Natural Movement Skills: A Beginners Guide
“Be strong to be useful.”
— George Hebert, a early pioneer of natural movement:
What is Natural Movement?
Doing lots of pull-ups and heavy lifts alone won’t necessarily make you a good climber or proficient at carrying heavy loads. Our everyday natural movements are much more complex and require more skill than the exercises practised with a classic strength and conditioning approach.
Natural human movement comprises locomotive skills such as walking, running, balancing, jumping, crawling, climbing, or swimming and manipulative skills such as lifting, carrying, throwing, and catching.
Fitness as a way of life
In today’s comfortable world we are losing sight of the practicality of these natural movement skills. We see fitness as a chore, and spend long hours commuting or behind a desk.
Natural movement is about seamlessly incorporating fitness as a way of life. Not as a burden, or as a means to chase a competitive result as the end goal. Natural movement is about being stronger in everyday life and simply knowing that you can deal with whatever life throws at you.
George Hébert and "la méthode naturelle"
An officer in the French Navy, George Hébert (1875-1957) experienced first hand the value of physical and mental strength when he helped to rescue 700 people from a volcanic eruption whilst stationed on the island of Martinique. The experience left him with a profound belief that athletic skill must be combined with energy, courage, and a sense of altruism. He had travelled the world and admired the flexibility, skill and endurance of indigenous people who had received no formal physical training but simply lived closer to nature.
On his return to France, he began teaching "la méthode naturelle" - a method that relied on natural agility and courage instead of formal gym training and competitive sports. He designed his sessions to include essential human movements such as walking, running, balancing, jumping, crawling, climbing, swimming, lifting, carrying, throwing, and catching.
His aim was to prepare people for the practical application of these skills in everyday life - and potentially for life-threatening situations. His influence can been in the increasingly popular movement of Parcours, and even in adventure playgrounds.
Oh and he was also an early champion for women and exercise - criticising the use of corsets and social expectations , and stating that women would benefit just as well as men from the benefits of exercise on their self confidence, will power and physical strength. Go George!
What is the ‘MovNat’ ?
Inspired by Hébert's "méthode naturelle" ("natural method"), Erwan Le Corre takes a similar approach to movement in his popular MovNat system.
Forget about counting calories, how much you can lift, how long you can run on the treadmill. MovNat is inspired by the skills and competencies that humans are inherently capable of: hunting, foraging, migrating, climbing, and other essential skills that were simply needed to survive.
Check out this 3 minute showcase video from MovNat and see natural movements skills action.