We specialize, we adapt, we get good at what is familiar, what is known - the oft traveled path.
This is especially true in how we move and inhabit our bodies. Humans are amazingly adaptable and are constantly adapting to our environments and our activities. Because of our body’s adaptability, we become used to going about our days using less than ideal patterns of movement. And the more we remain unaware of these patterns, the more rote and ingrained they become. We unwittingly end up specializing in doing things one way.
This specialization limits our movement options. When it comes to moving well, we want A LOT of options. Our body’s ability to be variable helps us be resilient, especially when sh*t goes wrong, like missing the last step or rolling your ankle off the curb. We want to re-bound from those events, not have them put us out.
Fundamentally, I teach a form of exercise but really it’s more like movement skills training: paying close attention to your body, learning how to sense it, and how to use it so you can go about the business of living.
Step one is cultivating body awareness and developing proprioception. Proprioception is the sense of self-movement, force, and body position and its importance in moving well cannot be overstated.
From Wikipedia:
Proprioception is mediated by proprioceptors, a type of sensory receptor, located within muscles, tendons, and joints which detect distinct kinesthetic parameters, such as joint position, movement, and load.
Proprioceptive signals are transmitted to the central nervous system, where they are integrated with information from other sensory systems, such as the visual system and the vestibular system, to create an overall representation of body position, movement, and acceleration. Sensory feedback from proprioceptors is essential for stabilizing body posture and coordinating body movement.
In other words, it’s extremely important that we can feel where our body is in space. If this sounds esoteric, keep it simple:
Start to pay attention to PRESSURE in your daily life.
Pressure is the key input that helps your brain know where you are in space. If you know to pay attention to it, you can use it.
While standing try applying pressure straight through the middle of your foot (where your arch is) into the ground. Pause and feel what that feels like. Then stop, and feel the difference. Do it again. ON/OFF.
Or place your hand flat on the center of your chest. With your whole hand apply pressure to your own body. Feel it, stop, feel it and repeat.
Or pay close attention to the feel of your hands on your car steering wheel. Apply pressure with your fingers to grip it. Loosen your grip, let it go slack, try it again…you get the gist.
Whether you are my 80 year old client with a history of falls that is learning how to apply pressure through her feet to stand from a chair, or my 40-something learning how to do pull-ups for the first time applying pressure through his fingers to initiate the pull, the goal is the same: sensing and using pressure.
Don’t worry about not knowing what to do with this “data” you’re collecting. For now, through the lens of curiosity just start to cultivate your awareness.
The cool thing about us is that if we adapted one direction that no longer suits us…we are able to turn it around and adapt the other direction.
Boom 🔥🔥🔥