This post has moved
About simonprimal
Simon has been working as a personal trainer and nutritionist in the fitness industry for over 7 years, during which time he has helped hundreds of people reach their goals, be it losing weight, fitting in that dress, looking great on the beach or winning that competition.
Through his extensive experience and dedicated research into exercise science and diet, Simon has found out what works to get results – There will be no time wasting or guess work involved, every movement you make will be getting you closer to your fitness goals.
This entry was posted in
Gym News,
Training Articles,
Videos and tagged
Bodyweight Training,
Erwan le Corre,
Lifestyle,
MovNat,
Muscle Up,
Outdoor,
Primal Living,
Pull Ups,
Video. Bookmark the
permalink.
This is an interesting discussion.
I’ve spent the last couple of years considering these “dueling” philosophies (MovNat, BBS, Crossfit, etc.) in an attempt to discern the proper training regimen for a person (me) whose fitness goals include general fitness, lean muscle mass, flexibility, balance and a skill set similar to MovNat (i.e. running, climbing, jumping, swimming, etc.).
Initially, Crossfit seemed the likely fit, considering its focus on “functional”, all-around fitness. However, the perceived risk of either immediate or delayed injury from performing deadlifts, pull-ups and kettle bell swings for time was a deterrent. Also, the idea of mixing strength training with skill development, while originally appealing, lost its initial luster. The concept hinges on skill transference between strength-building exercises and real-life movements, but there is little scientific evidence to support such a claim, and much to refute it.
At some time during my Crossfit phase, I discovered Body By Science and the theory of HIT, which presented a completely different philosophy for fitness. In BBS, Dr. McGuff argues that strength training and skill development are two different activities, and never the twain shall meet. Exercising, according to McGuff, should be a brief, intense, infrequent and safe activity. While you correctly characterized McGuff’s assertion that the BBS approach is all any person “needs” for baseline health and fitness, I don’t know that he’s arguing for shiftlessness or complacency when not in the gym. HIT is simply a time-efficient and safe way to develop simple strength and cardiovascular health, leaving more time for other fitness goals and physical pursuits, if one so wishes.
As for MovNat, I’m curious, but skeptical. Your write-up has further piqued my interest, in any event. The argument initially seems valid and logical, but I’d like to see some clinical results to back up the philosophy. But, it is interesting.
Thanks for the post!
awsome article. even as a movnat alumni, sometimes you find yourself training more strength than skills then you have to just step back and rethink and go to basics. the days i feel it was too easy or fun, i feel the next day more improvement uin my overall strentgh, mood and health in general. Even your performance at work or your attitude during the day changes so much after doing movnat style workout. thanks for the article reminding us the basics.
Simon,
What an excellent overview.
“Don’t ask yourself what exercise do I have to do, but instead what could I do?” captures the whole philosophy perfectly. I think we all struggle with different agendas, trying to make out training achieve numerous goals, sometimes ignoring the simple art of moving and moving well.
Certainly, as far as sustainable pratice is concerned, we have to look beyond abs of steel and PR lifts and really get to grips with our “true nature”.
good post. i visited Erwan in West Virginia this summer and I’m seeing him again in Thailand in January. You are right that the philosophy is largely about risk and its proper assessment. This can actually be taken and expanded upon into your entire life really well.
That is a great piece. I really agree with you analysis regarding HIT. I get some flak for highlighting both HIT and MovNat on my blog but I think that the principles do not contradict. You can build strength with HIT but you need to develop skills to apply that strength in real life and that is where movnat comes in.
You pretty much just described Parkour in this article
I’ve been doing it for over 2 and a half years now and in a nutshell your article is what I do, and I do find a greater sense of achievement and accomplishment comes from overcoming my obstacles, both physically and mentally.
You’ve nailed it. I have been following the Movnat “movement” for a couple of years now and your post is the best encapsulation of the philosophy I have read to date.