Vitality and Liveliness with Somatics

Vitality

Vitality can be defined as a felt experience of life force and energy that we feel inside and that helps us move forward. Having vitality means sensing liveliness in our physical, mental, emotional, and/or spiritual realms. We notice this quality in other people, places, and phenomena. Our sense of vitality fluctuates, sometimes daily. With age, one might feel like vitality reservoirs are diminishing—we invest more in taking care of our energy and refrain from spending it recklessly.

Clinical psychologist, dancer, and creator of the NeuroMovement method ®, Anat Baniel, in her Move Into Life: The Nine Essentials for Lifelong Vitality (2009), outlines nine key components for a life lived with vitality: movement with attention; turning on the “learning switch” (seeing life as full of opportunities to learn); subtlety; variation; focusing on slow; having enthusiasm; maintaining flexible goals; observing one’s imagination and dreams; and developing awareness. ¹ Her technique helps to “wake up” the brain and is useful for children with special needs, people with strokes, injuries, and other limiting conditions, and anyone who wants to find more vitality in their lives. Baniel was a protégé of Moshe Feldenkrais, who developed the concept of awareness through movement in his somatic method. As I will show below, movement, in particular somatic movement, offers a chance to tap into many of these essentials for vitality.

Somatics is an umbrella term for a range of movement practices that have a different origin story and pedagogical methods, but they all share the belief in the value of moving with attention and awareness. ² To move somatically means to constantly turn the attention inward, inside the body, to trace physical sensations and to sense how movement impacts us physically, emotionally, and mentally. We pay attention to how all of these aspects of the self are a part of the experience of movement.

Awareness

Moving with awareness and attention enhances vitality. According to Baniel, if we exercise without awareness, the brain “barely notices. What is missing is attention, that is, paying attention to your movements, how your body feels, and any feelings of comfort or discomfort as well as pleasure that you are experiencing. Pay attention to how fast or slow you are moving, how you are breathing as you move, what you are thinking or feeling.” However, “the moment we bring attention to our movement, any movement, research shows that the brain resumes growing new connections and creating new pathways and possibilities for us. And that is when we feel most vital.”

Somatics trains participants to move with awareness. We do not only perform movements but constantly keep track of how these movements make us feel inside. “What do I sense in my knees in this position? How does my lower back feel today? What do I feel in my chest as I circle the shoulder blades? Can I sense the weight of my bones in the arms as I lift them laterally to the side? As I do this chest press, lifting and lowering my chest, what happens if I imagine leading my life from the heart today?” We take the time to feel and sense what these movements bring about in our bodies and emotional world. It is unimaginable and unnecessary to move with full awareness at all times—our focus needs to be able to move to other phenomena also. The key is to have enough of these moments of moving with awareness and to bring this dimension into our lives.

When we feel vital, we feel connected to the body. We become more aware of what is happening inside the body and its different parts. We wake up the body with our attention by moving our mind’s focus to different parts of the body. These parts then feel integrated into the whole body. An image I sometimes use in my classes is that of an anatomy coloring book. When we somatically bring our awareness to different parts of the body and move, stretch, and contract them, then this area of the body starts to be filled with “color,” with awareness. We then go to another body part and start “filling it out” with awareness. By the end of the movement exploration, we feel more alive, awake, “more colorful.” We have taken the time to “see” and to sense these parts of us.

Yvonne Adrian Puckett, a New York dance teacher and dance writer soon entering her 90th decade, teaches several classes almost every day and inspires her students with her abundant energy (for more, see https://www.yvonneandrogerdance.com/about-yvonne-and-roger-puckett-dance-fitness). In an interview with the author, she emphasized the connection between movement, vitality, and inner awareness of the body. In her view, inner awareness gives the mover the ability to move freely and with momentum. She noted, “Your whole body is alive, and I want you to use that aliveness in your body for dynamic momentum. To feel that momentum, I want you to sense what’s happening from the inside of your body out. You have a reserve inside that brings you out. And then you can do anything. You can move any way you want to freely as long as it’s your body’s way.” She said, “I think you can feel vitality. It’s around you. It’s a part of people around you. New York is full of vitality. When I first came here I was so energized by the other people and the sense of the subway moving. It took my breath away.”

Moving with awareness enhances vitality because our perception becomes subtler and our ability to notice distinctions in physical sensations more acute. We start to detect differences in how we feel physically every day, which goes counter to the feelings of sameness and dullness that often accompany the lack of vitality. We begin to notice that doing the same movement of an abdominal crunch, a sweeping movement for the arms, a backbend, a calf raise, can feel slightly different every day. It takes time and practice to start noticing more subtle sensations. Sensations of energy moving inside the body, warmth, tingling, ease, release, and expansion are not as loud as tightness or pain.

