Primal Movement

The concept of the “Primal Movement Patterns” was developed by Paul Chek, who while developing his exercise philosophy, identified 7 specific groups of movements. These movements mimic the actions done in daily life. Primal movement training makes you stronger at just about any movement you'll tackle in life

Here are the movements:

Squat : squat to sit and to get in and out of a car. Many of us squat and lift at work, home or at the gym.

Example: overhead squat

Stand, with a chair behind you and your feet shoulder width apart. Hold you’re a light pair of dumbbells at full arm length overhead. While maintaining good posture, bend at the knees and lightly touch your backside to the chair, keeping a steady rhythm with no pause on both the up and down phase. Focus your weight through your heels and keep your vision fixed on a point directly ahead of you.


Bend : examples are construction workers, parents picking up kids and golfers addressing the ball.

Example: deadlift

Hold a weight on both hands. Look forward and stand with feet hip width apart. Brace your abs and bend forward at the hips, lowering the weight down your thighs to about an inch off the ground. The key here is to keep your back straight. Pause for a second at the lowest point and then raise back to the start. When you get to the top of the movement thrust your hips forward and contract your glutes. Keep the weight close to your thighs the entire time and stop if you feel any sharp lower back pain.

Lunge : throwing, sports, bushwalking, to prevent falling and in the workplace.

Example: walking lunge

Stand facing forward with your feet a shoulder width apart. Keep your back straight with your head and chin up. Place your hands on your hips while you do your walking lunges. Tighten your abdominal muscles. Lift your right foot up in a 90-degree angle and have your leg form an upside-down "L." Keep your knee and hip aligned, as well as your knee and ankle. Inhale as you step forward several feet in front of you with your heel landing first. Roll your foot down to have your toe touch the floor. Lower your back knee so it almost touches the floor. Your knees face forward at all time and remain aligned while doing walking lunges. Exhale as you use your weight and push up off your back toes and push your body forward to land your back foot in front to do another walking lunge. Keep your knee and hips aligned and your knee and ankle aligned. Remember to keep your abdominal muscles tightened. Move forward with each lunge you perform.

Push : on farms and pushing the shopping trolley, stroller, wheelie bin.

Example: push-up

Lie chest-down with your hands at shoulder level, palms flat on the floor and slightly more than shoulder-width apart, your feet together and parallel to each other. Look forward rather than down at the floor. The first contact you make with the floor with any part of the face should be your chin, not your nose. Keep your legs straight and your toes tucked under your feet. Straighten your arms as you push your body up off the floor. Keep your palms fixed at the same position and keep your body straight. Try not to bend or arch your upper or lower back as you push up. Exhale as your arms straighten out.Pause for a moment t.Lower your body slowly towards the floor. Bend your arms and keep your palms in fixed position. Keep body straight and feet together. Lower body until chest touches the floor. Try not to bend your back. Keep your knees off the floor, and inhale as you bend your arms. Pause for a moment. Begin straightening your arms for a second push-up. Exhale as you raise your body.

Pull : sport, construction, housework.

Example: band pull

Band should be at chest height on a pole. Hold each end of the band and face the pole. With arms outstretched in front, stand upright and brace your abs in readiness. Pull the band with your right arm, as if starting a lawn mower, turning your chest to the side as you pull your elbow behind your body. Squeeze through the back of your shoulder to get full range of movement. Alternate arms and speed up the pace as you go.

Twist : nearly all functional movements incorporate twisting.

Example: Swiss Ball Russian twist

Lie on your back and rest your head on the ground. Bend your knees and hips to ninety degrees, and rest your calves on the ball. Place your arms out to the sides and have your palms facing upwards. Brace your abdominals and try to keep your shoulders in contact with the ground during the movement. Roll both your legs to the left keeping your calves and hamstrings in contact with the ball the entire time. Pause when you get as far as you can rotate, pain-free. Your aim is to return your legs to the starting position only using your abs to do the movement. To do this you’ll need to hang your legs as a dead weight and avoid using your hips. Once back to the top repeat on the right.


Gait : Walking, jogging and sprinting

Perhaps the most beneficial of all the primal movements is gait. This allows us to cross large distances, either by walking, jogging, or sprinting. Today, many people's walking patterns tell us a story about their past injuries, current working conditions, and even their personalities.

To improve overall vitality and have more energy to complete our daily tasks, it is important to begin re-incorporating these movements into our lifestyles. Over time, our bodies will respond positively, adapting by increasing blood flow to all tissues of our bodies and improving muscle recruitment and engagement. Some of the benefits this will present to us include reduced joint stiffness and pain as well as increased quality of life.

Can't go outdoors for cardio exercises or training? Here's a great workout you can do indoors. This workout is based on the 7 primal pattern movements



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Primal movement
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