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Every day, we have the opportunity to learn new things. A few days ago, I learned more about primal movement, an exercise style I’ve seen around in my years of gym-going and YouTube browsing, but never interrogated further. Like cycling and Pilates, you can take in-person classes in this technique, but you can also just log into the video-sharing behemoth and find some free, guided workouts.
What is primal movement?
Primal movement feels more like play than punishment, which is a helpful way to reframe things if you struggle to enjoy exercise. Essentially, it’s a bodyweight exercise that emphasizes movements like crawling, squatting, lunging, rolling, and balancing, which can make you feel a bit like a toddler or a little monkey—hence the word “primal.”
That word may throw you off and can evoke thoughts of paleo bros, Liver King, and the like. While it’s true there’s some overlap in the communities, this is an exercise concept with its roots in functional fitness. It’s an effective, fun workout that doesn’t have to be a signifier of any broader or ickier ideology. Feel free to ignore those connotations as you roll around on the floor. It’s a nice break from the way we move (or don’t move) now when we’re hunched over our computers and cell phones in an office chair and nothing more.
You might look silly while you’re rolling and hopping around, but no sillier than you look using the chest fly machine at the gym or the magic circle in mat Pilates. Well, maybe a little sillier, but it doesn’t matter because this sort of exercise improves mobility and flexibility, builds strength and coordination, and helps with things like balance, joint health, and spatial awareness. You can reclaim everything you’ve sacrificed to the office chair, basically, by owning your naturally human movements.
While you’re searching for primal movement exercise classes and videos, you’ll definitely run across Animal Flow. These aren’t technically interchangeable phrases, though they’ve come to be. Animal Flow is a branded movement system that seeks to replicate animal-like movements—primal movement is a broader fitness concept based on human movement. A lot of the moves look similar and the results are also similar, but there are a few key differences. First off, Animal Flow costs money. You can join the program, take classes, attend workshops, and more, but it’ll cost you. That doesn’t mean you won’t find “animal flow” videos on YouTube and that they won’t be basically the same as “primal movement” ones. Just keep in mind that animal flow and Animal Flow are actually different.
Finding primal movement on YouTube
I recommend spending some time just watching primal movement workouts on YouTube before you actually try it. You’ll need a lot of space, first of all, for the rolling and lunging and whatnot, and you’ll want to know what the instructors are talking about before you attempt it. It’s supposed to be natural and human, but it’s not like we move like this every day in real life, so it could take you some time to tap into it.
Expect deep squat holds, bear crawls, crab walks, lizard crawls, and spinal rolls. The good news is almost none of these routines involve equipment, so you can do this whenever and wherever you are.
Smoov Moves
My favorite videos so far come from a channel called Smoov Moves, where a man named Grant takes you and 100,000 subscribers through primal movement moves designed for beginners, from arm swings to sliding hinges.
What do you think so far?
His audio quality isn’t the best, but he more than makes up for it with the video quality. Each move is bookmarked along the playback bar at the bottom of the video, so you can jump ahead to ones you like. There’s a countdown timer in the top of the screen, too, so you know how long you have left with each exercise. He’s friendly, calm, and encouraging, even as he leaps around in a way sort of reminiscent of a bear. The channel provides playlists that are broken down by skill level, too, so you won’t feel overwhelmed when you start out.
GMB Fitness
GMB Fitness was founded by a physical therapist, which I appreciate. It’s key to have some insight from someone with so much expertise in the body and its movements—and nearly 300,000 subscribers agree. There are a load of videos about mobility and stretching on the channel and not all of them are primal, but the one I linked above is, so start there. Otherwise, search “GMB fitness animal” and “GMB fitness primal” for more.
Often led by trainer Ryan Hurst, these videos are straightforward and insightful. You don’t get any on-screen graphics to clue you in on things like exercise names, but you do get clear audio and video, which helps you follow along.
Animal Flow
I know I said Animal Flow—like capital-letters Animal Flow—costs money, but like any smart business, it also wants to give you a taste of their offerings. Creator Mike Fitch hosts some classes on YouTube, where 84,000 subscribers can follow along. You do get beginner-level stuff, but it’s taught by a true pro and the video quality is excellent.
Fitch does a good job demonstrating the moves before asking you to replicate them and you actually get a few different camera angles so you can really see what’s going on.
