I don’t believe that movement should be a directed effort made by intentional thought. Movement should be FREE, without any INPUT from us!

What are alignment ‘cues’?

Alignment cues are pieces of information that aim for us to consciously direct our bodies to move in a way that aligns with those cues. These cues are to help us move better, you may have heard some of them – ribs down, feet straight, activate your glutes, tilt the pelvis etc. In this paradigm, there is GOOD alignment and BAD alignment. One example from my own personal journey is my flared ribs. Flared ribs I learned = BAD, whilst ribs down = GOOD
And I learned the reasons for this – flared ribs compress your spine, and can lead to a dysfunctional core and pelvic floor.…… So what did I do? Every time I could remember to pull down my ribs I did it.

The Problem?

1. You will only be working on this alignment issue when you are intentionally doing so when you have a consciously aware moment. The rest of the time, your unconscious mind is running the show, so you won’t even be aware of moments when you thrust your ribs or turn your feet out. Was I remembering to pull my ribs down when it mattered, so as in sequence with the rest of my body, was I doing it long enough, down enough?

2. These inputs may actually detract you from moving well. Movement should be free and effortless. When I was intentionally doing this, I held my ribs down too much and for too long. It tends to be the case when we are consciously trying to do something….we do more than is required of us. What I was left with was chronically tight lower ribs, that were a little tender in the fascia supporting from underneath. In the name of good alignment, I had caused other issues! 

The antidote to alignment ‘cues’?

Get to the root of why your ribs thrust, why your glutes don’t activate, why your heel doesn’t stay down during the gait cycle. I started by deciding never to restrict movement in my body for the sake of an alignment ‘cue’, no matter how convincing the science or the teacher. I ditched the idea of ‘cues’, and with that, I felt a great sense of release and freedom. If I felt like my ribs wanted to flare, I began playing with the movement a little, stretching them upwards instead of outwards, introducing some new movement to my nervous system.

The brain runs the show folks.

For something like walking to be effortless (which it should be), it must be unconscious, without thought, without input from us. Do you think our ancestors whilst walking were constantly directing their own movements (heel down, ribs down, glutes activated, shoulders back etc)? I don’t think so.

They simply walked.

Let’s replace alignment cues with re-educating our joints how to move “as determined by their joint surfaces and sequenced together with all of the other joints in order to relearn the timings and musculoskeletal relationships using slow and specific movement practices. Allow yourself to be with your bones and let them do the walking.” Gary Ward 

Let’s step away from the labelling of good and bad alignment, and let’s dig a bit deeper under our own skin for the answers to our ailments, of both body and mind.

The post Are alignment ‘cues’ a waste of time? appeared first on Bare Soled Girl.

Hi everyone,

I have the pleasure of introducing you to Gary Ward, an absolute pioneer in the world of movement. Gary is known for breaking the mould of anatomical thinking and for his creation of the Flow Motion Model®. I personally came across Gary whilst watching Rangan Chatterjay’s Dr in the House on the BBC, and I was amazed at how like magic, he helped one of Rangan’s clients, a bodybuilder, who had been in terrible back pain for years. I felt it was a very poignant moment when this middle-aged guy with bulging biceps, told Gary how he had been attacked as a teenager and had his jaw shattered and wired up. He didn’t see the connection to his back pain, but Gary immediately pieced the puzzle together, and well, watch for yourself the results.

Bare Soled Girl: Could you explain what your new online programme “Wake Your Feet Up” is all about, and why it’s relevant to every body?

Gary Ward: Very simply everybody has a body… and underneath it all, they are all the same. We all have the same number of bones, each of which are the same shape and are all intended to move in the same way. I choose to focus on the movement of the bones as I believe that is where the biggest bang for your buck is when working with your anatomy. If bones do the right thing, then muscles and soft tissue all begin to fall into line. They have to. Working on the muscles alone often, sadly, has very little positive impact on the bones and joints. Bones and joints form linear pathways of communication where bone A, meets bone B, which meets bone C and onto D etc. This means that indirectly Bone A has a sequential impact on bone D.

I created Wake Your Feet Up as I truly believe that in the grand scheme of things the feet are the forgotten body part – we really do not give them enough credit for enabling our whole body to function well and secondly, advice and coaching for what to do with our feet when they are uncomfortable is very minimal indeed.

Your feet, when stood upright, are the only structure connecting you to the outside world, they have 26 bones in them, linked together by 33 joints. That’s already A-Z and beyond covered in the previous conversation about joint sequences and pathways before we even get above the ankle – and not enough is being done about it. So as your feet stand awkwardly on the ground, they dictate and influence how the rest of your body is able to stand too. If the left foot is different to the right foot, your left leg will be different to your right leg and this will be noticeable at the level of your pelvis which will of course impact on your spine.

So my Wake Your Feet Up programme is genuinely your first chance to re-educate your feet to move in the way that they are supposed to as informed by the very shape of the bones themselves. Your foot sounds complicated with all of those joints but in essence, it should only be able to make two shapes, one where the arch lowers and becomes more mobile, and the other where the arch rises; and becomes more rigid. What’s important is that you are able to create BOTH of those shapes and experience both of those mobile-rigid properties for a HEALTHY foot.

Far too much focus is placed on us having strong and stable feet, Wake Your Feet Up doesn’t seek to restrict the foot’s movement through stability, moreover, it aims to promote its movement potential and feed that movement all the way up and through the rest of the body. I like to think of it as ‘permission’ when you get your feet moving again, it gives your body permission to move well again too. No more fighting with the upper body if what’s holding it back is your feet.

Wake Your Feet Up takes you on a journey of self-assessment, guided by me, to help you see which foot motions you are missing and how to restore them through a simple practice of movement and finally integrate those foot motions into the whole body. If you can improve your foot’s access to each of its two shapes, you improve access to the movement in your legs (via the knee), through the hips and pelvis and on up into the spine all the way up to the skull.

Partnered with its big brother, my Wake Your Body Up programme, you get to cover a lot of bases and begin to better understand the parts of your body that may well be contributing to your loudest physical complaints. Often the things you need to be working on are not shouting at all, and we are unaware of them, and so the programmes are designed to help you bump into those places yourself and you can begin to take ownership of your own body. After all, the healing takes place within you and the truth is nobody else can fix you (especially if they are only treating the discomforts and not seeking the causes). My goal is to help you shine a light on your dark spaces and through useful, thoughtful and effective movements, begin to restore your own physical potential.

Bare Soled Girl: What would you consider a good daily movement prescription, apart from waking our body/feet up?

Gary: This is an interesting question to ask me. In my opinion, there are no bad movement prescriptions… only bad bodies! What I mean by this is that any movement is beneficial providing your body can physically tolerate it. The sad truth is that most of us cannot move our bodies well and yet we continue to strive to achieve and sustain our choice of movement practices within the limitations of our own body, we do this by working harder and harder to get better at them. Unfortunately, without addressing the fundamental movements that our bodies are capable of, the harder you work at getting stronger with movement limitations in place the more likely you are to run into discomforts.

So the baseline for me is to simply get your body moving well so that you can go on to enjoy whatever modality of movement you are keen to pursue. With more movement awareness in your bodies, things will get easier, more comfortable and ultimately it comes with less risk of getting hurt. We arrive at this place through a practice of movement. A journey into ourselves that helps us know the movements our bodies are capable of, to understand these movements and hopefully begin to reintroduce them back into our bodies.

