Becoming a Human Swiss Army Knife
An exploration of Generalist vs Specialist.
Our strategy is rooted in the "movement perspective," where training is a comprehensive procedure that goes beyond a one-sided approach to moving the body. We use a multitude of unexpected tools, from simple children’s toys to the body itself, to expose our students to a variety of disciplines, creating multi-dimensional and diverse movers.
An incredibly versatile and resourceful piece of equipment for enhancing these abilities is a tennis ball, which can be used for various activities to build up hand-eye coordination, precision, speed, and accuracy. For example, the Ball Drop Game is a fun game that teaches students to react quickly and precisely by executing tasks that challenge reaction time, speed, balance, stamina, and persistence. Along with its simplicity, we have found that the skills developed with this game are transferable to other activities, sports, and disciplines, without the need for expensive equipment like treadmills or cables.
The tennis balls can also be used for juggling. Something as simple as learning to juggle can create profound changes in a person. Initially, deep neurological and physical adaptations may not be evident, yet the rhythmicality and control you can develop through juggling practice can open the door to play in other fields.
WATCH ⬇️
When developing new skills, many agree with the concept of ten thousand hours of deliberate practice to build mastery of a subject. However, another theory on learning and skill acquisition is that we learn better by sampling as many different activities as possible. This broader approach focuses on sharpening the tools that can help us in many areas instead of one specialized field.
We have all heard of football players who take ballet to improve mobility and become lighter on their feet, as Lynn Swann and Herschel Walker famously took ballet lessons to improve their sport play. Yet, many of us only explore what we are most comfortable with. The "stretcher" tends to stay within yoga and pilates classes. The "sweater" finds success in the classes that produce the most perspiration. The "lifter" is only satisfied when throwing around weights. Some attempt to create a cross-training program by trying different styles of classes, but without a guiding principle directing the work, it can be difficult to make progress.
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“After the training, there was a great variation in the ability of the volunteers to juggle. All could juggle three balls for at least two cascades, but some could juggle five balls and perform other tricks. All showed changes in white matter, however, suggesting this was down to the time spent training and practicing rather than the level of skill attained.”
Book Recommendation
This book challenges the notion of 10,000 hours of deliberate practice for mastery and shares many examples of successful musicians and athletes that found success through the breath of study rather than specialization. His notion of cultivating (Range) through diverse experiences to prepare for the future is exactly what we aim to do with our movement-based approach.
Within our community, there is a saying, "High-tech tools, low-tech body. Low-tech tools, high-tech body." The more expensive the gadget, the less you get from it. However, one can develop a vast body through simple tools like tennis balls, sticks, walls, and floors. Through this multidisciplinary approach, our students gain transferable skills that can be used to explore their ever-evolving bodies and become a generalist, a sort of “Human Swiss-army Knife”.