Cultivate awareness of constant motion in all aspects of life, including body, mind, emotions, and the environment, recognizing everything is in flux.
Integrate action, emotion, and thought into movement practice, focusing on how movements feel, not just physical execution, to create a holistic experience.
Begin a movement practice with education and self-inquiry, cultivating awareness of movement as a broad, open concept.
Cultivate a ‘wild and wise’ approach by integrating collective knowledge and wisdom while simultaneously letting go to discover the inherent, effortless movement that emerges when internal blockages are removed.
Recontextualize difficulty as essential for practice, balancing the necessity to succeed with the ability to ’let go’ and de-ambition, learning to recognize the optimal point of progression through play and exposure.
Reframe failure and frustration as a necessary entry gate to neuroplasticity and enhanced learning, rather than a reason to disengage from practice.
View discomfort in practice as a positive sign of being in the ‘right place’ for growth, but avoid going overboard to the point of no progress.
Regularly seek out real challenges in your movement practice, as discomfort is a necessary marker for growth and progress.
Cultivate a state of ‘permissiveness’ where you feel ‘allowed’ to move, recognizing that movement arises from inherent possibilities and a constantly humming pre-motor system, which fosters focus and prevents stagnation.
Engage in non-verbal experiences and cultivate awareness of motion to clarify bodily sensations, which can unlock potential and provide a safe haven from difficulties.
Practice recognizing the dynamic nature, flux, and motion across all layers of experience (body, thoughts, emotions) to develop a deeper sense of self.
Be aware of habitual ‘postures’ in movement, thought, and emotion formed early in life, and strive to free the mind beyond these fixed patterns to avoid lifelong limitations.
Progress towards a ‘posture-less’ way of moving, thinking, and feeling, transcending fixed patterns to achieve true freedom and transformation.
Prioritize what you truly want and need to do in movement, rather than being limited by preconceived notions of what’s possible or ideal.
Analyze your movement practices on a ‘contraction-relaxation’ spectrum to identify imbalances and address what you need rather than just what you’re good at.
Diversify your movement practice across categories like dance, martial arts, environmental interaction, somatic focus, and object manipulation to address needs and avoid over-specialization.
Choose specific ‘movement containers’ (e.g., squats, planks) and then focus on the ‘content’ (the internal experience and feeling of movement) within them.
Use a ‘slice and dice’ method for conceptualizing movement: categorize, analyze, then intentionally discard these categories to retain a deeper, non-verbal understanding.
Prioritize open, primary experiences over overly accurate definitions or ‘winning concepts’ in movement, constantly letting go of fixed ideas and starting anew to avoid stagnation.
Take scientific information as a report, not gospel; experiment with tools like heat, cold, light, and movement, making them your own through personal practice and exploration.
Be wary of rigidly defining mechanisms or meanings in movement; instead, embrace improvisation and ‘MacGyver-like’ adaptability, as humans are natural improvisers.
Prioritize ‘openness’ and adaptability over extreme specialization, as this allows for resilience and broad capability in diverse conditions.
Adopt a playful, researcher’s approach to movement, continuously trying various combinations without a fixed motive, allowing for discovery rather than seeking to confirm preconceived notions.
Continuously seek new experiences in movement, questioning what ‘better’ means beyond just more weight or faster execution, and explore variations like lightening the load to discover new benefits.
Embrace ‘weird looks’ and unconventional approaches in your practice, continuously playing with variables like facial expression, breath holding, or blood restriction to foster discovery and avoid fixed patterns.
Embrace variability and invite new challenges into your practice, seeing them as opportunities for true virtuosity and the creation of novel movements.
Approach movement learning using a ‘chemistry model’ or ‘sketch learning’ by starting with the big picture and rough dynamics, then progressively refining details, rather than rigid ‘chunking’ from small details.
Use drilling to establish the general infrastructure of a movement, but always seek live, corrective feedback to truly ‘dress up’ and embody the movement.
Engage in ’experientialization’ (full sensory mental rehearsal) rather than mere visualization, but only after developing tangible physical experience and external feedback, as lack of feedback can lead to delusions.