I think of it as practising movement (within)…. Rather than blindly following a movement practice (guided from without).

BSG: What can we do with our children to help ensure as much of their body stays as ’woken up’ as possible, considering many kids are more sedentary in the wake of screens? Are there any games incorporating what you do?

Gary: I get asked about children a lot. We can think of them as caged or free-range. Are your children caged? Or are they free to roam and explore their own movement potential? When I was a kid, I was booted out into the great outdoors and had sport pretty much every night of the week. Sure I wanted to sit and play computer games and watch TV, and this is where life is really all about balance. Too much sitting and gaming is naturally going to have a physical impact on the children of today (I’d like to caveat this with the idea that I am not anti-sitting like many schools of thought). For me I don’t think it’s about an exercise routine for kids, there are definitely movement games you can play that get body parts moving in different ways but surely exploring the outdoors, running, jumping, riding bikes and climbing are key factors to their physical development. It has long been said that there are six-movement types to explore: Push; pull; twist; squat; lunge and walk/run. These all occur in different dimensions and angles and within combinations of each. For what it’s worth, my kid’s rock climb, do gymnastics, dance, run and play a variety of sports. Since the day the way were born I gently mobilised their feet and ensured all the joints were moving and now they use wedges and movement if things need sorting out. Because of the intensity they operate at, occasionally things go south, but that’s life and to think otherwise is simply foolish. Movement variety and movement availability is key for kids and adults alike.

BSG: Please explain what you mean by nobody-ever-moved-me-it is?

Gary: I created this phrase in my book “What The Foot?” as a way of explaining that the lady (Miss.Trainers) in the case study, despite her incredible amount of discomfort and associated problems, actually didn’t have any problems. And yet she had a myriad of labels, syndromes and issues which meant that she couldn’t stand for very long in nice shoes and only wore trainers everywhere she went – even to a black-tie dinner! Working with her was great fun. She couldn’t move her spine, which meant she couldn’t move her pelvis, which meant her legs were stuck in a single position, in fact, she overused her hips and shoulders just to get from A to B. Her feet were stiff and all movement availability had been stripped from her. The result was lots of pain and a life in trainers.

It took one session, the case study in the book isn’t exaggerated in any way. We simply began to reintroduce the spinal movements she was missing and fed this down into the pelvic movements she was missing which enabled her to have more movement choice in her legs and feet and stop overusing her hips and shoulders (because she now had other things she can use instead). Her overall body simply needed to be reminded of how to move. I joked with her, you don’t have plantar fasciitis, or arthritis or lumbago or any condition for that matter – you have “nobody -ever-moved-me-it is”. So this means no therapist invited her to move her body parts properly, instead they offered off the shelf solutions and localised treatments of sore muscles and stiff joints until they ran out of options. I often say we don’t think of things as, say, a back problem, we think of things as a whole-body problem. Something somewhere is contributing to that problem. It either moves too much or it moves too little and we need to teach it to do exactly what it is supposed to do. We do that using movement itself to restore the movements that you are currently unable to access

BSG: What workouts/ programmes/ exercises do you think are best for preventing it in the first place?

Gary: I think this is a similar answer to question 2. The solution to nobody-ever-moved-me-itis is to start moving the body parts you don’t normally move! I designed my programmes with one thing in mind: to enable people to take ownership of their own body. We all have the same physical structures hiding underneath our varied exteriors. Our spines, hips, shoulders, hips and feet ALL move in the same way as each other. This movement is dictated by the shapes of the bones and is, therefore, something we can all set about checking within ourselves, discovering our own limitations and begin to restore our more optimal movement patterns. Some people just stick to this way of looking after their body once they get in touch with it, others do it so they can enjoy their chosen sport, activity, practice alongside it. I’m quite the purist when it comes to being able to move your body well – but should add-in that I too enjoy the pursuits of rock climbing, weightlifting, bodyweight training, skiing, the odd game of football or tennis and occasionally yoga too. All of these I enjoy more and more when my body is thriving in its own movement potential. It’s often astounding how many great “movers” there are, athletes we work with who physically cannot access a movement (or several) in their own body. We forget. We abandon. We compensate and reorganise. We simply lose connection with or awareness of a variety of movements that should be available in our own body. The organisation of our bodies to survive this problem is incredibly intuitive but does lead to limitations, postural change and altered movement behaviours. Doing your exercises more and harder isn’t what is going to bring these movements back. The goal is to restore the lost movements in order to re-optimise your body once again.

BSG: What footwear do you and your family wear?

Gary: This is a bit like the sitting statement. I’m not about to pick and choose sides between footwear. I have personally enjoyed wearing some barefoot shoes and despised others while also enjoying the comfort of a normal shoe. I do realise that the place for a comfortable pair of shoes is rarely the sports shoe store. Those heavily designed shoes do not seem to have taken into account the foot’s actual movement potential!? So here’s the thing, with no pressure on anybody needing to do the right thing, we simply wear shoes that we find comfortable and which do not impede our foot’s ability to move. So I veto wide heels, angles cut into the forefoot, abnormal foot rockers, shock absorption and anti-pronation devices. You may or may not have guessed it but what’s most important for me is that your foot is able to MOVE, if it can’t you might benefit from a shoe that props it up… but when it can move you may find yourself in a position to dominate the shoe, rather than have the shoe dominate you. Your internal and external environment must also play a balancing act in your body. If the shoe (external environment) overpowers your foot (internal environment) you are going to reduce your movement potential and begin to bypass necessary movements. And yet if you can regenerate access to those movements and are able to enjoy those movements in the shoe (whether barefoot or not) you begin to dominate that shoe. It should be said that even lightweight barefoot shoes can have an adverse effect on your anatomy. They sadly don’t all tick the box of enabling your foot to operate as if it were barefoot. So really, comfort is the only way forwards in this conversation – that and maximising your own potential for movement in each and every part of your body.

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Review and Links

I have taken both programmes and put simply, I find them incredible. For the price of a couple of fitness classes, you will introduce awareness and movement to your body you never thought possible. I encourage any of you in a lot of pain, with niggly pains, or those wanting to up their mind-body connection to give these programmes a go.

Gary’s Website is here.

His Instagram (which is jammed with super informative videos and posts is here.

You’ll find the Wake Your Body up Programme for the incredible price of £14.49 here, and the Wake Your Feet up Programme for £14.99 here.

Foot wedges are an important component of the Wake Your Feet up Programme, but don’t worry, they are only a tenner! (£10).

The post Gary Ward on how to REALLY wake your body up, starting with the feet. appeared first on Bare Soled Girl.

I usually use the term barefoot on this blog to refer to shoes, but I feel like the ‘barefoot’ qualities I attribute to shoes do not need to be limited to them.

Barefoot shoes:

• allow my feet the freedom to move in the way nature intended them to
• don’t lift anything up
• don’t push anything down
• don’t cushion anything
• don’t squish anything in

Can anyone think of other garments we place on parts of our bodies that could have the same effects as those listed above?

Skinny jeans, tight-fitting tops, and yes, you’ve guessed it – bras!

