Primal Movement Workouts Are My New Favorite (Weird) Way to Work Out for Free on YouTube
Every day we have the opportunity to learn something new. A few days ago, I learned more about Primal Movement, a style of exercise I’ve seen over the years at the gym and watching YouTube, but never delved into. Like cycling and Pilates , you can take in-person classes for this technique, but you can also just go to the giant video hosting site and find free, guided workouts.
What is primary movement?
Primal Movement is more of a game than a punishment, which can help reframe your exercise routine if you find it hard to enjoy exercise. It’s essentially a bodyweight exercise that involves movements like crawling, squatting, lunging, rolling, and balancing, which can make you feel like a toddler or a baby monkey — hence the name “primal.”
The word may throw you off, conjuring up images of paleo bros, the “King of Liverpool,” and the like. While there are certainly some overlaps in the communities, the concept of exercise is rooted in functional fitness. It’s an effective, fun workout that doesn’t have to be emblematic of some larger, or more abhorrent, ideology. Ignore those associations as you roll around on the floor. It’s a welcome break from the way we move (or don’t move) these days, hunched over computers and cell phones in an office chair with little else to do.
You may look silly bouncing and rolling around, but you’re no sillier than you are on the abduction machine at the gym or on the magic circle on a Pilates mat. Well, maybe a little sillier, but that doesn’t matter because these exercises improve mobility and flexibility, build strength and coordination, and improve balance, joint health, and spatial awareness. You can get back everything you sacrificed for the office chair just by mastering your natural human movements.
When searching for Primal Movement classes and workout videos, you’re bound to come across Animal Flow. Technically, these aren’t interchangeable terms, although they have become so. Animal Flow is a proprietary movement system that aims to mimic the movements of animals. Primal Movement is a broader fitness concept based on human movement. Many of the moves look similar, and the results are similar, but there are a few key differences. First, Animal Flow costs money . You can join a program, take classes, workshops, and more, but it will cost you. That’s not to say you won’t find “Animal Flow” videos on YouTube, and that they won’t be fundamentally the same as “Primal Movement.” Just keep in mind that Animal Flow and Animal Flow are actually different.
Search for Primitive Movement on YouTube
I recommend spending some time watching basic movement workouts on YouTube before you try it. First of all, you’ll need plenty of room to roll, lunge, and everything else, and you’ll need to know what the instructors are talking about before you start doing the exercises. It’s supposed to feel natural and organic, but in real life, we don’t move like that every day, so it may take some time to get into the habit.
You’ll be doing deep squats, bear crawls, crab walks, lizard crawls, and back flips. The good news is that almost none of these exercises require any special equipment, so you can do them anywhere, anytime.
Smoov Moves
My favorite videos so far are from the channel Smoov Moves , where a guy named Grant walks you and his 100,000 subscribers through basic moves designed for beginners, from arm swings to sliding hinges.
The audio quality isn’t the best, but the video quality more than makes up for it. Each exercise is bookmarked in the play bar at the bottom of the video, so you can skip to the one you like. There’s also a countdown timer at the top of the screen so you know how much time is left for each exercise. He’s friendly, calm, and encouraging, even though he does jump around like a bear. The channel also has playlists broken down by skill level, so you won’t feel overwhelmed once you get started.
GMB Fitness
GMB Fitness was founded by a physical therapist, and I appreciate that. It’s so valuable to get valuable information from someone with such a deep understanding of the body and how it moves, and the nearly 300,000 subscribers agree. The channel has a ton of mobility and stretching videos, not all of them primal, but the one I linked above is one, so start there. Otherwise, search for “GMB fitness animal” and “GMB fitness primal” to find more.
Often accompanied by trainer Ryan Hurst, the videos are simple and to the point. There are no cues, such as exercise names, but there is clear audio and video to help you follow along.
Animal Flow
I know I said Animal Flow — capital-A Animal Flow — costs money, but like any smart business, it also wants to give you a chance to try its services. The channel’s creator, Mike Fitch, hosts a number of classes on YouTube, where his 84,000 subscribers can follow him. Sure, there’s some beginner-level material, but the teachings are professional, and the quality of the videos is excellent.
Fitch does a good job of showing the moves before asking you to repeat them, and you actually get a few different camera angles so you can really see what’s going on.