Primal Movement Patterns
“Yoga must not be practiced to control the body: it is the opposite, it must bring freedom to the body, all the freedom it needs.”
Sequencing the Earth day retreat has got me thinking about how we evolved to move. I’ve now seen quite a few reels talking about ‘primal movements your body is craving’ - it’s a topic I’ve been really interested in for a while and one that’s gaining popularity out in the wild.
Let's lay out what primal movement actually is, unravel its core principles, and see how it can fit into your practice.
Primal Movement Patterns
We spend a lot of time moving in straight lines. We walk and run forward, pick up heavy things, put them down again. These moves are designed for optimum performance: like being able to run further on a flat smooth road or lift more weight safely in a static position.
These exercises are great as part of a routine, but in isolation there are so many small muscles involved in twisting, side-stepping & crawling that we evolved to use daily that we’re not accessing. Weakness in these areas can lead to injury later down the line.
Primal movement taps into our innate human experience using multiple parts of the body. It’s not new - many of the moves are already part of our everyday yoga practice. It’s about natural, simple movements that are usually more dynamic than the static ‘hold for five breaths’.
Essential Primal Movements
1. Grounded Squats
In many countries the squat is a natural sitting position (it’s sometimes called with ‘Asian squat’). Here in the UK, seeing an adult squatting to the floor outside of a gym is rare.
Through lack of practice we lose the ability to squat - we lose flexibility in our hips, knees, and ankles – a solid foundation for dynamic movement.
Try it: Add a moving malasana like this one to your practice to stretch the hip flexors and strengthen your knees (which is especially important for those with hypermobility).
2. Crawling Dynamics
Just like the creatures of the forest, crawling activates multiple muscle groups while promoting flexibility and coordination. As you move through crawling sequences on the mat you'll engage your core, shoulders, and hips.
Try it: A lizard pose works really well for this - crawl from a forward fold back into a downward dog, then into a lizard. Find movement by bopping the hips up and down.
3. Lunging Variations
Every time our ancestors scaled a hill or climbed a tree they were using this essential movement that we see often in yoga.
Single-leg work is so important for functional movement: we generally get out of the bath and off the sofa one leg at a time, so we also need to strengthen and stretch our legs individually.
Try it: Use warrior sequences and dynamic high and low lunges in your flows for single-leg strength, balance and hamstring flexibility.
4. Moving in circles
Just as ancient civilisations revered the cycles of nature, we honour the circular motions that flow through our bodies. This is something I’m particularly interested in at the moment - it features heavily in my Scaravelli-inspired 100HRS pregnancy yoga training with Lushtums.
Hip circles awaken the hips, sacrum, and lower back and can be accessed from standing or kneeling. Shoulders can also be released using circular motions.
Try it: A cat-cow or a figure of eight movement: see my example of a 5 step dynamic circular warm up. Dance is also great for getting the hips moving the way nature intended.
5. Twisting Mobility
Twisting poses like revolved triangle or a seated spinal twist engage the spine, core and obliques, stimulating circulation and increasing spinal mobility. Just as snakes move with fluidity, you can flow through twists with intention and mindfulness, unravelling tension and helping to protect yourself from slipped disks and crick necks in the future.
Try it: Yoga generally has this covered with any twisting pose - just choose your favourite. Here I am in a twisted lizard bind.
Primal movement is not a trend
Whether you're flowing through a dynamic sequence or finding stillness in a grounding malasana, remember that you are tapping into ancestral strength and flexibility that will protect your body in the decades to come.
For some earthy goodness, come along to our May retreat. It’s packed with all of these movements plus breathwork, meditation, a nourishing lunch and a grounding cacao circle - all in the middle of the forest.
Charlotte x