When I think back to how many bras I have worn that:

• didn’t allow my breasts the freedom to move in the way nature intended them to
• lifted my breasts up
• pushed my breasts down
• cushioned my breasts
• squished my breasts

And all in the name of what? Presumably, the same thing that made me wear conventional shoes for so long – perceived aesthetics, a perception of beauty, that those in the barefoot industry would like to change! The thing is, conventional shoes do not allow the same freedom of movement. They are in some ways an example of a ‘cast’ (as Katy Bowman would say).

‘Casting’ body parts has really become the norm throughout history, from the ancient practice of Chinese foot binding to 19th and 20th-century corsetry. However, we probably don’t equate our incredibly skinny skinnies, our sexy leather pants or our Wonderbras with restrictive ‘casting’. For most of us (including me until a few years ago), we don’t even give it a second thought to shove our heaving body parts into what can only be called casts. I am not telling you all to go burn your bras but have you considered that our beautiful breasts are not dead lumps of putty to be pushed around to look good in your going out dress. They are sensuous, life-giving, evolutionary glands, teeming with lymph, nerves and vasculature.

If you have been endowed with larger breasts, then, of course, a little support is valued. But there is an amazing array of bras, bralettes and sports tops out there that can fit the bill, look good, and feel amazing.

Without further ado, let’s take a look!

Organic Basics

The fashion industry is a dirty bastard. So we put sustainable thinking at the centre of everything – that means we only choose fabrics that care for our environment and we only ever partner with factories that care about their impact, too. When we say sustainability is our core mission we don’t mean that sustainability is nice to have – we mean that it’s the only way we act.

I love Organic Basics. I love their ethics, I love their new low impact website, I love their underwear! They are the absolute proof that sustainability and comfort can go hand in hand with sexiness and femininity. They have offered me a 10 % discount code for you guys – please use BAREOBC, valid until August.

Brighton Lace

At Brighton Lace, we make limited-edition lingerie in the finest eco laces and sustainable fabrics. From gorgeous vintage-inspired lace underwear to cosy cashmere bralette sets, we specialise in feel-good, feminine lingerie that is ethical too!

Whether you’re looking for romantic, delicate bridal lingerie, something lacy for a special occasion, a pretty gift for her, or simply gorgeous intimates for everyday delight, we’ve got something to help celebrate the beauty of being you.

This small women-led business has intrigued me for some time. They offer simply beautiful underwear that any woman would feel special in!

AmaElla

Founded with a vision of creating a fashion company with ethical and sustainable values at its core. Ethically made in Portugal and using GOTS certified organic cotton, AmaElla produces timeless lingerie classics that are kinder to the skin, kinder to the environment and better for farmers and their communities.

We make lingerie for you and the real world you live in. We invite you to help us redefine beauty and change shopping behaviours to safeguard our environment and ensure workers and farmers thrive. We want you to be part of our journey,  join in the conversation and help us in our mission.

We know you care about your wellbeing, your look and your impact on the planet. That’s why we’ll always be honest about how our products are sourced and made.

We will remind you that beauty is about self-love, realism, inclusivity and honesty. We will care for you by making lingerie with only the finest organic fibres offering you softness, versatility and comfort that never compromises on style.

Not an underwire in sight! Aren’t they sensual!

Sloanie

Soft underwear is underrated and difficult to get hold of. We got tired of large European underwear houses coasting on their brands, failing to bring you a premium product to slip into every morning. So we decided to create something better, something new. In an era of fast fashion, we’re doing things differently. At the heart of Sloanie is a core line of underwear that we think is just about perfect. The first thing you put on, and the last thing you take off: most people spend two-thirds of their life wearing underwear*. So, they shouldn’t be an afterthought. Start every day with confidence and comfort, and end each day feeling fresh and free.

The fibres used to make our super-soft undies are produced from responsibly managed forests in Austria and across Europe by an industry-leading sustainable fibre manufacturer.

Another superbly sustainable brand, and stylish minimalist underwear wuth no padding or wires.

Anekdot

Anekdot is an upcycle brand

This does not mean you will be wearing someone else’s underwear. It means that we source our superb materials from production leftovers, end of lines, off-cuts, deadstock and vintage trimmings turning them into something beautiful and meaningful for your everyday life. We are in perpetual search for new opportunities to source our materials. This could be a closing down factory, maker’s surplus, production errors or miscalculations. The materials we use have never been previously worn, but we thought we’d give them a new chance to be enjoyed. For the above reasons our products are limited editions and can hardly be reproduced.

Upcycled underwear, a fusion of exquisite nostalgiac and sleek comfort.

Or you can always make your own! Check out Madalynne Intimates for patterns, including the free pattern seen below.

The post What do Conventional Footwear and Bras have in common? appeared first on Bare Soled Girl.

Hi everyone! For this weeks post, one of my clients has allowed me to post the entire details of an email consult here. I thought it might be helpful as I am sure many of you will relate to her issues. Section 1 consists of a questionnaire to gain more understanding of her day to day routine, and Section 2 gives a host of ideas to incorporate more movement into her day in a fun and effortless way.

SECTION 1: QUESTIONNAIRE

Bare Soled Girl: Could you tell me a little about your general health, if you have any issues that prevent you from navigating your day to day life (injuries, illness etc)?

Client: I have a dodgy pelvis since pregnancy that hasn’t gone back to normal. Otherwise, fit and healthy, if a little ‘unfit’.

BSG: I would highly recommend this series of movements, to wake up and mobilise your shoulder blades, spine, pelvis and ribcage. There are 4 movements in total. I do these every day and they feel amazing. P.S. I will be taking Gary Wards courses very soon!

BSG: What is your average weekday like? Try to be as specific as possible, right down to the hour you get up, go to bed, what your morning vs afternoon schedule is etc etc….the more info the better!

Client: I’m a stay at home mum to a 4-year-old boy. I co-sleep with him so the early hours of the morning often involve lying in a fixed position trying not to move him up.

BSG: You said you end up in a fixed position in the early morning. See if you can make it a slightly different ‘fixed’ position each time…change up the geometry a little and try not to tense in this position. That way you are ‘squishing’ your cells in a slightly different way each time…and that all classifies as movement!!!

Client: He wakes about 7 and I either go back to bed if I’m tired or get up and play with him for a few hours, indoors or in the garden doing gardening.

BSG: A little gardening alignment tip:

Client: We walk down to town for lunch, walk around town, shop and go to the park and walk home. (All in all about 4000 steps – hard to increase it – nowhere else to go!)

BSG: Perhaps don’t ALWAYS walk on the same path through your town, and if you have nowhere else to walk mix it up somehow. If it’s a loop, go in a different direction. Walk on the other side of the sidewalk. Change something, it will make you more alert. Bend down to look at flowers etc with son in the same way as shown above in gardening video to get in some squats. Have some fun at the playground:

Client: I tend to push him home in the pushchair as we live up a very steep hill.

BSG: Try some games to encourage your little boy up the steep hill…” meet you there” game for eg…where you run to the next available tree, car etc and he does the same etc…..you could also toy with the idea of carrying him for parts of the steep hill stretch in various ways; piggyback, in one arm, around your back etc…be playful with the idea, a great way to get some upper body strength work.

Client: Then it’s dinner and bedtime. He goes to bed at 7, where I lie with him till he falls asleep,

BSG: You could incorporate some of your restorative stretches here, some breathing or meditation?

