What is movement training?
Movement training is basically training the way we move in the real world. It means moving, stepping, lifting, turning, changing levels. In fact, when it comes to movement training, variability is fundamental. If you do it under load, that is with weight – ViPR, Dumbbells, Barbell, Kettlebells etc it is then referred to as ‘loaded movement training’. If I was to ask you to help me move house & we were unloading a moving truck, I guarantee that each time you grabbed an item your feet would be in slightly different position, you would be picking it up from a different height, it would be a different size, a different shape that you may have to hold a different way, it would be a different weight, you might have more room to move or maybe you’d be cramped & could only get at it from one angle. It’s for this reason that we need to have strength, stability & mobility to perform everyday tasks safely & effectively. So why not train that way?
What are the benefits?
The benefits are many. This is full body training at its best. Not only are you training your muscles but you’re training your fascia, skin & even your cognitive brain function as you have to think & focus about what you are doing & what you are about to do. It increases hormonal response & cardiovascular ability. It up-regulates the nervous system & improves intramuscular coordination as well as whole body integration. It improves multi directional stability, strength, power, speed, agility & functional reaction capabilities. Most importantly… It’s FUN!!! You won’t be standing there counting reps, bicep curling your life away, you’ll be stepping, turning, running, jumping, catching, throwing, crawling, rolling, standing… moving! It’s what we were designed to do.
Should I stop all other training & just do movement training?
No. My philosophy for life is “everything in balance”. I’m not saying that traditional forms of training like barbell squats or dead lifts are outdated or bad, far from it. I still do them. Going back to our moving house scenario, if you wanted to move a solid wood cabinet that weighs over 100kg, you would get a few strong people together. Then you’d get yourself into a stable squatting or dead lifting position, someone would count “1,2…3!” & you’d do a controlled, powerful lift. If bulking up is your main goal, then traditional styled, body building workouts are what you want to be spending most of your time doing but movement training can assist you achieve those goals too via the benefits listed above. If weight loss is your main goal, then this is fantastic. Lots of muscle moving equals lots of calories being burnt! On top of that, it will help your ability to move & if it is easier for you to move, you’re going to do it more often. If you’re moving more often, you’re burning more calories.
So… why are farm kids stronger than city kids? Help me join the dots here.
The ViPR training tool was designed around this very notion. Michol Dalcourt invented it to help train professional ice hockey players because they were seeing a consistent pattern. Farm kids were better than city kids. They were faster, stronger, had better reflexes, etc… Why? Because farm kids live & breathe the philosophy of movement. They have active lifestyles, constantly moving in different directions, at different speeds, carrying different weights. It was bred into them & was simply a part of who they were & how they lived (as we all did before the industrial revolution). So Michol invented the ViPR, a training tool that would allow us to simulate all the different movements that you would do on a farm. You can lift it, carry it, swing it, throw it, drop it, drag it, flip it… the only thing you can’t do is eat the damn thing! Oh & after 3 months of training with the ViPR, one of these PRO ice hockey players told Michol “I want to invest in this thing”. Michol asked why. “Because the game has slowed down” Ice hockey is a pretty fast sport. It hadn’t slowed down… he was now faster & stronger, had better reaction & agility skills. He was now better & so things seemed slower. That’s awesome!
What do we think at MHS?
I will admit to being a bit biased. Movement, function & weight loss are my specialties… & movement training does all three at the same time & more! Why wouldn’t you love it? I mean honestly, who doesn’t want to move better, be more flexible, have more strength (not just in one muscle group but from your toes to your scalp) be fitter, have better balance, coordination, reflexes… the list goes on. We humans were designed to move, not sit down for 16 hours a day. And we weren’t designed to run on a treadmill at the same pace, on the same surface, in the same direction, for the same time every evening either. I’ll say it again, we were designed to move – in different directions, at different speeds, doing different things. So do it! Get off your butt, have fun, move… live.