Vitalizing Movement Sequence, which is the most important foundational exercise in Body Intelligence. In another book, titled "The Secrets of Body Intelligence," I teach the training methods related to Body Intelligence and other significantly important concepts. Health Meditation is a part of Body Intelligence training. I have written a book focused on Health Meditation, clearly and precisely teaching the fundamental and basic aspects of Health Meditation. With this book, one can independently learn the skill of Health Meditation. The title of this book is succinctly "The Practice and Knowledge Book of Health Meditation." However, the easiest way to learn Body Intelligence in the future is to enroll in Body Intelligence courses I conduct or study Body Intelligence through the teaching and lecture videos I publish.
Unto: Would you like to share some fun stories from your teaching trips abroad?
Tapio: I would love to. I enjoy telling my children at home true stories from my travels, as so many amusing things have happened. I suppose I can share a bit of that in this magazine. One neat incident was when it was wonderful to teach in a beautiful natural location. For instance, in Egypt, we often trained on a stunning sandy beach. In Portugal, a memorable experience was when we trained in a dense bamboo forest. One would think such an experience would primarily occur in Asia, but for me, the bamboo forest experience occurred in Portugal.
Perhaps the most breathtaking place I’ve trained in Body Intelligence is the small town of Tolmin located in western Slovenia. There's a beautiful river and beach near the town, where even on a genuine summer day, the water temperature is around five degrees. And particularly, the Tolmin Gorge situated just a little away from the town is one of the most magnificent natural places in the world. It's wonderful to do Body Intelligence exercises there.
Unto: Do you have any stories involving people from your teaching trips to share?
Tapio: Yes, there are those as well, but sharing them often veers into boasting. Sure, I studied the Lanna people's version of Thai massage in Thailand. My teacher, a relatively elderly master, suffered from diabetes. I taught him how to manage diabetes using Body Intelligence exercises. The master was very grateful for the knowledge he received, and I am still very welcome in his family's home.
I could tell so many stories from Japan. I’ll just briefly mention that it’s wonderful to know that a great person and skilled dance teacher uses Body Intelligence exercises as part of the curriculum in a respected dance school and also practices Body Intelligence to maintain her own health. In a very polite and humble manner characteristic of Japanese culture, she asked for permission to teach the things I developed at her dance school. I gave her the freedom to teach as she pleased because she is such an intelligent and down-to-earth, honest person.
I have also traveled around Japan to learn from various health masters. We can speak of ethnomedicine. This experience was very enriching and enlightening. One master always sent me on to the next master. The entire process worked strongly on the basis of trust, personal relationships, and recommendations. I learned a lot myself, and at the same time, I also taught these masters some Body Intelligence methods. Japanese spiritual people know how to be genuinely grateful for the good they receive. Such gratitude leaves a positive mark on anyone's soul.
Because I have openly taught the skills of Body Intelligence to many Eastern masters, I have almost always received in return the opportunity to learn things from them that they normally do not teach to Westerners or even to their local "ordinary" people. I am grateful for the teachings I have received. With many of these masters, there is mutual gratitude and a trusting relationship from which a friendship develops that is hard to describe in quality. Of course, such deeper understanding has helped me develop my own teaching skills in Body Intelligence.
I am a Western person living in Finland. It is important for me to do and teach things in a way that is suitable for the psyche of Western people. In Body Intelligence, most of the exercises are entirely my creation, but there is also a touch of learning from the Eastern direction. For example, there is Western meridian stretching based on traditional Chinese medicine, dao-in practice, and Masunaga shiatsu. Developing Body Intelligence exercises is challenging and requires deep pedagogical, didactic, and psychological skill. It is important to know what one is doing, meaning in this case stripping away the Eastern belief system fluff from everything I have learned there. When you can strip away that fluff, you find much good and wise knowledge underneath.
It is absurd for a Finn to try to become Japanese, Chinese, or Indian. Such an endeavor always goes awry. Western and Eastern people are largely very different socioculturally, but the fundamental good core needs are the same everywhere. Therefore, Finnish people best benefit health-wise from Finnish understanding. Body Intelligence is distinctly Western and is one of its significant strengths in today's global health landscape.
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