Client: Then I come down and chat with my partner / watch TV/read till bedtime – but I do sit on the floor for this.

BSG: Get yourself some yoga tune-up balls here, to enjoy self-massage of tight fascia while you watch tv, a super delicious way to unwind.

BSG: What does a weekend usually consist of for you?

Client: Usually drive somewhere to do shopping, lunch and a trip. Not nearly as much walking as I’d like as my partner is often tired and we haven’t really got into the routine of pushing ourselves (2-3000 steps)

BSG: Try frisbee or flying a kite in the park. I recently invested in a Flybold Slackline kit and it’s incredible how the whole family want to get involved, including my partner who is also often tired. It is amazing fun and there’s always cheap ones going on eBay.

BSG: Is there any way your family could socialise at the weekend in a forest/park with a few friends/other families? : playing some games together, having a picnic etc.. (written before pandemic)

BSG: What does your time for fitness/exercise look like?

Client: I do Katy Bowman’s online classes 1 or 2 x a week. I often try and stretch/move while I’m sitting. I could do more if I didn’t waste time on my phone. I could go to classes on the weekend if I wanted to, but I prefer Katy’s work to a yoga class!

BSG: Perhaps rather than going to a class, take the opportunity to get in a longer walk on possibly more challenging ground. Get your fiancee to drop you to the next village etc and make your way back… like a little mini-adventure for yourself. Keep going with stretches and moves here and there throughout the day, that’s all great. Think about downloading an app that helps you track your phone usage.

Also, dance with your son, swing him, lift him up as part of the dance etc, all great strengthening and mobility work.

BSG: What changes would you like to see in your daily life and why? What do you feel is holding you back from fitness goals. Feel free to elaborate into other lifestyle goals here aside from fitness. I just want to get a feel for your life as it is right now and how to work within that framework.

Client: Without drastically changing my lifestyle, I don’t know how to walk more, get my upper body moving and help my son move more. My son will be home educated so our life won’t change much but there’s scope for more. We live in a small town so unless we walk to another village it’s not really possible to walk any further. Unless I was less anxious about taking longer trips maybe. It sounds silly but I always wish my partner was really into this so he could help me lead the way, but I feel I have to drag my family along on this mission with me.

BSG: Yes it does seem hard when you know this is beneficial for the whole family but your other half isn’t as excited about it! I have been there! Just keep going…he will begin to see the fun you are having and the changes you are making to your mind and body and he may become indirectly interested from seeing you!

SECTION 2: MORE MOVEMENT SUGGESTIONS

Ideas for More Garden Movement:

• Keep climbing that tree! Encourage your little boy to climb and model by climbing a little yourself!
• If you can get your hands on an old ladder and raise it at both ends and crawl over it together. Crawling is an incredible movement that incorporates balance work and coordination with whole-body movement
• Crawling Instructions: Your hands should be directly under your shoulders and knees under your hips. Hands straight ahead with elbow pits forward. Bring your heels up so you can use your toes to move. Next, apply pressure in your hands and pop your knees off the ground around 4 inches. Your back should be roughly parallel to the ground. You want to maintain this level throughout your crawl. To begin crawling, move in a contralateral pattern (opposite hand and foot.) Move your right hand forward and left foot forward at the same time. Then switch. Left hand forward, right foot forward. Look in front of you to see where you are going, but only lift your head as much as necessary to see. Be careful not to let your knees flare out to the side. To make sure your knees are properly aligned, keep your knee in line with your elbow.
• Take various items outside and practice balancing/jumping from one to the next, you can be kangaroos together…..can be yoga blocks, cushions, books etc etc…possibilities are endless.
• Go barefoot in the grass and whatever other ‘vitamin textured’ ground you have access to…rocks, stones etc….mobilise your feet as much as you can with different terrain.
• Grab these cards from Primal Play and have some fun together!

Ideas for More General Outdoor Movement:

• Is there any way you could squeeze in a 20-minute walk before your fiancee heads out to work in the morning a few mornings a week?

Ideas for More Indoor Movement:

• Squat down on the floor to prep vegetables for your meal.
• Grate cheese, carrot etc by hand (some handwork!)
• Put your cups up on a high shelf so you have to reach up for them.
• Practice sitting in different ways on the floor, and getting up in different ways.
• Make or buy a textured mat that you can place in an area where you walk over frequently. You could also buy one such as this, which is also aesthetically beautiful (see image below).

• Crawl from room to room and invite your son to attach to your belly like a koala! Or on your back like a camel!

• Each time you go up your stairs, do it a little differently. For example one time you could take 2 steps at a time, next time go up sideways, next time crawl etc
• Did I already mention dance? What a fun way to move your family. Just choose some upbeat music and off you go!
• Try Cosmic Kids Yoga here with your little one (see below eg. video) I do it with my kids as it is great fun!

I hope these ideas are helpful. Remember, movement is something to be enjoyed. It is part of the essence of being human. Let’s not turn it into punishment!

The post How to add more movement to your life…without having to change your life! appeared first on Bare Soled Girl.

We all know that taking the stairs is better than the elevator….

We all know that walking to work is better than taking the car….

We all know that taking movement breaks whilst sitting at a computer is better than being stationary for long periods…….

We often justify our laziness (me included), by promising to ourselves that we will hit the gym after work, tomorrow, or next week. This ‘exercise’ mindset has become the new collective consciousness, and our culture promotes it, whether it be the self-closing car boot or the escalator in the supermarket. We have become like animals in a zoo, experiencing a comfortable and non-risky life, yet not fulfilling our stimulatory, social, or movement needs. It becomes a life of captivity, so to speak. Our cages are the modern conveniences of life – the chairs, beds, cars, shopping trolleys, couches, elevators, refrigerators, strollers, and various electronic devices that outsource any physical activity. We push buttons rather than running errands or physically moving things from A to B.

Our bodily cells have morphed to accommodate the movement that these modern conveniences call for. This means that our bodies are now equipped to move very minimal parts of us. This chronic “movement drought,” as Katy Bowman from Nutritious Movement terms it, affects our whole body, and can lead to everything from cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, deteriorating joints, and diabetes.

“Not only are we unprecedentedly undermoved in terms of quantity, the variety and variability of our movement is minuscule compared to the movement of our ancestors—from our grandparents too, especially, our distant hunter-gatherer foreparents. Imagine not only the amount of movement required to harvest and prepare food from scratch; gather materials to create weapons with which to hunt animals on foot; clean them; turn their bones into tools and their hide into clothing – but the actual variety of moves themselves. Each of those tasks – repeated over and over throughout a lifetime, a little differently every time – involves thousands of movements that each bend the cells of the body uniquely.” Katy Bowman

And you can’t just fix the biological repercussions of a life in captivity by going to the gym for an hour three to four times a week.

Frank Forencich from Exuberant Animal feels that the consequences of living in a modern, technologically enhanced world are undermining not only our bodies, but also our minds.

