Why You Need to Get Moving
Movement is a big part of our lives, but unfortunately, we live in a society that seems to no longer move. Here’s why you need to get moving and a few tips on how to do it.
Are you ready for loading your body to increase the intensity? Are you ready to pick up heavy stuff? Now, walk around with that heavy stuff and maybe put it over your head. Get on the ground. Get back up. Try it again with heavy stuff. Jump up and grab something. Hang there for a while. Pull yourself up. Hang from one arm at a time. Lift your legs to the sky while you hang there upside-down. Carry your load. Move with intention.
This is movement. Not always structured. We use the gym to train our movement so we can take what we’ve practiced and put it to use in our daily lives.
Why Does Movement Matter?
In today’s environment we no longer have to move. Chip Conrad, author of “Lift With Your Head” and “Are You Useful; A Freethinker’s Guide to Creating a Philosophy of Strength” teaches, that we need to move more today because we don’t have to move more today. What the heck does that even mean?
Since the industrial revolution, we have steadily and rapidly become a society, for the most part, that no longer moves. We are a sedentary culture. Even if you “work out” every day, chances are you go right back to some form of sitting and inactivity.
Our philosophy is that we need to be moving all day long.
This isn’t groundbreaking or something new and profound. There is a movement, a new way of thinking that will require a paradigm shift from most of society. We are wired to move, plain and simple. So, after you get your “strength training” or “cardio” in, keep it moving. Consistency is key.
All Movement Matters
All movement matters and even the smallest movements can make a lasting impact. Our lives are compressed. Almost everything we do compresses our joints, our vertebrae and stresses out our bodies physically as well as neurologically.
Simple joint decompression, for most, is like giving our nervous system the “ALL CLEAR” signal to continue on. We teach you to start moving joint by joint (kind of) and progress into more dynamic movements to help get ready for more intense work to come.
It doesn’t stop there. We are amazed at the amount of people out there that think they can out-exercise a sedentary life. We want you to move well and move often. Being strong and mobile makes moving through life a little bit easier and a heck of a lot more fun.
Movement on Machines
Why do BIG BOX GYMS use so many machines? What good, other than for rehabilitation, are machines? Shouldn’t we learn to support and control our body without the aid of a machine? What, in life, is truly balanced?
Learning to carry awkward and uneven weight can be, well, awkward and a little humbling at times. But, when faced with awkward and unbalanced loads in real life it should be at least familiar if we train and practice.
This kind of work strengthens the body’s connective tissue, tendons and ligaments that help to support the joints and sustain powerful movement. Our programming doesn’t necessarily involve what i just mentioned, but it certainly involves lots of rotation, hanging, heavy carries, lunges (all kinds), swings and all sorts of bodyweight exercises.
We also incorporate other more “unconventional” tools such as kettlebells, maces, heavy clubs and the lighter weight Indian Clubs, sandbags and suspension. Who cares how much you can lift in the gym if it doesn’t transfer to real life?
Don’t get trapped in the gym! Get outside and use what you train for.
Live your life in perpetual motion while you are training for life. Teaching our students to use what works for them. If it works for them and keeps them active and strong it works for us.
Unconventional and Functional Training
What the heck do unconventional and functional even mean?
Unconventional: Adjective
not based on or conforming to what is generally done or believed.
Functional: Adjective
designed to be practical and useful, rather than attractive.
How useful and transferable is your training now? Does is transfer to real life situations? Is it building you up or is it breaking you down? Why are you training in the first place? Real world strength and mobility and how to use it is what matters.
It’s ok to be Uncomfortable
Giving your body a reason to adapt (it’s what we are wired for and what our psyche is seeking). Actively engage in difficult tasks. Bypass the shopping cart and use the handheld baskets instead. Walk to where you can. When you find yourself sitting in traffic, or at work, or standing in line, or waiting for your oil to get changed, or [fill in the blank], JUST MOVE.
Simple joint movements, intentional breathing, stretch, add in more dynamic movements such as lunging or bounding up stairs or down the sidewalk. Yes, people will look at you funny and when they do, invite them to play along. Your mind and your body will thank you.
When it comes to the actual strength training that we teach and practice, we like to think of it as an outlet for our basically easy lives. The intensity of training does it’s best to help fill the hard wired need for physical challenges that we no longer have.
Take a Good Look
We want you to re-examine the way you look at fitness and the way your body can move. Have you ever really thought about how much you move versus how much you sit? Think about that for a minute and think about how you can change that.
As an adult, what’s the first thing you do when you wake up? If you are like most, after taking care of the usual business, you sit down to have your breakfast, maybe turning on your social media while you drink your coffee.
What next? Sitting in the car to drive to work only to shuffle to your desk to sit some more. After sitting all day long, including for lunch, you drive to the gym only to sit on the bike while you slog along to get your cardio in– no wonder you think “fitness” is a chore.
Drive home (sitting AGAIN) after getting your sweat on so you can tell yourself that you worked out today; check the box. Get home and sit again to eat dinner and then sit some more while you watch the news or play a video game, or watch Netflix for hours on end. Did you add up all the time sitting? IT IS ASTOUNDING!
Take what you’ve learned and START MOVING! Get movement in wherever you can. Your life and your health depends on it.
Trackback from your site.