Movement's Metaphor and Home-Education Support
My mind often finds me in the spaces where big picture thinking boils itself into little bits of reality to connect the dots of understanding.
It is a common belief that in 21 days, a person can develop a new habit or learn a new skill. This unsubstantiated myth was most likely brought to us by a surgeon who observed patients' acclimation to their new amputation and his evaluation of their ability to live with a new reality. Since his publications in the late 60s, this belief has become increasingly popularized in motivational self help but also challenged by research that notes it can take triple that amount of time to create an “automatic” habit.
It has been 21 days since our studio's closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
21 days of having new routines.
21 days of working in new environments.
21 days of managing new relationships.
21 days of learning new skills.
21 days of creating new habits.
My conclusion, based solely on my anecdotal evidence is that, in these past 21 days, acceptance of a new reality is improbable at best. Personally, I am nowhere near the autonomous stage of learning or developing new habits. In fact, I get overwhelmed, then frustrated, followed by the desire to escape and go back to bed.
Perhaps this initially reads like a tangent but, please, keep reading, I promise to connect the dots.
Below is a description of the motor learning process humans go through when acquiring new physical skills. The symbolism of this process to our worldly experience in this pandemic have been standing out to me. Whether it is acquiring a new physical skill or creating new homebound habits, this process has become a resource and inspiration as we manage this unprecedented time.
At first, we learn the general process, or gestalt, of a movement. During the early stage of learning we are cognitively overwhelmed. New information comes to us in heaps and our ability to determine the information’s value is minimal. With every trial we flounder, moving with errors and navigating the actions with excessive energy. The struggle provokes emotional discomfort and often discouragement arises. If the support system overwhelms the early phase of learning, the learner often gives up and lacks the motivation to move onto the next phase.
If we commit through the messiness of the early learning process, we then begin to associate our new skillful movement into broader environments. As the body familiarizes with the actions of each movement, we are able to consider and apply variations to new scenarios. We now understand the general process and start working to refine and alter the approach with more effective choice making during future attempts. We may even be able to transfer our wisdom from one learned movement to another. Our cognitive load lowers resulting in the ability to adjust or respond more rapidly to variations. We have a greater self sense of achievement as the movement errors begin to reduce and shift to more conscious understanding of the errors’ origins.
At the final stage of learning, our movement becomes autonomous and automatic. We embody the actions with little effort. We can clearly direct and control our body to more successful results. We develop a new super power to anticipate non effective outcomes. We also can assess faulty feedback or erroneous information about our performance. We are able to move freely, as if the world has slowed down, and our ability to be present in each moment is effortless. Further, we have deep self sustained motivation. We are less impacted by the beliefs or situations that may otherwise negatively affect our experience.
In the studio setting, on the 21st day of learning, we are mostly reliant on the wisdom and facilitation of our teachers. We need ample support. Further, we need emotional support in order to maintain motivation and a positive outlook on the struggle of learning something new. On the 21st day of shelter in place, we are in need of many of the same things.
Being on one side of this screen, I can’t give you the “hey friend” I usually do when you walk into the studio, or press the magic yellow button at our front desk that says “you are awesome”, or reassure you you are doing a great job! (although, I guess I can type it into this blog... YOU ARE DOING A GREAT JOB!).
So I’m going to attempt to help you get through this phase and stay committed as we venture into a few more weeks of this process by sharing some of the general teaching approaches we utilize for the different stages of learning. Utilize these for your continued Pilates or yoga practice at home, or make some inferences to help you get through those new daily habits you are working with.
Early Stage
Make it messy. When we are experiencing movement for the first time there is a desire to be perfect but the best way to learn is to make it messy. Just go through the actions and allow the actions to teach you through the errors you may make. Errors are in fact the most effective way for the body to get organic feedback.
Practice over and over again. Repetition is key. Try to be mindfully present, more practice is good, but more mindful practice is better! Even if you don’t want to, keep showing up for that class. It may not be the same, or feel the same, or sound the same, but this repetition and consistent practice is the only way the body will begin to shift from the first phase into the next.
Middle Stage
Find a buddy. It probably isn’t the first time you have heard this. But to get through difficult times or when learning new skills it is helpful to resource a buddy or support network. When we work in a private session or small class, the teacher becomes your external motivation and your system of feedback. If you find a buddy to provide you with some kind words of encouragement or give you feedback (some of our teachers are available for private sessions if you need), you are more likely to maintain motivation and effort to keep going even if discouragement arises.
Curiosity. Allow yourself to try some movements or habits in new environmental conditions. Change up the scenario to apply your learned skill with added challenges, this keeps the body adapting and the mind's neural networks firing. It will most likely promote a new set of errors but remember… errors are the way we learn!
Later Stage
Do it faster. At the studio we offer what is called the Trade-Off. This is where we challenge the speed accuracy trade-off of motor control. When you learn a new skill, in order to maintain accuracy of the performance, it takes you longer to perform that skill. To enhance your automatic system, try moving faster and focus on maintaining the accuracy of your form and performance. You know you have met your challenge point when everything starts losing coordination.
Teach someone else! If you are wanting to test your expertise get a willing participant and try to teach your skill to them. This resources your explicit knowledge of the skill which can challenge your cognitive abilities as well as your intrinsic understanding of each movement (or habit).
As we grow together through our collective new normal, we face tests of our resilience and distractions in our commitments. Though I’d love nothing more than to believe in that 21-day model, in these uncertain times, I know it’s a baseline that we may not be able to step from. So I encourage you all (and myself) to be gracious and kind. Momentum is building (even when it seems slow). Learning is happening (even if it feels immeasurable). Change is occurring (which the earth is revealing slowly but surely). And, at the end of the day, though apart, we are all in this together and stronger for it. My role as educator and my commitment to support my community remains unwavering. Commit to reaching out for support. Commit to community. We are here. And we are committed to you.