Develop a high level of personal movement understanding to reduce reliance on high-tech tools, as the body itself is the most advanced technology.
Utilize simple, accessible environments like a floor, wall, or corner of a room for movement exploration and play, as they offer ample opportunities for discovery.
Practice movement awareness in crowded public spaces by navigating without touching others, using it as an adaptive, full-body engagement and developmental exercise.
Incorporate subtle, continuous motion (e.g., using mobile chairs, rocking) throughout the day to maintain freshness and prevent stagnation, allowing for sustained focus.
Accumulate 30 minutes a day in an unloaded, resting squat position (not erect), spread throughout the day, to improve digestion, alleviate pain, and maintain body ‘foldability’.
Practice ‘spinal waves’ (undulations, arching, spiraling of the torso) to defrag the system, offer freshness, and promote segmental movement, which can lead to emotional releases and improved coordination.
Incorporate ‘small frame’ movements (mobilizing subtle internal body parts) to unlock ‘big frame’ movements, as this prevents stagnation, releases stored emotions/traumas, and allows for true improvisation.
Train and improve eye movements, recognizing their profound impact on cognitive processes, body organization, and overall movement, as the eyes often lead the body.
Use head movements as a primary way to organize and lead the body, as manipulating the head can naturally prompt the rest of the body to follow and organize itself.
Tailor your eye usage (peripheral/soft awareness vs. focused) based on the specific practice or desired state, recognizing that eyes are an immediate entry point to influence posture, stance, and overall state.
Experiment with head and eye placement, such as lowering the chin to see better or tilting the head for dominant eye use, to cerebrally enhance practice and improve visual perception.
Actively balance focused vision with open, panoramic awareness, especially in nature, to counteract the modern cultural bias towards narrow focus and improve overall visual health and perception.
Incorporate awareness of your hearing and how you use your ears into your practice, playing with different parameters of auditory attention.
Observe and experiment with head placement, posture, and angling to enhance listening and auditory perception, recognizing how these physical adjustments affect motion and overall experience.
Practice ‘many walks’ with varied intentions and emotional states (e.g., linear/efficient, rounded/tilting head) to explore how walking affects communication and personal presence.
Incorporate coiling, swaying, and varied movements into your walk, and coordinate breathing with these movements to enhance natural air exchange and avoid wasteful linear patterns.
Integrate dynamic and varied stances into traditional weight training (e.g., bicep curls with one foot forward, alternating stances) to explore new movement possibilities beyond static, linear exercises.
Continuously vary elements of your practice (e.g., stance, eyes closed, head posture) to foster endless combinations and discoveries, moving beyond fixed associations.
Foster friendships and connections through shared movement practices, recognizing this as a valuable, age-old tradition that transcends typical exercise relationships.
Leverage collective knowledge to advance rapidly, but critically, digest this information until it becomes your own ‘self-knowledge,’ moving beyond merely ‘doing’ to ‘being’ the movement.
Actively seek out consensual touch and proximity in your life, recognizing its diminishing role in modern culture and its importance for well-being.
Practice controlling your reactivity to proximity and touch by engaging in scenarios that disarm typical defensive responses, learning to sense without immediately reacting.
Engage in ‘hybrid’ movement practices like contact improvisation to explore dynamic interactions with others without the constraints of winning or losing, fostering open-ended play and adaptability.
Explore discomfort in varied social and physical interactions (e.g., different distances, types of touch, gender dynamics) with consensual partners, fostering strength, adaptability, and deeper connection through movement-based communication.
Use consensual touch and re-exposure to past traumatic experiences (within safe, controlled contexts) to reframe and complete the experience, potentially reducing long-term negative effects.
Mentally rehearse or ‘run scenarios’ of potentially uncomfortable or traumatic interactions before they happen, creating a protective ’thermal layer’ that reduces reactivity and heightens resilience.
Acknowledge the benefits of ‘getting hurt’ (small injuries) in practice, as controlled exposure to minor boundaries can help avoid larger injuries and fosters necessary learning beyond totally safe systems.
Recognize that overly accurate or fixed language can corrupt understanding by reducing the dynamic, movement-based nature of communication.