- We know a lot about movement's physical benefits,
but what about movement as a powerful communicating
and connecting force?
- And what about movement as a tool for intellectual and community engagement?
- Tonight, we're here to offer you experiences
to illustrate some of movement's least discussed,
and most precious gifts.
So, join us in experiencing something on a body level
because this engages the brain more fully than simply hearing it.
Take a slow, steady inhale through your nose.
Soften your jaw, let your lips part, and exhale.
Great. Breathing in again, feeling your belly expand,
your chest rise. This time, exhale with a hum, mmmm.
That sounds really pretty.
Breathing in once more, this time stretching up,
reaching up, looking up,
then, softening everything downward when you exhale.
Even letting your head fall forward if it's comfortable for you
Lovely.
Rolling up to a neutral position.
Feeling your feet on the ground and the chair beneath you.
Just take a moment to soften or close your eyes,
and notice,
how just a moment of tuning into your body affects you.
Perhaps you feel tired or distracted.
Or maybe you even feel a little calmer after doing that.
Maybe you notice a temperature change in your body, or a little tingling.
Maybe you notice a place that's tight, and needs attention.
Tuning into our bodies and breath through movement
opens the lines of internal communication,
and fosters awareness, clarity, and decisiveness.
Our body is our home.
Inhabit it, and listen for what it has to say.
- Movement is our original language,
and our first way of interacting and communicating.
When we take our first breath as newborns,
the journey of our moving body in relationship to the world begins.
We are open, we are wild, we are rocked, we crawl, we're free.
We are supple in our joints and our spine.
We are full of breath and life, and ready to receive the world.
Life is movement, movement is life.
Unfortunately, we're raised in a cultural context
where we are surrounded by sedentary lifestyles,
overly-developed intellects, and, unprocessed emotion and trauma.
So by the time most of us enter middle school--
and we are born with this huge movement vocabulary--
that movement vocabulary has diminished to almost nothing.
The means by which we have to express ourselves on a body level,
dramatically decreases.
- The less variety of movement we have, the less we can communicate.
When our breath and bodies are halted, either due to physical stagnation,
or mental or emotional stress,
our mind is narrowed, our communication is blocked,
and creativity is limited.
Our expression and flow follows the openness in our bodies.
- Any time you feel nervous or blocked, move.
Try this with me.
Even the slightest movement of your fingers,
your hands, your arms, your shoulders,
can restore your creativity, your thinking, and your communication.
If you ever feel nervous, like I do right now,
[laughter] you can just shake it out.
You can shake out anything that feels stagnant or stuck.
Any time you feel your brain freeze, just shake it out.
And if you want to affect your mood, if you're feelin' a little edgy,
and you wanna feel more calm,
try doin' a little slow, fluid, watery kind of movement.
That's beautiful.
Our bodies are 70 to 80% fluid.
And we can tap into the stream of well-being
any time we choose,
'cause movement will transform stagnancy, and improve the flow of our communication.
- Movement also impacts intellectual adaptability
and creative thinking.
A brain scan of a still receptive body,
and a brain in a moving, interactive body reveals that the brain is more fully-activated
during, or immediately following movement.
Scientists once thought that our brains were fully-developed
in the first few years of life.
But we now know that the brain is continually adjusting and re-organizing.
The key is to provide environmental circumstances
that our brains can react in response to.
Movement is one such condition.
The more movement we have in our bodies,
the more neuro-pathways we develop in our brain.
Movement that's improvisational and spontaneous
literally affects the size, shape, structure, and function of our brains.
Almost all spoken-word conversation is improvisational,
right, unless you're giving a Ted Talk.
You're improvising all the time in your speaking.
But we know that the brain is engaged more fully through movement,
more so than when we're just listening or talking.
We wanna play one more game with you, actually, it's not the last.
It's called alternating shapes.
Lizzi and I do this with all ages and abilities, all over the world--all over the country,
not the world, yet, we're going for that.
Anyone can do it, even in a chair. Here's how it goes.
I'm gonna make a shape, and when I freeze,
you'll make a shape in response to me.
And then, when you freeze, I'll make another shape.
It's gonna be an improvisational, moving conversation.
The thing is is that you're not necessarily gonna be making the shape I'm making,
you're making your own shape, okay? Ready, let's play.
I'm gonna go first.
Yay, I get to be everyone's partner. [laughs]
It's so fun.
[laughing]
I'm not gonna stop, we're gonna go on the whole 10 minutes like this.
Thank you. So that was brief,
but your brain expresses its undying gratitude to you.
[applause]
- In the 14 years that I've been working with the national non-profit, Turning the Wheel,
I have had countless moments of how movement transforms us,
and enhances our ability to interface and connect our communities.
Lulu and I recently had a beautiful opportunity
to work with a group of teens and their mentors.
They came to our class really disconnected,
and kinda shut down, and kinda sad.
Within mere minutes of being engaged in our movement games,
they were supporting each other.
And they were sharing in the creative expression that we all so deeply crave.
This one boy, in particular, stands out
because he came in not looking or talking to anybody.
And by the end of our time together, he was leading the group.
He was letting himself be seen in his totally-funky dance moves,
and he was laughing from the bottom of his belly.
The mentors participated,
and this forged new bonds that totally surpassed
the roles and stories that they had all been living within.
And the transformation that happened for all of the individuals,
and the group as a whole, was really striking.
Movement is a direct link to building community.
- So, any kind of movement you love-- oh yes, let's do that first.
[laughter]
- So we're gonna invite you one last time to have a little fun with us.
For eight counts, we're gonna invite you to move your feet in any way you want to.
Ready, go. One, two, three, four,
five, six, seven, eight.
- Now wave your arms for eight counts. One, two, three, four,
five, six, seven, eight. And tap your heads for eight counts.
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight.
- It wakes up your brain. - Clap your hands for eight counts.
[clapping]
That's great, so any kind of movement you love will do,
but see if you might be able to incorporate in these key elements.
- Tune in, listen to your body, and honor what it has to tell you.
- Move in as many different ways as possible, every day.
- Use movement to enhance your intellect, and affect your moods.
- Engage in movement that asks you to respond spontaneously
to the environment in new ways.
So like, walking or running on changing terrain,
a sport you love, or improvisational play.
- Move with other people because it's deeply satisfying,
and might even give you a sense of belonging that you're lookin' for.
- We invite you to use the language of movement and breath
to inhabit your body, expand your mind, and engage your community.
Remember, the language of words has taken us leaps and bounds,
but the language of the body brings us home.
- Thank you.
[applause]