Movement Practice Part 2: The 6 Archetypes and MLAM

Where do you sit on the Life in Motion Spectrum?

As mentioned in Part 1, Chris made the observation (one I believe to be astute) that most people practice movement without having a movement practice. I’d like to continue exploring the significance of this statement.

An “atomic” model for movement lifestyles

Before we formally define movement and practice (and movement-practice), I’d like to illustrate a few characters that will help us bring the concept of “movement lifestyle” to life. By that I mean, what is the style of relationship you currently have with movement? 

While I initially described it as a spectrum, I feel as if this analogy may not be completely accurate in representing an individual’s relationship to movement in their lives.

Rather, I see our lives in motion as an atomic model:  Our individuality represented by the electron-containing shells which orbit the nucleus of an atom. And now for my attempt to consolidate what I remember from grade 10 chemistry. 

In what I am calling the “Movement-Lifestyle Atomic-Model” (MLAM), visualize that the entire atom, nucleus and shells, represents our lives and our relationship with movement. Each electron-containing shell has particular attributes and characteristics, which I will describe as movement archetypes having a particular set of characteristics: Superpowers, kryptonites, and a relationship-style with movement.

As an electron has the capability of jumping from shell to shell, giving off or emitting energy (photons), based on the interactions it has with its environment, so too are we capable of changing from archetype to archetype. The electrons have a different level of energy and degree of stability depending on their distance from the nucleus: The closest orbit to the nucleus has the lowest energy, and highest stability. The orbit farthest from the nucleus has maximum energy and is highly unstable.  In this representation, the “MLAM atom” has five shells, each representative of one of the five (plus one) Movement Archetypes. The archetype associated with the closest shell to the nucleus has the lowest energy and is the most stable in it’s position, and the archetype associated with the furthest shell from the nucleus has the highest energy, but the least stability in it’s position.  

All that said, whatever visual representation we choose doesn’t matter. Simply I wish for us to think outside the box a little bit. Not everything is a spectrum in which one end is the opposite of the other. In nature there are plenty of binary relationships- black/white, hot/cold, suffering/joy- but I think (and I could be wrong) that the relationship we have with movement is more complex, multi-faceted, unspectrumable.

The 5 (+1) Archetypes

The first five Movement Archetypes compose the five shells of the MLAM:

Shell 1:  The Indoorsman

Shell 2: The Exerciser

Shell 3: The Integrator

Shell 4: The Dedicated Mover

Shell 5: The Over-Identifier

Not represented by a shell in our atomic model is The Transcender archetype. This is because, as I will explain a bit further along, the Transcender isn’t represented by a single shell, but as the model in its entirety, giving it the ability to jump from shell to shell, changing energy levels, to be any of the given archetypes at any time, for the necessary time. 

The poem by Rainer Maria Rilke comes to mind:

I live my life in widening circles

that reach out across the world.

I may not complete this last one

but I will give myself to it.

I circle around God, around the primordial tower.

I’ve been circling for thousands of years
and I still don’t know: am I a falcon,
a storm, or a great song?

As mentioned, shell one (The Indoorsman) is the most stable electron orbit, meaning the hardest to change in his ways, whereas shell 5 (The Over-Identifier) is the most unstable, meaning that it is fragile to changes in its environment and prone to identity-crises (not always a bad thing, mind you). In the middle, The Integrator has the most stability and adaptability (or anti-fragility) to the changes in environmental inputs he encounters and maintains a healthy relationship with movement. The Transcender is paradoxically stable and unstable simultaneously. 

Let’s now paint a picture for each archetype in the MLAM:

Shell 1: The Indoorsman

Stable yet sedentary, The Indoorsman, as you would expect, spends most of his life indoors, in climate controlled offices and ergonomic desk chairs with extra lumbar support. He can often be heard complaining about “mouse shoulder” and “text neck” yet fails to actually do anything about these ailments because that would require a degree of honest engagement with himself that he is not yet prepared for. (Note that from here on out I will use “he” to describe both men and women Indoorsmen. Why didn’t I choose “she”? As a lady-writer shouldn’t I be empowered to use the feminine pronoun? Simple. I like efficiency: “He” takes less time to type than “she”, “Indoorswoman”, and “Indoorsperson”. Also, I plan to use “she” for the next archetype description so any feminists reading can rest assured).

The Indoorsman senses undertones of discontent, ranging from moderate to severe, with his state of life, body, and mind which are easily dismissed as background static, and quickly gotten used to as “normal”. That perpetual headache and chronic fatigue? Par for the course to any Indoorsman, his symptoms barely register as blips on the radar bearing any significance. He doesn’t realize these symptoms are in fact abnormal for a healthy human being until, on a whim, he gets a massage and has a few days of relief in which he feels a nondescript sense of “better”, but can’t pinpoint exactly why. “Better” does not last more than a few days because he has no knowledge, tools, or guidance for how to maintain it. It’s not his fault, but it is his responsibility to acquire these tools. 

The Indoorsman can sometimes be spotted reading health and fitness literature (if we can call Men’s and Women’s Health magazines such) but rather than as a serious attempt to inspire a change in his lifestyle, he mostly makes fun of how photo-shopped the fitness models appear, not seeing it as a realistic comparison to themselves (for it isn’t), and using humour to push down his insecurities (The Indoorsman is quite good at this, in fact, self-deprecating humour is one of his super-powers). Nevertheless, the effects of these images on his psyche slip under his radar and contribute to an insidious low sense of self-worth, barely perceptible to him in his current state of cripplingly poor self-awareness.

Despite his sarcastic remarks and statements that he “accepts how he looks”, and has no desire to get in shape because he’s “ok with himself”, deep down he desires to try to change. What’s holding him back is that he lacks any sort of role model for this behaviour, as most of his friend group consists of other Indoorsmen. This lack of role models throughout his life combined with years of Indoorsmanism makes his position in the MLAM highly stable, or resistant to change. That, and change scares the crap out of him.