“In our ongoing effort to make ourselves more comfortable, we’ve lost out on two of the most essential components of health and happiness: direct interaction with nature and with other people.” Frank Forencich

Many of us no longer:

• play
• do meaningful small-group activities of any kind
• go to bed with the sunset
• go barefoot
• get natural light first thing in the morning
• feel grass or soil between our toes
• move together in a group
• find joy in movement

Instead, we are mostly

• moving in limited ranges
• moving in fixed unnatural ways
• moving in prescribed repetitive routines
• moving in isolation from our family or friends (think an hour at the gym)
• outsourcing movement to our modern-day convenience
• moving for aesthetical pleasing bodies

In the last few years, movement trailblazers such as Erwan Le Corre from Movnat, Katy Bowman of Nutritious Movement, Frank Forencich from Exuberant Animal and Ido Portal of Movement Culture amongst many others have been trying to address this narcissistic model of movement by instilling a sense of functional realism as well as innate contentment and joy back to exercise. They’re turning away from limiting equipment and regimented training programmes and returning to natural spaces and primordial natural movement.

A six-pack and rippling biceps can still be had, but perhaps more importantly so can:

• full-body coordination
• keeping pace with your kids in football
• excellent balance
• improved brain function (because the more complex the environment your movement must adapt to, the greater the neurological challenge for your brain)
• fresh air
• fun and variety
• the ability to carry a tired child
• improved proprioception
• dynamic body and environment awareness
• natural light
• adaptability versus capability (A good example from Erwan Le Corre is the following: You run on a treadmill. Remove the treadmill and take a run through the forest, with holes, hills, mud, stones, and fallen trees, not as easy right?! What might running in a forest tell you about the real state of your running capability?
• an enhanced sense of connection – to our bodies, to nature, and to other people (community) because as Erwan Le Coree puts it very well – nature is where we all come from, and participating in a community is essential for any human group on the planet.

We are nature. This is not a romantic notion; this is a fact. The more divorced our lifestyles are from nature, the more we suffer. Contact with nature is inherently healing. This doesn’t mean we have to live exclusively in the wilderness and go back to huts or caves. It just means that we definitely need regular contact with nature — much, much more than most people get in today’s world. Erwan Le Corre

So what were the movement activities and movement patterns of our ancient ancestors?

Frank Forencich invites his clients to take a look at an African landscape – the kind of habitat from which humanity originated and ask yourself the question – “What kinds of skills and abilities might be necessary to survive in an environment like this?” Walking, squatting, and climbing to gather food; carrying and lifting to build a shelter; or to carry a child, balancing, throwing, leaping, and running to avoid predators and hunt for prey – are the most instinctive answers, and these form the foundation of ancestral-style workouts. So we know our ancient ancestors:

• crawled
• squatted
• walked
• lifted
• balanced
• carried
• climbed
• threw
• balanced
• jumped
• ran
• reached

Does your gym workout include a litany of movements like this, in different ways, situations, terrains, temperatures, times of the day? And with different people? The exercise programme of our ancient ancestors was not an exercise program, it was simply movement by living – which was uniquely playful, unscripted, kinetic, social, and never the same from one day to the next. And from an evolutionary perspective, its what we in the modern day are designed for biologically. “Ancient people didn’t exercise in any formal way,” Forencich explains. They were what could be called movement generalists – good at many different kinds of movement, but never doing one thing too much or too long.

Many Personal Trainers and Coaches are beginning to incorporate these foundational movements into their programs, recognizing the incredible benefits to fitness and health. whilst other schools are dedicated to instructing others in fundamental functional ancestral movements. Most of these exercises can be done in any open space with no equipment at all; the rest can be done either with objects you can find outside such as stones and logs. The truth is that we’re neurologically and viscerally wired for this kind of movement.

Primitive movement programmes stand in sharp contrast to gym workouts designed around isolating specific muscle groups on certain days of the week. While advantageous in many ways, such workouts are severely lacking on many fronts merely due to the fact that they tend to treat the body as a series of disconnected parts – the biceps, the legs, the heart, and lungs – as opposed to a whole body, working co-operatively to produce movement for a variety of health and fitness gains. Fitness motivation can be found in far more practical concerns such as being able to catch that bus, being able to carry a tired 5-year old on your back, having stamina in sex, and other vital life functions for thriving humans. And for those still seeking a flatter stomach and perky behind, Le Corre states that “the way you look is a direct reflection of the quality of your movement. Learn to move well, and your body will look good,” says Le Corre. And in fairness… Erwan doesn’t look too bad for a middle-aged man, does he!

And then there is the fun aspect. Let’s face it, if exercise isn’t fun, we struggle to keep it up. For many, a gym is a place that signifies ‘me-time’ or is part of a ‘self-care’ ritual, but many fitness coaches believe that the social connections one can make and the fun times and laughter had during communal exercise and play are perhaps even more vital to health and happiness.

Primal functional movement fitness classes build strength, mobility, cardiovascular conditioning, and coordination through a wide variety of full-body challenges. In group settings, they emphasize a whole-person experience which can serve as a powerful remedy to isolation – both for the muscles and for the individual. In our disordered and stressful modern-day lives, feeling a sense of connection – to our environment, our community, and to ourselves is a rare jewel that we don’t often touch. Laughter and fun completes the whole-person experience. Natural movement offers a starting point, and primitive-fitness style workouts are a good place to begin. I invite you to take a look at some of them (listed below) and perhaps take advantage of the amazing FREE resources and trial periods to get a feel for this type of non-exercise! Many have gone online since COVID 19, so great resources for your family at home.

Movnat

“MovNat is a school of physical competence for the real-world. Our goal is to equip people with the movement skills, physiological preparedness (strength & conditioning), and mindset necessary for practical, adaptable performance – both fundamental and high level.

As a physical education system and fitness method, MovNat is entirely based on the practice of Natural Movement skills, i.e. movements that the human body was designed or “selected” to perform. These skills can be divided into three categories: Locomotive, Manipulative.

Locomotive skills include ground movements (crawling, get-ups), balancing, walking, running, jumping, climbing, and aquatic skills. Manipulative skills include lifting, carrying, throwing, and catching. Combative skills include grappling and striking.

MovNat’s method symbiotically develops positional and breath control, spatial awareness, coordination, balance, mobility, stability, strength, power, endurance, adaptability, and resiliency, as well as focus/mindfulness and mental fortitude.”

Exuberant Animal

“Exuberant Animal offers a uniquely integrative perspective on the human predicament, a new-old living in the modern world. Firmly grounded in biology and evolutionary science, we offer a powerful experiential approach that helps people improve their health, their performance, and the quality of their lives. Our training extends well beyond the scope of conventional fitness practice; our focus is on the complete human being.

Author and creator Frank Forencich will guide you through a training experience that’s transformational, inspirational, and intensely meaningful. You’ll learn how to improve your health, navigate the challenges of our alien environment, and make peace with the modern world.”

Primal Play

“Darryl Edwards developed the PRIMAL PLAY METHOD to inspire children and adults to make activity fun while getting healthier, fitter and stronger in the process. 

Primal Play is many things. It’s a feeling about how we live our lives. It’s a way of orienting yourself in the world. It’s a super creative and always­ evolving exercise and movement program. It’s a social and community­ creating experience. It’s a way of rediscovering something deep and essential and exhilarating about ourselves as human beings. And it’s Darryl Edward’s life passion.

That’s a lot. And the coolest thing about all of it? It’s all FUN.

Everything about Primal Play ­­from the interesting, even outlandish movements (carry your friend, anyone?), to the academic theory, the people involved in it, and the many health benefits you get from doing it­­ all centres around this powerful idea that humans benefit most from activities that are pure, raw, all-out, rewarding fun. We move, we laugh, we explore what our bodies can do in the world around us.

