Grand Traverse Primal Movement

05/31/2024

Take these opportunities to do something new today, even if you fall off.

01/01/2023

Start your 2023 movement habits today!

12/04/2022

Hiking/movnating in Hancock, MI last month and found these lush fungi. Comment if you know what this is.

08/21/2022

Yes, I incorporate natural movement into getting off the floor, going up stairs or moving a box. I totally credit this 365 practice to being able to be ready for a triathlon, be competitive, and finish without injury with minimal training (disclaimer: I'm an experienced triathlete). Barefoot training is perfect for all of the barefoot contact during a race. Check out MovNat for more.

09/14/2020

If you run and listen to podcasts, listen to this episode of "The Drive," a podcast all about health and longevity by Dr. Peter Attia. In the episode, founding Director of the Spaulding National Running Center at the Harvard Medical School "describes how her research of biomechanics and clinical work with running injuries...has shaped her views on maintaining body alignment and foot health. Irene discusses her argument for the role of modern footwear in running-related injuries and how minimalist footwear helps resolve the subsequent biomechanical issues."

Basically, strengthen your feet and wear minimalist shoes.

"Rather than have the runners adapt to the running, they took the shoe and adapted it to the runner." — Irene Davis

06/08/2020

Last week I was on a walk and saw this double dead ash just laying there. Again, I took the opportunity to do something playful and different with my body, something I won't encounter in a gym or on a workout plan. Impromptu fun exercise. Nothing fancy. If you're in the woods in northern Michigan, I bet you can find some dead ash to play on too. Have Fun!

04/13/2020

My family has been fortunate to have remained healthy and able to get out to the woods and trails around Traverse City during the lockdown. My three boys have really enjoyed it. And, because I'm a MovNat afficiando, I encourage them to climb and explore and use their bodies. I don't give them much instruction.They don't need any. They climb for fun. So here is my photo essay titled "Kids on Trees."

03/30/2020

I have been hiking/movnating a lot recently. Getting out to a trail is one of the only activities that is still allowed under our local lockdown rules. And we know that being outside is simply good for you. This is especially true if we are spending a lot of time alone or isolated during COVID.

In this article about emotional proximity during social distancing, psychiatrist John Sharp MD, prescribes outdoor experience to help feel more connected:

"...as an added and needed bonus, I recommend this: go outside. Spend time in nature, whether it’s just a walk around the block, hopefully with the sun shining overhead, or out along a path by some trees or a body of water. Enjoy feeling the elements and feeling grounded and present and grateful to be alive. Nature helps."

And while you are out there, be playful for a minute. Balance on a log, find stepping stones, crawl under a fallen branch. Gently move in a new way for your mind and body.

While COVID-19 brings normal life to a temporary halt as we practice social distancing, it helps to double-down on deepening social bonds and practicing kindness and gratitude, not emotional distancing.

02/14/2020

It’s starting to be time to swing from trees and run barefoot on the sandy trails again. But not quite. Before I get back out there again when the snow melts, I want to be sure my feet, legs and hips to be strong. Let’s face it, we want to be strong and ready all the time. So, during the winter I use MovNat or natural movement principles with everyday tasks. A great example and fun way to work this in is on the stairs. Much like side step-ups or rotational step ups onto a box in the gym, I use my stairs as a place to open my hips, rotating both directions as I go up or down. Or I just face the wall and go up the stairs laterally. It becomes a very multi-planar exercise that even challenges the mind a little. I probably use the staircase ten times a day. Every time, I try to go up or down a new way. In the end, that’s a lot of variety, compared to just using the stairs the regular way. When I’m strong and stable flying up a hill this spring, I’ll have these opportunist stair climbs to thank.

09/23/2019

According to this study, being in nature for 120 minutes per week showed health benifits without even exercising. Just being in a city park was benificial. Can you find 17 minutes of green space per day?

A new study links time per week in nature with better health and wellbeing.

08/25/2018

I was asked by some very nice geo-cachers, who I met on a narrow isthmus of crushed shells (2nd pic), if it hurt my feet. Their sturdy hiking footwear suggested to me they don't do much barefoot hiking. Without proselytizing, I said "it takes training." I have enjoyed my summer of barefoot training without even thinking that it's weird to others. Being barefoot is normal. Until winter.