Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Master Class
What if, once in a while, we set aside the “proper form” exercises and just had a little fun?
I’ve studied human biomechanics and exercise physiology for more than two decades, academically and professionally. I have conducted thousands of exercise sessions with clients and examined their gait, posture and kinetic chains in action. My experience has influenced the way I think, write and speak about physical activity. But I learned something new last weekend — simply by watching my daughter climb on monkey bars.
As adults, we wake up with a body that reflects our past — the good, the bad and the ugly. Our lifestyles, injury history and age all affect the way we move and react to our environment. In this sense, each of us has unique movement patterns that are specific to experiences we’ve endured and challenges we’ve encountered over the years.
If you don’t believe me, sit on a park bench on the next sunny day and watch other people walk. Some walk slow, some walk fast, some have a little “hitch” and others are smooth as silk.
This is movement that almost all of us do every day, most of us using the same assembly of two feet, two legs, two hips, and yet we all do it differently because we’ve all had different experiences.
But children aren’t experienced. They haven’t begun to accumulate wear, tear or individual adaptations in their movement patterns. While some certainly take after their parents in body type, most young children (ages 3 to 6) react similarly to similar environmental stimuli.
Last weekend, my daughter was climbing the monkey bars on her school playground. I watched her go back and forth by grasping a bar, twisting her torso and using the weight of her legs to produce enough momentum to carry her to the next bar. One of her friends conquered the bars by using the exact same technique, as did many others.
No one instructed any of the children on how to achieve success on the monkey bars. They just stepped up and let their bodies react in a way that felt natural to them. And that worked.
This gave me a great idea. Rather than trying to be so rigid in our explanation of exercise techniques, maybe we should act as kids a little more. We certainly need some instructions and guidelines to stay safe — we are no longer resilient little kids — but I like the idea of allowing one’s natural biomechanics to emerge.
Functional exercises like medicine ball slams are perfect opportunities to reduce one’s reliance on “perfect form” in favor of doing what feels natural — a fluid movement pattern.
This week’s exercise is another opportunity to let natural biomechanics emerge. The Kneeling Kettlebell Halo requires balance, coordination and, yes, a little individuality to perform correctly.
1. Select a medium-weight kettlebell and kneel on an exercise mat.
2. Maintain upright posture with the hips and spine aligned while holding the kettlebell by the rounded portion. Both hands should be at chest level.
3. Press up with the kettlebell while rotating your arms and shoulders to move it clockwise around your head.
4. Come back to the starting position and repeat for another rep, then switch sides for two reps.
5. Perform four sets of two repetitions on each side.
Maintain tightness in your core muscles to avoid excessive leaning during the movement, but some is OK.
This is the type of exercise that can easily become robotic if the exerciser is too focused on perfect form. I’d rather see a little leaning of the hips one way or the other to ensure that the core is fully engaged.
It’s a fun way to train the core muscles and it’s a break from the rigidity of a machine or crunch-type motions. When paired with a few sets of monkey bar laps, it’s even better. Enjoy!