Key Elements Of A Quality Movement Practice
That word ‘movement’ is a bit of a buzz word these days…
We all sort of know what it means, or ‘think’ we know at least. And yet it remains deeply mysterious to all those who dare to scratch a little under the surface of the word itself.
For example, here is the definition of ‘Movement’ according to Merriam-Webster:
‘the act or process of moving; especially : change of place or position or posture’
And so the question is posed - can anything NOT be movement, or A movement in itself?
The answer: not really…
The universe is expanding, and at an ever-growing rate. Needlessly to say, everything within it must also be affected in some subtle way. The ‘Movement’ of larger forces, such as gravity for example, deeply affects our daily lives to the point that our entire existence depends on their movements remaining stable…
So if everything is movement, then why attempt to possibly ‘practice’ it?
And if everything is movement, then what could or should a movement practice entail?
Container & Content
There is a difference between the shape of something and the usefulness of it. Some lessons or 'methods’, after all, look the part but actually do very little for the student long term.
Put simply, the ‘thing’ itself (whether it be handstand training, barefoot running or yoga) is not actually important at all! The relevance and potential outcomes of the practice within one’s daily life IS!
Hence, a quality movement practice is interested in the content of the material, NOT the container…
Indeed, one can do yoga every single day without conscious attention or interest, and can still neglect to translate it’s ethos and deeper philosophy into their family, work or home life. Equally, one can take simple, ordinary walks only, or merely stare at the ceiling whilst drinking their morning tea, and it might colour and support their years on Earth much more powerfully.
So remember the clean, necessary water inside of the bottle, NOT the beautifully packaged bottle itself…
Plain water isn’t necessarily ‘sexy’ or ‘raved about’, but like all meaningful practices it serves the person consuming it in a multitude of ways. How many of our daily habits can we say the same for? And might this be a great orientation for choosing how, and in what ways, we move?
Richard Koch is famous for powerfully illustrating (and publishing) the 80/20 theory. As applied to the movement practice, it reminds us that 80% (approx) of the value is derived from 20% (approx) of the time and energy we generally put into something…
Identifying what the ‘wasted’ energy is being spent on can help us to get the real juice, without struggling to squeeze tiny drops from a practice that we’ve already gotten the most out of.
We all like to show off, and keep repeating those things we’re good at, and can already do. Sometimes it’s even necessary, as a discipline, and especially for those natural movements such as walking, running, swimming, climbing, fighting etc.
But the essence of most movement disciplines can be understood and trained to a sufficient level in a matter of a few weeks or months. That is, if we’re happy and interested in becoming an all-round mover and total human being…
Looking at this in evolutionary terms, our ability to fight, to pursue, to escape, to provide, to communicate, to care, to rest, to build etc (the things we all needed to survive and thrive) would be significantly lacking if we decided to become a specialist runner or fighter or carer only. Of course, each individual would have their strengths, but the world was (and still is!) such that all of these skills to varying degrees would be called up on regularly.
Your ancestors were the best generalists there were! Otherwise you simply wouldn’t be here…
If the movement practice is not serving, and appreciating, the core simply of a human being then something (surely) is being missed….
All movement is the movement of life. Life moves through us and for us. But it can also work against us.
An effective movement practice is one that doesn’t shy away from this reality, and is one that primarily allows us to SURVIVE! After that, and ONLY after that, should it help us THRIVE!
Learning HOW to learn (efficiently, with a growth mindset) and building a strong base of fundamentals will allow the more nuanced stuff to flourish also.
After all, one’s ability to run unfortunately says little about our ability to walk; and our ability to walk says little about our capacity for standing still…
Let us move smartly, sweetly and superbly, together as humble human beings.
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