3 tips you need to know in order to move fluently, gracefully and even beautifully. Transform how you move and approach training with these 3 tips!

No matter what we do, our approach and alignment towards what we do will always determine our results. The same thing can produce vastly different results depending on who is doing the thing and how he or she is doing it. 

This is why in any method or training style, the method behind the training is the most important thing. Push up is not just a push up... what matters is how you do it.

This is even more evident in movement training which tends to be more versatile and variable than doing one-dimensional exercises.

In Animal Movement Strength Training and movement training in general, your approach can change not just how you move entirely but what kinds of results you will get.

Below you can find 3 tips on how you can learn to move fluently and gracefully. It's all about your mindset, self-awareness and the implemented methodology. This is why movement training is a very high level form of training and a form of art - it goes beyond exercising.

1. Imagination

Here's a technique that doesn't require you to have any new physical abilities to move better. You simply have to change your mindset – specifically how you think about movement.

The way we think changes how we move. Of course, you don't necessarily have to think anything and you can just flow in the moment.

The truth is that most people are not Tabula Rasa and we approach movement with underlying preconceptions and ideas whether we acknowledge it or not. Sometimes these thoughts are restricting.

If we move, we might as well use the full power of the mind and imagination to aid us in movement and give us a well of new ideas to implement.

Try to use mental imagining. How would your movement change if you had springs in place of your legs and arms? What if you were moving on hot coals or your body was as light as a feather?

Your movement might look very different depending on what material you're made of – for example: jelly or iron.

Think about different animals, their sizes and ways of moving. Imagine how loosely and relaxed a panther moves with a sweeping stride. An elephant carries a lot more weight and heaviness in its steps whereas a squirrel flitters here and there with erratic speed.

If you can't think, watch the video for inspiration.

Use any scenario, material or animal to create your own ideas of what your movement could be like. Then just manifest it through your body.

2. Structural Integration

To truly experience the ease of moving, all the links in your body must be connected.

These links consist of our muscles and joints. Even if just one area is compromised, you may feel this as a dead weight slowing your body down or as a weakness limiting your movement.

Due to our sedentary lifestyle, multiple areas of the body may not be working optimally. This is why it's good to perform a “body scan” during different movement positions.

In any position, go through all of your joints one by one by trying to slightly move them. You can even isometrically contract them.

Start from your fingers by squeezing them to the floor and then move higher up the chain to your wrists and see if you can create some movement and tension there.

Then move to the elbows, shoulders and scapulae, core and spine, hips, knees, ankles and finally the toes.

Make sure you're able to connect to each area. If one area is lacking, make sure you pay extra attention to it in your training and movement.

The power of our bodies is based on being able to absorb and generate forces as a whole. This scan can help you to create an integrated body from head to toe where every area supports each other as needed.

3. Volume Methods

The simple truth of movement is that in order to move better you need to move more and move according to a method. This is what will determine the results you will get.

People don't really understand the power of repetition. It's the greatest teacher there is. Hence, why we created the Animal Movement Strength Training (AMST) and added it to Movement 20XX Method.

The AMST is a combination of different methods and tools that help you get the most out of movement training by adding volume, variability and methodology.

Many try to move a few meters and think they've seen all that the movement training has to offer.

You need to give movement exercises more time, more focus and more thought and you will quickly start to feel the effects accumulate.

There's a lot of hard work behind the seemingly effortless and fluent movement. You want to make your muscles feel intensely during movements to create adaptations and strength gains – just like you would during regular strength training.

Do the necessary work, put in enough repetition and you'll experience stunning results.