When we have fun we get the same endorphin kick people get from long endurance exercise, except we get that kick instantly, constantly, and much more intensely. When we have fun it feeds our brains and our emotions. When we play we kick our minds into imagination mode, and we tap into that powerful charge we get from positive experiences with other happy people.

Primal Play movement gives us the benefits of functional fitness training but doesn’t stop there. It takes us beyond exercise. It takes us into fun.

What other health programs can say that?”

Animal Flow

“Animal Flow is ground-based movement, made fun, challenging, and effective. This system is designed to improve strength power, flexibility, mobility, and coordination for all levels of fitness enthusiasts. Whether you want to work out on your own, train with a professional, or take part in group classes, Animal Flow has something for everybody! Animal Flow includes a range of movements and combinations that are grouped into categories we call the “Six Components.” Each Component is designed to elicit specific results. The Six Components can be mixed and matched in many ways, allowing you to incorporate one, some, or all of them in your workouts.”

Nutritious Movement

“Expanding Your Movement with Nature & Community…..At Nutritious Movement, our broader mission is pretty basic: We teach movement.

It’s the details that get more complicated. The first thing you need in order to move more is to move your own body, and your own body parts, more. So we have a ton of exercise instruction here.

But movement between one’s own feet and fingertips isn’t the body’s full movement potential. There are some movements you can only get from certain environments – meaning both where you’re moving and who you’re moving with. That’s why, to help you move as much as you can, a full movement program needs to include nature and community.

Just like prairie grasses, wolves, birds, and mice all keep each other in check, your movement keeps someone else moving or prevents them from moving. Your movement dictates how much stuff you consume. Your movement is part of an ecological system.”

(Note: Included above is my referral link)

Ido Portal Movement Culture

“What is the goal behind Movement Culture? First and foremost to create a dialogue and a cross-disciplinary exchange of information between various types of movers. Information that was isolated in specific isolated practices can be extremely useful for other types of movers, but in the past this information was not shared. Second, the intention is to provide tools and support the development of Movers and specialists – practitioners of both isolated movement practices as well as wider spectrum ones. What is a mover? Someone who sees beyond the technicalities of each movement pursuit or discipline. Someone who finds interest and wishes to understand the body, health, performance, and physical artistic expression.”

ZUU Fit

“For 10 years, ZUU has been enriching the lives of individuals & communities – physically, mentally & socially. We are the World’s leader in High Intensity, Low Impact Bodyweight Training.

The World’s most respected educator in Human Movement, ZUU is a registered bodyweight training modality created by Nathan Helberg that started in elite sports and armed forces. Over the years, ZUU has become an integral part of these sectors being used for pre-season training, game-specific conditioning, rehabilitation, confined space training, remote location training, and frontline troop training where equipment is unavailable or inaccessible.

Besides being available for ALL sporting code coaches and military PTI’s, ZUU has become available to the commercial world of fitness. With our heritage in the elite world where ALL training is scrutinized, we pride ourselves on increasing performance across the board.
Through our education platform, we are teaching PT’s all over the world, either face to face or online, the value add of movements and programming found inside the space of ZUU.”

Ben Medder

“My approach is to connect people with what it feels like to move like a human again, to rediscover one’s innate play drive we had as children, to rekindle a connection with nature to give this movement and play context, and develop a movement practice that ultimately gives a meaningful experience. Rebuild the prerequisites (joint mobility, strength & body control) for the many variables and chaos we encounter, leading us to reclaim the basics of natural human movement and ultimately aspiring to freedom in movement and true engagement/fun.

Taking inspiration from my teachers Rafe Kelley, Jozef Frucek & Linda Kapetana, Joseph Bartz, Tom Weksler, and others, and following and applying the work of Ido Portal, I continue my tutelage from the people that inspire me. I am Rafe Kelly’s first and only Evolve Move Play coach and a Functional Range Conditioning Mobility Specialist (FRCms).

I run quarterly workshops, mentorships, intensives, several weekly classes exploring a variety of movement influences – natural movement / Evolve Move Play method, Fighting Monkey Practice, parkour in natural environments and tree climbing, gymnastic strength, FRC mobility development, rough and tumble/roughhousing, group/partner games and play, and also offer private sessions/programmes in the form of 1to1 movement training and online coaching.”

Evolve Move Play

“Learn to move like a human, to reclaim your capacity to move with the flow over grass, rocks, and trees, play with sticks and stones, and learn to develop yourself through contact, roughhousing dance, and combatives. Reconnect with nature and develop your aliveness in movement to become more resilient embodied human. What is the purpose? Ok so humans evolved to do specific movements, who cares if we don’t need to do them today. Why do we train these things if we don’t need to chase down mammoths and fight off invading tribes?

At Evolve Move Play we believe the highest purpose of movement practice is to create deeper aliveness, deeper embodiment, and deeper engagement with the world.

We believe that movement in nature where we evolved, engages us and develops us on far more levels then movement in the gym, we believe that in fact, natural movement is a physical form of nutrition that when missing from a person’s life leads to Ill health the same way that not eating a whole food diet is bad for your health.

We believe that the fundamental natural movements are whole foods for physical development and exercises are supplements.

When we have to live an unnatural life, then we do need exercises to help us compensate for what is missing but we have made the mistake of focusing too much the supplements in our research and practice of physical education.

Our approach to physical education has tended to look at the human in a reductionist way, a set of parts to be improved, but the potential of movement training goes far deeper than better abs or a tighter butt. We are not a body and mind we are a body-mind and every aspect of us cognitive, emotional, and physical is affected by how we move.

The way we move and the environments we move through, impact our moods, our alertness, awareness, and focus, they can make us strong and robust not just for lifting weight but for dealing with cold and heat, for the deal with abrasions and bruise, even the way our mind handles pain both emotional and physical is deeply affected by our movement practice.

We believe to develop the strongest, most adaptable most resilient, and happiest human beings you need to give them movement and it needs to be rooted in the movements we evolved for.. Move Like a Human to live and feel alive as human truly should.”

Athletic Playground

At Athletic Playground, we see dynamic movement as an essential part of the human experience. Our ancestors evolved in a complex environment where they were required to navigate a variety of ever-changing physical demands. Moving a lot wasn’t optional; it was a requirement for survival.

Today, technology has mechanized this survival necessity out of our lives, but we believe that we as humans still maintain a hunger for a steady diet of movement. Fulfilling this primal criterion for happiness in today’s sedentary world means giving ourselves a reason to move since our environment no longer does that for us.

Most mainstream incentives to move boil down to one basic idea: “Move because you should,” which is true, but not necessarily motivating. At Athletic Playground, the impetus is very different: “Move because it’s fun.” At AP, we believe that satisfying the evolutionary desire for movement and play is inherently rewarding. There’s a lot of intrinsic pleasure to be found in movement. Running, jumping, reaching, balancing, throwing, crawling, climbing, tumbling, vaulting, leaping, landing, flipping, and turning – our bodies like to do to these things. Everything offered here at AP is designed to help you discover the innate joy of moving your body.