Somatics develops our sense of curiosity and exploration, which plays a role in remaining vital and aware of newness in our lives. Inquiry is key in somatic movement classes. We constantly ask questions about what we sense. We investigate how movement could be a means of self-development—the sense of self-confidence, discipline, and awareness of emotions can be enhanced through movement. Baniel points out that the brain “thrives on subtlety, on gentler, less forceful, more refined input.” This attunement to subtlety has an effect beyond the somatic classroom. “Subtlety generates seemingly miraculous new possibilities that will change how you speak to your loved ones, how you present an idea, how you cook and taste, how you move, and how you remain vital,” Baniel notes.

Slow and Fast

Somatic movement and dance classes vary in their aerobic impact and the speed of movements. These practices tend to be slower than many fitness practices. With slower movements, we sense with more richness and vibrancy. Some techniques, such as Nia dance, 5Rhythms, or SuryaSoul, incorporate vigorous movement. Other techniques, such as the Alexander Technique and the Feldenkrais Method, are focused on bodily awareness and subtle shifts inside the body and do not incorporate dance-type movements in the space. In most somatic dance techniques, which generally are based on or include free dance, the participants can regulate the speed and size of the movements themselves.

In somatic movement classes, participants execute a vast range of different kinds of movements and tempos. For example, Nia dance is inspired by three martial arts methods, three dance methods, and three somatic awareness practices, all of which have shaped the practice. Inside one method, one finds kicks and punches, flowy and sensual movements, skipping, shimmying, bouncing, different hand and feet techniques, to name a few. All of these have a different impact on the body and bring their own nuance of vitality.

Vitality in dance emanates from the progression of movements and tempos inside the class structure. Typically, there is an arc of warming up the joints and the rest of the body to more diverse movements, moving about the space, adding volume and speed, then cooling down, and resting and integrating the experience at the end of the class. “In dance, the dynamics can start very slowly, in flow. We can create a different kind of vitality from the inside as we do from the outside. It can be very dynamic or it can be ‘take a breath, let it go,’” Puckett noted. Instructors design playlists with principles of movement, energy, and emotions in mind. “I can put on something that’s the first song where we breathe very slowly into the slow movements. And then we get the power of the punch that comes from the music. I might use the punches in slow flow because it creates a different energy. Or I can go faster even in the slow flow. I can do one song one way one day and the next day do it in a different way because I can do different moves and because I activate and create a different kind of energy with the same song,” Puckett described.

Expressive, Articulate Body

This range of movements and speeds makes somatic movement classes rich for vitality. In our everyday lives, we do not use nearly enough of the different ways in which our bodies are able to move. The body’s fuller potential for movement and these movements’ energetic impact go unexplored. When we perform more diverse movements, our movement vocabulary expands. As we pay attention to the movements of the joints, the more expansive movements as well as the subtle sensations in the body, we become more articulate with our body.

In somatic dance classes, we move to music, noticing the emotion and the qualities in the music. That gives us a sense of dynamics—bigger and smaller, “louder” and “softer” movements, times when we are full out, full on, and times when the movement is more internal or barely noticeable. “Let’s ‘microdance’ and move in small ways, maybe just the hands or the fingers. Let the outer dance subside. Dance on the inside. Let the dance continue inwardly,” an instructor might say. For example, using different hand gestures while dancing—thumbs up or down, pointing with the index finger, dancing with the palms, opening and closing the space between the fingers, flicking the fingers, snapping, making a fist, pulling, grabbing, tearing—helps with joint mobility and makes the hands more expressive.

This factor of “liveliness” in the body is important in professions where the person is on the stage—in performing arts, for example—or in front of people in his/her job context. But liveliness is important also in other contexts: in the presence of an expressive and lively person, we might feel the joy of movement and the authenticity of emotions coursing through the person. We feel their energy, their liveliness, and it can inspire, energize, and uplift us too.

Fluctuating Vitality

We sense more vitality in our mind, body, emotions, or spirit on some days and less on some days. The time that we spend on exercising, moving with awareness, or meditating and doing a body scan offers an opportunity to measure our vitality or energy levels on a given day. While doing a strength training exercise, I might ask the participants, “How is your energy level today? Do you feel your vitality today?” We take a moment to feel and notice the quality of liveliness in us on a given day.

Checking in and honoring the uniqueness of how we feel each day is important in a somatic approach to strength training. Instead of determining the weights or the type of resistance band (light, medium, or heavy) from the beginning of the workout, I often ask my clients to tune in with the body during the repetitions. Does this weight feel right today? Is it too heavy or too light? The fact that a person was working with a heavier set of weights a couple of days prior to the class does not necessarily mean that the same weight is the best choice on that given day. An emotional incident that left him/her feeling empty the night before, or a stressful event at work, or a difficult mental task can leave their mark on the body, making one feel physically weaker.

A somatic or holistic approach would ask the practitioner to be mindful of their energy and vitality resources. More important than the weight of the weights is the commitment to staying connected to the body. A lighter workout, movements that feel more on the “surface” level can be a more appropriate choice. With lighter weights, we sometimes sense the body more precisely, whereas with the heavy weights, we focus so much on the weight that we sense less of what is happening in the body. Often I also point out the reverse: looking at how the body responds to the movement and the weights, I can notice that the weights appear too light. I encourage the participants to check in with themselves to see if they are giving themselves enough challenge. We stay connected with the body and movement, following what is available and needed each day. We practice daily listening to the body. When we work in this way, we stay in tune with what is true in the body.

