What Kind of Mover Are You?

I never considered myself a mover.  This is pretty ironic given my later-in-life, 180-degree turn to become a Pilates instructor.  But my definition of mover has been, in the past, someone who moves because they enjoy it.  And, for a very long time, I didn’t.  

I’ve now broadened that definition to include three categories:

Joyful mover:  See aforementioned person who enjoys movement in and of itself.  

Purposeful mover:  Someone who moves for a future result:  weight loss, heart health, marathon training, doctor’s orders.  

Resistant mover:  Someone who knows they should be moving but holds a negotiation with self every time.  “I don’t wanna.  Please don’t make me.”

My own movement history has consisted of yoga, aerobics, weight machines, biking, treadmill, elliptical, kickboxing,  running every once in a while, hulahooping and dancing (club dancing, not dancercise dancing).  I didn’t really enjoy any of it (club dancing and huluhooping being the exceptions).  Even when I started taking Pilates classes, it was as a purposeful, and often resistant, mover. 

Then I got injured.  And that’s when I became a joyful mover.  

My Pilates teacher helped me move around, through and, finally, out of pain and injury. Learning about my body lit up my mind and it became an experience that took up all of me while I was doing it.  It left me, feeling not only better physically, but gratified emotionally. I realized movement could heal my body and exercise my mind.  It created curiosity.  And, the more I knew my body, the more joy I got from movement.

And that is why I became a teacher. To help others move to learn, move to strengthen, move to heal and move with joy!