Here, playful activity can become a lifestyle. The physical, social, and psychological benefits of play are not only self-evident; scientific research is beginning to take notice of and study them in earnest. So far, the research confirms what the monkeys at Athletic Playground already know: play is good!

A HOME FOR YOUR MOVEMENT PRACTICE!
PLAYFUL MOVEMENT TRAINING!
ACCESSIBLE TO ANYONE!

Come learn new skills, get stronger, more flexible, and add PLAY to your day!
We have beginner-friendly and online classes!
Classes offered: Parkour, Aerial, AcroYoga, Monkey Conditioning, Handstands, Acrobatics, AcroBalance, Hooping, Flexibility, Tango, Mobility, and more!”

MovEvo

“Movement in the sense of evolution means versatility. MovEvo is a self-reinforcing and interconnected approach to movement.

The MovEvo web portal is the ideal companion on your individual way to a painless and moving everyday life full of energy and joie de vivre. Adapted to your needs, goals, and your unique life situation, you will receive a customized training program. You train independent of time and place. Whether on a business trip, in the office, at home or outdoors. Exercise doesn’t just take place in the gym. The whole life is movement.

You already have everything you need – your body!”

The post Are you primordially fit? appeared first on Bare Soled Girl.

Family walks used to be a bit of a nightmare for us. I would get my groove on, pack the snacks, put on the layers and look forward to a nice relaxing loooooong forest walk.

It would go something like this:

We arrive at the forest. Kids won’t get out of the car. Caroline and Joel get annoyed because kids won’t get out of the car. “What’s wrong with MY kids,” I say. “Kids are supposed to LOVE NATURE right?”

Finally, kids are coaxed out with promises of snacks along the way… Leading them along like dogs being teased for treats. It is all going OK until after 10 minutes, Chloe refuses point-blank to go an inch further. And the crying starts. I lose the will to live. We turn around. We go home. End of the family walk.

Now I know better.

These are things I picked up from my training and also from trial and error with my guys. Perhaps some of these tips will be useful for you!

1. Endurance issues: children deal with endurance and fatigue issues just the same as adults. If they don’t build up their walking endurance, they will, of course, have meltdowns. They are not putting it on, they are probably tired when they say they are (or possibly have Paw Patrol on their mind!).
2. Training: start with what the child is able for. See it as training and bring them out every day. Time how long they can comfortably manage and increase the walk by 10% each week.
3. Your own mindset: if you are trying to get your child to undertake a long walk for their well-being, but you would actually rather be scrolling on Facebook, that will translate across. Get into a different mindset. Kids learn by modeling. If you need to pop down to the local store for milk, start seeing it as an opportunity for 20 minutes extra movement for you and your child in your day. (Yes, it’s quicker to hop in the car, but just be aware what values are being passed on here.) If your child’s school is a 10 minutes walk, then start walking there together, even if you only do it twice a week. Let them see that movement is a normal and natural part of your day and they will follow your lead.
4. Have a goal in mind for the child, for example… Let’s go to the park and feed the fish, let’s go count how many snails are down by Peter’s wall, etc.
5. Change things up. Kids can get bored with their walking routes the same as adults can. Take a different path to the play-park, take a detour, play hide and seek behind trees along the way, search for bugs, get creative.
6. Cover the bases: sleep and food… Don’t head out for a walk right before lunchtime for example.
7. Remember your community! Try to get other families out with you. We started inviting other families to the forest on Saturdays, as a form of life ‘stacking’. Katy Bowman, my teacher introduced me to this concept… Why not exercise whilst spending time with your family, or whilst chatting to a friend, whilst having bonding time with your kids, whilst eating, whilst getting fresh air!
8. Don’t tell them you are going for a ‘walk’. Tell them you are going to see something, check something out. Because we have done quite long walks since starting our trip, Chloe has developed an aversion to ‘walks’… So now we simply don’t use the word ‘walk’ and there isn’t a problem.
9. Remember ground texture. Walking on flat, level paths all the time fails to provide some of the “movement nutrients” our feet, ankles, calves, knees, and other body parts need to be strong and mobile. If you don’t live in the countryside with bumpy rocky paths, or near a beach, you can get creative here. Collect some stones from outside and create a little area that the kids can walk on every day. Explain to them that it’s good for their feet to ‘squish’ and move in different directions to strengthen up all the little bones and muscles. I have some wood cut to random lengths, yoga blocks, pillows, blankets, stones, balls, and other assorted things that my kids play on and sit on. Look around you outside for “vitamin texture”. Make it a game… “Let’s find bumpy ground to step on!!!”
10. Get barefoot shoes on your kids! I cannot stress this enough. Your child may be wearing high heels and you are not even aware of this. Also, weight is a problem when it comes to regular shoes and even though, to you they may feel OK, a child weighs less than an adult so shoes should also weigh less than that of an adult. I’m amazed at how heavy some conventional kids’ shoes are. No wonder kids don’t want to walk anywhere!!! Remember… The higher the heel, the more forward the body is projected, and the shorter the foot, the more forward the body is projected. ( Also, the taller the body, the more forward the body is projected, which is not so relevant in a discussion about kids). See this video that explains this concept visually.

Make sure the shoes have the following:

• A wide toe box. Why? Being smashed into “cast-like” narrow toe boxes weakens kids’ feet. A wide toe box aids balance and coordinated movement.

• A flexible sole. Why? Kids’ feet have as many neuro-transmitters in their feet as in their hands. So the more kids’ feet can feel, the more messages go dashing to developing brains!

• Zero heel (explained above).

• Fully connected to their feet with no gripping. Why? Gripping footwear such as flip flops curls some toe bones up and some down.

I intend to do a comprehensive list of kids’ barefoot brands (as well as adults of course). But for now, check out the UK website Happy Little Soles for a great selection to get you started.

I hope this was helpful guys! See you next week!

P.S. Here’s a nice idea we came up with to create some interest and wonder, feel free to print out and bring with you on walks.

The post How I Get My Kids to Walk Long Distances… or Walk at all! appeared first on Bare Soled Girl.

I have recently been working with Dominik Koch, of Decrypt Bodywork on some aspects of my personal movement that I haven’t been able to figure out to this point, and boy, did I go to the right guy! I’ve been really taken aback and humbled by his knowledge and so I wanted to try to give my readers an idea of what he does.

Little did I know that a cesarean section scar from 7 years ago was hindering the movement of my pelvis, nor was I aware that an old knee injury was preventing my left foot from moving well. I was busy stretching and rolling my feet on balls, wearing my trendy barefoot shoes, confident that I would eventually make my bunion disappear, and my chronically bent at the knee legs straighten, except in all that time (about 4 years) the bunion hasn’t disappeared, and my legs are still chronically bent, meaning my quads are always working incredibly hard in standing and in gait. I feel for the first time in a long time that through this exploration with Dominik, I might ‘decrypt’ the puzzle that is my body, my unique and beautifully imperfect body.

And so for any of you that this resonates with, I invite you to take a look at his website here: Decrypt Bodywork, and you can also find him on his Instagram page here and his Facebook page here. He offers a wealth of free videos and resources on his social media to get you started “setting your body free, making it flexible and strong by providing a long term solution that works.”

An Introduction to Dominik’s work (taken from his website)

I have a history. A history of chronic neck and shoulder pain. I was used to waking up in pain and going to bed in pain. Without finding relief from of others, I had pretty much given up. When I was at my worst, I woke up unable to feel and move my left arm… Here I was again, looking for help from others that kept giving me the same stretches, the same massages and the same useless advice about posture.