That is until one day he decides that something needs to drastically change (sometimes after hitting a rock-bottom, or another equally devastatingly inspiring life event). In an effort to try on a value he’s never before held,  but that he deems will move him in a healthier direction (movement and exercise), he takes up an activity like ballroom dancing, playing in a recreational basketball league, or most commonly as an entry point to movement for The Indoorsman, jogging. Though he may only average 2000 steps on a movement “heavy” day, he feels like his current physical state is “normal” (because it’s all he’s ever known) and so he imposes an unrealistic expectation on himself to perform at a standard higher than is realistic. There is a 90% likelihood that in his first venture into exercise he unknowingly pushes past his physical threshold and, if he doesn’t find himself struggling through the ordeal, he wakes up in agony the next day. Based on this experience, he may or may not decide that repeating this event to be a good idea, further contributing to his stability- fear and resistance to change, in the MLAM.

The Indoorsman at a glance:

Superpower: Ability to tune out discomfort, self-deprecating humour.
Kryptonite: Sunlight, exercise, sports.
Vital stats: Haggard, lethargic, pale, poor-immune system.
MLAM Stability: High.
Relationship with movement: Non-existent, wishful thinking.
Attitude towards the stairs: Avoids taking the stairs at all costs.

Shell 2: The Exerciser

Prone to bouts of occasional physical activity, The Exerciser is not sedentary like the Indoorsman, as she is characterized  by her attempts to make up for her predominantly static life with 60 minute clips of intense activity at the gym a few times per week. If she happens to be an individual of affluence, she is likely to spend these bursts of activity with a personal trainer, on whom she is dependent to keep her accountable to her otherwise uninspired exercise regime.

She is likely to be using exercise for one or a combination of four primary reasons:
1) In an attempt to restore a sense of health and balance in her life without actually addressing the reason why her life feels so unhealthily off kilter in the first place.
2) Because she knows she’ll feel better about herself after doing some physical activity, despite the fact that maintaining a routine is hard and often she finds her workouts make her body hurt afterwards.
3) To lose weight, gain muscle, or fit whatever aesthetic ideal she’s chasing in an attempt to heal her self-esteem or fill a void within.
4) For no better reason than she feels like she “should” due to pressure from a doctor, a friend group, her parents, or the all-pervasive media influence. 

None of these reasons allow her to accept who she authentically is right now, but are based on her striving to be someone she’s not. Nor do these reasons respect her yet to be uncovered “why” behind her movement practice.

The Exerciser cares a lot about how she looks and she often uses exercise to burn calories and tone muscles. She also is prone to believing the notion that a good workout is one in which she works up a sweat, and concludes in an exhausted, dizzy state. In the case of some physical culture ideologies, ultimate success is unlocked when one vomits and/or pees her pants, and The Exerciser sees these as completely rational criteria. These exercise intentions are ironic because she is often running on mere fumes and adrenaline due to mental and emotional burnout from her day job and other poorly managed life-stresses. She likely to have a large sleep debt, thus her scheduled gym-time is probably better spent doing something more restorative, like sleeping (something she refuses to give in to). 

The overarching intentions of The Exerciser are to make up for unhealthy habits: Poor nutrition, over-working, under-moving, staring too long at a screen, existential angst, and comparing herself to unrealistic media portrayals of celebrity bodies. Unlike The Indoorsman, these images can trigger the Exerciser to embark on a strange, shame-induced motivational roller coaster, making her position on the MLAM less stable than the Indoorsman (more prone to taking action and changing something about her life).

When speaking of exercise, The Exerciser often uses the verbiage “fit it in” over “make time for it”: Isolated bouts of physical activity rather than a lifestyle integrated with movement. While she can appear on the outside to be admirably health-conscious , this is largely because when she does workout and cook healthy meals, she posts it on Instagram for all to see, using hashtags like #fitfam, #beastmode, and #paleoaf.

Despite how she strives to appear on the outside, she is out of touch with her body and its needs. Her inner homeostatic mechanisms are out of whack (immune system, metabolism, hormones, circadian rhythm, etc.), and their signals are near impossible to interpret in her hypervigilent state. She lacks presence with her body moment to moment, because to truly tune in would mean to let her guards down and acknowledge the honest state of her body- A bit of a mess. That said, she knows (in a superficial way that she has yet to truly experience) that she must try to be present with herself, connect body with mind, yet when she tries it is an act closer to resembling war than harmonious living. The Exerciser exists on a spectrum from primarily sedentary sometimes exerciser, to compulsive over-exerciser. Neither is an exceptionally healthy, balanced relationship.

What distinguishes The Exerciser from the Indoorsman is that she has a definite value, or at least an interest in having a value for movement where the Indoorsman has none. While misguided and unclear in her intention for movement, she’s taken an important step- The attempt to make movement a part of her life. Some fine-tuning required, she is doing the best with the information she has at this moment in time.

The Exerciser at a glance: 

Superpower: Gets shit done, desires change.
Kryptonite: Prioritization of needs, media portrayals of “fit” bodies.
Vital stats: Chronic fatigue, hypervigilent, sympathetic-dominant.
MLAM Stability: Medium.
Relationship with movement: Unbalanced. Ranging from obsessive to sporadic; highly structured routine to challenge creating a routine.
Attitude towards the stairs: Takes the stairs whenever possible because she can burn 10 extra calories if she sprints them two at a time.

2300 words seems like enough for now… Stay tuned for the next installment of Movement Practice in which we will continue to explore the four remaining movement archetypes and discuss whether any of this even matters (does it?).