Why you have undiscovered potential
'The brain does not recognize muscles. It recognizes movement patterns.' -- Dr Josef DellaGrotte
Certain patterns of movement are common to all human beings. They are useful and our biomechanical structure has evolved to make them easy. For example, we are able to turn to face someone or something. We are able to walk. We are able to squat.
Our structure may have evolved for these functions, but the way we do them - exactly which muscles we use in what combinations when we move - is entirely self-discovered. There are over six hundred muscles in the human body, which can be activated in any combination and which are each capable of fine variation in tonus. We are not born with a blueprint that tells our brain that shortening this or that muscle or combination of muscles results in this or that action. Rather, as babies, we constantly experiment with movement and gather information from the world around us. The brain creates connections between the feeling of a particular set of movements and the action that results. Think of reaching for something in front of us. Or going from lying on our back to lying on our front. Or going from sitting to standing. Complete patterns are created from the feeling of a movement, in a way we can recall - this is the act of learning.
Over time we repeat patterns and refine them, learning from new variations. For example, to walk on an inclined surface without falling over it is necessary to tilt our feet. The first time we were in that situation we likely fell over a few times before understanding what was needed. We had to discover how to tilt our feet while we walk. We learned what that movement feels like from the inside so we could reproduce it.
What we typically don't do is systematically explore every possibility that our musculo-skeletal system offers. We acquire knowledge of movement patterns by trial and error in childhood, and learn whatever patterns we happen to discover. Once we discover a pattern that is good enough for our purpose, we stop exploring, and that pattern becomes a habit.
That means we grow up with habits of movement which, while adequate for our situation, may not be optimal. We may use more energy than strictly necessary. We may cause excessive wear and tear on our joints. We may not be able to use our self as powerfully as we might. We have possibilities which have remained undiscovered.
This is why I say that in teaching movement using the Feldenkrais Method I help people unlock their hidden potential. This is not some fluffy exhortation to 'believe in yourself', it is simply a consequence of how we human beings learn and live in the world. Each of us has things we are able to do that we don't suspect we are capable of. Exploring our undiscovered possibilities is an exhilarating journey.
What experience do you have with self-discovery? Please leave a comment.