The Foundation of Fitness Isn’t More Fitness: A Message from Our Founder
Achieving peak performance doesn’t require adding more weights or longer durations to your workout. If you want to get the most from your training time you’ve got to start from the top. Sensorimotor training brings your brain to the game so your body can do more with less. Learn more about the brain-body approach to movement and reason for our passion with this note from the founder of iBalans, the company that created the WAV.
Having worked in applied sciences for many years, I learned there is a significant disconnect between what cutting edge leaders uncover and the lay person’s opportunity to apply those findings in a meaningful way. Through my own experience, I found that this principle is especially true with the fitness industry.
Once after hearing some researchers present at a health and wellness conference, I considered the results of my own training time (or frustrations with the lack of it). Spurred by curiosity, I started interviewing personal trainers, attending fitness conferences, and talking to sports injury rehabilitation doctors. A common pattern emerged: When it came to exercise, people were just literally going through the motions.
Play the Long Game
If you think of your body as a home you’d occupy forever, you’d want to maintain a solid frame. Unfortunately, many trainers and regular gym-goers approach exercise with the goal of “getting a good workout,” a phrase that usually means looking fit or losing weight. They overlook or dismiss the end goal of preserving, even enhancing, our body’s movement framework. So, how do you reassemble that rock-solid framework? Through sensorimotor workouts!
Our every move is guided by the brain’s interpretation and processing of sensory information. Unfortunately, waking up and connecting with our sensory system is usually overshadowed by our quest for more reps or heavier weight. Sensory workouts, though, strengthen the brain-body connections you’ve probably been taking for granted.
Be A Kid Again!
As babies, most of us didn’t have the verbal language to express what we saw; you simply grabbed, smelled, tasted (yes--everything goes in a baby’s mouth!) and crawled toward whatever it was you wanted. None of this was easy. You needed every ounce of physical strength to get to your goal and, lacking that, you relied on rapidly developing senses to explore your world. As body and brain developed synergistically, you too grew more sophisticated in your movement and language.
As adults, we’re still using those skills but we’ve forgotten how they’re built from initial uninhibited interactions with our bodies and surroundings. Think of when you were a kid and played Marco Polo in the pool. You listened for your opponent’s shout while keeping your eyes shut (no peeking!). Against the pool’s gently shifting current, you either swam or water-jogged toward your target with limited sensory input guiding you. As children, we were curious, had fun and let our healthy sense of proprioception move us through space with self-imposed sensory challenges.
When is the last time you thought of how much brain-body integration that really took? It’s time to re-acquaint yourself with your most important unspoken first language.
Grow Up by Getting Sensory Strong
You’re all grown up now, but that doesn’t mean you should stop approaching your exercise with the same sense of curiosity and sensory engagement. By embracing a sensory fitness approach, you’ll realize healthy movements require healthy brain-body connections.
“Sensory workouts help strengthen the brain-body connections most of us take for granted.”
The key to unlocking your full physical performance potential is improved sensory integration. Sensory integration will enhance movement timing and stabilization without putting your joints and muscles through extreme workout sessions. When you start re-learning those key principles and embrace a holistic approach to your body, you’ll see an improved movement quality you probably haven’t experienced since childhood.
Never stop moving. Whether you are a dedicated athlete, a fitness first-timer, or simply enjoy walking the dog, keep following your passion! When you’re ready to take it to the next level (without injuring yourself), don’t train harder--train smarter. I invite you to embrace your youthful curiosity and seek out opportunities to engage your senses and be empowered with every move you make.
If you want to hear more tune in to these podcasts or even better, reach out directly and make a personal connection.
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