That’s when I decided to figure this out on my own. I had no other choice…I went on a journey to learn. Learning to read, to listen to and to understand my own body. To connect with it and to experience it, its movement and why my neck had been bad for so many years.

Eventually, I began to understand that the answer to my neck and shoulder problems was in my left foot…This may sound crazy, but if the foundation is not right, the building on top will be wonky, right?

When I came across Gary Ward’s book  “What the foot” I was finally able to piece everything that I had learned into a global picture. My attempts to find new movement in my left foot and leg is what solved neck pain that had been there for most of my life. I will be forever grateful for his work and for giving me back a life without pain. Read more here.

Listen to Dominik’s story and his thoughts on preventing injury on this WeMove podcast episode here.

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Bare Soled Conversation

1. Could you tell me a little about the focus of your work?

I help people move and feel better by finding the missing links that are holding their body back. These are the parts of their body that have been overlooked, ignored or untreated in the past, but which their body is still moving around in an attempt to ‘be safe’. The majority of people that come to me “have tried everything” for their persistent pain, limitations, or recurring injuries. It very quickly becomes clear that no one has ever asked why a particular structure is overworked or restricted, and what its greater role is in a person’s movement and life. The parts that hurt are often simply our body’s solution to working around something that isn’t playing along. When we find those missing pieces we can offer alternatives that make lasting change possible. Gary Ward’s ‘Anatomy in Motion’ helps us in this process.

2. In your view, how can a cesarean section scar impact the movement of the body?

Any scar in the body, not just from a c-section is a potentially vulnerable area for our system: If I do not want to risk re-opening the wound, I can do that by avoiding any stretch that goes through the area. This is what will allow the tissues to heal and bind together again, so I definitely want to do that for a certain amount of time.

The amazing thing is that it just happens – I don’t even have to think about it. This is because my organism is self-organising and it instantaneously and constantly chooses movements that it knows keep us (and the area of a scar) ‘safe’, ultimately allowing it to heal.

Joint motions are what put our tissues under stretch and load – we need this loading of tissues in order to move. In the case of a c-section scar, which obviously goes very deep, the body may avoid movements around the pelvis and spine that would otherwise ‘pull’ on the scar. We could say that our organism seems to adopt new patterns in order to protect itself. These patterns however often go unnoticed and before we know it they may become our body’s default way of moving, even long after tissues have healed.

If I am now subconsciously avoiding a certain joint motion, it will affect how evenly or unevenly I distribute work and load across my body’s joints and tissues, potentially leading to problems and restrictions around those areas. 

3. What are some steps to take to reduce this impact?

Give it some time and allow it to heal. Then just become aware of lower body movement and areas that your body may be avoiding. Gently offer the body a way to access those parts again, to show your brain that these areas can now be stretched again. 

If someone is concerned about an old c-section scar, first of all, we need to be clear on whether this is actually an issue, rather than guessing or just assuming that it is. It may not be an issue for the person at all. But once we have assessed that it is, in fact, impacting movement, it’s the same principle: How can I show my body that re-introducing these specific joint motions, thereby inducing a stretch and load through the area is not only safe but in fact beneficial? Of course, we would also want to introduce shortening as well, in order to give the tissue its full range back. 

A nice gentle way to start would be to sit on a chair and let the pelvis tilt forward and back – around a centred point (if viewed from the side). Most people will pull the pelvis up into the lower back (i.e. move the axis of rotation back and up), actually offloading the area of the scar. As a mini-assessment: If that is the case, try touching the scar while doing the movement – does it change how you are able to roll ‘around’ the centre axis?

4. Do you find there is an emotional element to holding tension due to scar tissue, especially at the pelvic area due to the birth of a baby?

For some people that is true. People say ‘trauma lives in the body’ and it is something that I regularly see. But I would not go as far as saying that every scar holds emotions. Sometimes it’s simply the realisation that things have changed due to an event (birth, injury, etc.) that brings on a moment of reflection.

5. Do you see a correlation between pregnancy and diastasis recti?

I think it is first of all useful to try and understand the mechanisms behind diastasis recti. As most people will know, it is an ‘opening’ of the linea alba – the line of fibrous tissue between the ‘six-pack’ muscle. In my opinion, this opening can happen because of ‘excess’ movement in that one direction. With diastasis recti, movement and the resulting stretch/load often seems to be ‘channeled’ through that small area rather than being evenly distributed.

Pregnancy, of course, creates a bias towards this lengthening through the front, but there is probably more to it. We see men as well as women who haven’t had babies with diastasis recti after all. (Learned behaviour when growing up and genetics would start another conversation, but that would go beyond the scope of this answer )

In my mind, when I see ribs that like to flare, oblique muscles that don’t work much (no or little rotation/lateral flexion available), and a pelvis that doesn’t move freely, then diastasis recti may just be the result of that. Could that have been there before pregnancy though and pregnancy just exaggerated it?

6. Can wearing barefoot shoes help with restoring movement?

Barefoot shoes help to connect with your feet – definitely! I occasionally wear barefoot shoes because I like the feeling. They can help someone become aware of their feet, and maybe even to strengthen them. But if a joint in the foot is not moving when we assess a foot, then it is also not going to move in a barefoot shoe (it’s what’s written on the tin!). If there is an injury history on that foot, the body will still move around it, no matter what shoe is on the foot until we show it that it can do otherwise.

Likewise, if movement in a foot is restricted because of something else higher up, then barefoot shoes probably won’t bring that particular movement back. For example, the position and available movement at my ribcage and pelvis affect what happens down at my foot (and vice versa). If I tuck my pelvis, it leads to a different pressure distribution in my feet compared to an anterior tilt – the 33 joints in each foot have to adapt to the change above. But if I am unable to move my pelvis, my foot probably won’t change – because it doesn’t have to. At the end of the day, it is about my body’s mass management…Once we understand that, we can explore alternatives to re-organise it.

7. Will stretching in general help?

I would ask, “help with what?” What is the intention behind a stretch? Does it make you feel better? Does it make you feel relaxed, help you calm down, unwind? Then stretch! Do what you enjoy!

When it comes to pain and injury, however, more often than not stretching can be counterproductive if we are not clear on what we are stretching and why. Generally, we all want to stretch muscles that feel ‘tight’. But what is tight really? If we don’t think about our body for a second: if a t-shirt is too ‘tight’, everyone would agree that the fibres of that t-shirt are stretched because I have gained a few kilos during lockdown. A ‘tight’ rope is taut because it is being pulled on from both ends. Weirdly, when it comes to our body we think of muscle ‘knots’ and contracted muscles but often the opposite can be true. Our brain just doesn’t have a way to tell us the difference.

People’s hamstrings often feel tight because they are already stretched long all the time, unable to offload and to shorten. If I am clear on the state of a muscle, then I can make a decision on whether it needs stretching or actually shortening in order to take pressure off, if that is what I want to achieve.

8. Any other advice, you think might be useful for c section mamas?

Don’t worry! Enjoy your family  

The post ‘Decrypting’ the Body: Dominik Koch on C- section scars, Barefoot shoes and Stretching appeared first on Bare Soled Girl.