Ok, we are on number four and this may be the most unusual one of all.
# 4 Rolling.
I’m not talking about rolling on the balls or foam rolling this time.
I’m talking about you, rolling around on the floor.
Like a baby.
Now that either sounds like fun or its seems really weird, but actually it’s both.
Why would you want to to do this?
Going back to ‘primal movement’ patterns will reteach us how to use our body well again.
We might not realize how stiff we have become in the upper back, neck and shoulders. Rolling exposes your ability to relax certain muscles while using others.
When our primal movement patterns of are inhibited, we can’t move in more complex ways, ie standing or sitting. Think about how many times you hear of someone ‘putting their back out’. It is often when they are twisting, lifting or bending over. Twisting, core strength and flexion of the spine is what rolling is. When you train the movement patterns on the floor you will improve all your upright movements too.
Walking well for example requires some degree of rotation in the upper back that many of us have lost.
There are some really good articles on rolling like this one here where he talks about how “Many adults have lost the ability to capture the power or utilize the innate relationship of the head, neck, and shoulders to positively affect coordinated movements”. Dr. Perry Nickleston. Here is another study on how rolling can help athletes.
It also turns out that you have an inner core and an outer core. The inner core is like a cylinder with the pelvic floor on one end and the diaphragm at the other with The transverse abdominis (TVA) wraps around the front and the lumbar multifidus (LM) muscles are at the back.
This inner core is what we are using to roll. You also (re)learn authentic spinal stabilization by using your head, neck, and eyes, to drive your movement.
Finally, rolling is fun and feels good.
It also looks cool. Or Weird. You decide.
Here is a basic rolling sequence to start with.
Now here is one with straight legs and arms. Be sure to lead with the eyes and head when using the arm to lead the movement.
This third one is just for fun. You will see my struggle with this one as one side sooo much harder for me than the other. Try it and let me know if one side is different for you! Maybe do this on the carpet if you have it
have fun!