a really wild workout
use your animal instincts with the new exercise craze – primal movement coach miranda Fox shows lucy clarke-billings how
Leaping sideways like a gorilla in the middle of a public park doesn’t feel entirely natural at first. But after I master the Travelling Ape and get used to passing dog walkers’ double takes, my inner primate begins to take hold.
I’m in the middle of my first Primal Movement session and it feels like no exercise I’ve tried before. My coach, Miranda Fox, tells me to “be sexy” as I flow from Downward to Upward Dog, and to “trust my body” as I twist backwards into a Crab Reach.
Some of the movements feel familiar – like poses from a dynamic yoga class – while others are entirely new. Believe it or not, moving like a breakdancing silverback is challenging, fun and a great way to lose your inhibitions. I feel as though my body has been woken up from its lockdown slumber.
Drawing on concepts from gymnastics, yoga, martial arts and parkour, Primal Movement also incorporates lizard crawls, travelling gorilla forms and bear walks.
Here, Miranda explains how mimicking animals as we get fit can alleviate lifestyle-triggered pain while truly empowering us...
Can you tell us more about Primal Movement, Miranda?
It’s a ground-based movement programme that looks like a combination of gymnastics, yoga and breakdancing, designed to improve the function and communication of the human animal. Rather than isolating single muscle groups, it focuses on the patterns of movements that we use every day, including squat, lunge, push, pull, twist, bend and combination.
What’s the inspiration behind it?
It’s about looking at how our bodies evolved to move. We’re quadrupedal animals, designed to use all four limbs to get around. One day we stood up and our lives changed, but our bodies haven’t really adapted to that. That’s why we get so many issues with posture and back pain. Rather than exercising muscles singularly, like a bicep curl, primal movements use multiplanes of motion. They require you to get low to the ground with crawls and combine flexibility, strength, balance, stability, cardio and core work.
How does it empower people?
It gets your mind and body connected in a really intense way – it’s a powerful form of expression and a way of tuning into your inner self, while getting your body feeling incredibly strong. You build strength up very quickly, using stabilising muscles that you often miss when doing single exercises. You’re also engaging your entire body – there isn’t a second when your core isn’t switched on.
‘You build strength up very quickly’
What got you into it?
I wanted to increase my mobility. I was heavily over-conditioning my body and was so tight I couldn’t move anything and had trapped nerves in my neck. Primal Movement has helped me with coordination and timing, and helped me become more fluid with my movement.
Who can do Primal Movement?
Everyone. Since each movement can be both regressed and progressed, we can confidently say that it’s for all people, male, female, young and old. It’s particularly useful for those who do weightlifting and other kinds of strength training, since it keeps the body supple and mobile. Your local gym probably doesn’t offer Primal Movement classes, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get started. You can watch videos for free on Youtube, Instagram or Facebook.
find Miranda @thebitchclinic on instagram
2 Push-up jump To Silverback
Start in a push-up position, keeping your back flat and spine long.
Carefully jump your feet forward until you are in the “silverback” position – hands about six inches in front of the feet, with your hips back, knees bent and feet flat.
Jump your feet back to the push-up position and repeat.