Group Vitality

Vitality does not only come from our own inner resources: other people’s vitality in group movement affects us as well. Both moving freely as individuals in a group and moving rhythmically, in unison, performing the same movement can unleash vitality. For Puckett, “Vitality for me at this time is belonging to a family of movers. We all become like one. When that energy strikes, vitality absolutely explodes because we can dance in and out of each other, around each other, with each other, or standing in front of a mirror being together, as a community of spirits, with the energy that vitality gives us. I think of energy and vitality almost as one.”

In online classes, we do not necessarily feel the physical energy of other people’s moving bodies—their kineticism, their breathing, the softness or heaviness of their footsteps, their force. However, we feel their presence energetically: we might see them moving on the screen, visually, and we sense their energy. Many of my colleagues and students have noted that they have been surprised by the amount of energy and presence that they feel in online settings.

One relatively untapped aspect of vitality is intergenerational dancing. It can be educational and eye-opening for a younger person to dance and move with someone who is older—to learn and see what it feels like to move in a different age group where certain aspects of mobility or balance are perhaps not to be taken for granted. In reverse, older generations can benefit from moving with children who have a different sense of vitality, curiosity and kineticism in their bodies. Intergenerational movement would be an intriguing way to explore compassion and understanding among age groups as well as different approaches to playfulness and joy of movement.

Playfulness and Enthusiasm

Using the imagination and tapping into playfulness can boost vitality. Kathrin Stengel, a philosopher and a participant in my Nia dance classes, noted that vitality is connected to daring: to dare to move in ways that the adult self would not necessarily move, for example. In one of my classes, I used an upbeat, joyful, and lighthearted song and asked the participants to dance as if they were eight years old. “What did the eight-year-old you like to do? How did he or she move?” We skipped, imitated jumping with a rope, played hopscotch, threw imaginary stones, and so on. We imagined what it would look like to dance timidly or go buying ice cream with friends. Often, I ask the participants to “move without grace,” “dance in a silly way,” “dance in a way that is not ‘beautiful.’” These instructions give permission to dance and move without having to look graceful, capable, or strong. They lead to different types of movements that we might otherwise not explore, add fun, develop creativity and the ability to simply let go and enjoy moving “mindlessly,” without judgment.

Working with a private client at her home, I once chose “movement as a vitamin” for our focus for the class. During a free dance song, we explored the question, “In this space, what elements give you vitality or energy or make you feel vital?” We both chose some elements spontaneously and showed these to each other while dancing. The piano gave us energy because it made us imagine family members and friends connecting to the power of music and sharing it with others. A green carpet with a slightly spiky texture gave us energy because it stimulated the feet and made us think of nature and grass. The rich, vibrant red in a painting gave us energy as a powerful color. We chose kiwis in the kitchen because of the soft texture of their skin and the vitamins in them. This exercise was a way to see the space in new ways—to realize that objects carry energy also—and to see what it would be like to express these elements and their characteristics through creative movement.

These moments connect us to feelings that we associate with vitality—enthusiasm, surprise, playfulness, and excitement of new discoveries. Baniel notes that “with enthusiasm, movement becomes easier; we are welcoming of the new; changes in habits happen more readily; thinking becomes clearer and more creative.” She advises readers: “In the next hour, choose three things to be enthusiastic about. Start with small things, such as a meal you are about to share with another person or a new idea you are discovering as you read this book. Or being in the fresh air as you take a walk. Feeling how you bring your enthusiasm to these events amplifies your experience of them, vitalizing you and increasing the pleasure you get from them.”

In my somatic strength training classes, I build what I call “positive anticipation.” While doing a strength training exercise or during meditation and relaxation at the end, I ask the participants to imagine something pleasurable that they are looking forward to doing later that day or that week. It can be something simple—drinking a hot chocolate, preparing a meal, watching a movie, spending time with a loved one, reading a book, or taking a nap. In a meditation or relaxation, I might ask the participants to imagine and sense the emotions, colors, sensations, sounds, and smells associated with this event, moment, or activity.

While doing biceps curls, where the lower arm moves toward the chest, I might ask the participants, “With this movement you are bringing something closer to the heart. As you scan the day ahead, what activity or moment will bring nourishment to your heart? What could you do today to take care of the heart, in a literal or abstract sense?” While doing squats, we might be focusing on the concept of “movement forward,” as the quadriceps muscles participate in moving the body forward in space. I might ask the participants, “Let’s imagine a joyful event that you are moving toward. What is it? Feel how you are nearing it and getting physically and mentally stronger during this process.” I also invite participants to choose and relive in their imagination pleasurable moments from the past during movement exercises. I believe that using thoughts, emotions, and the imagination in this way, with movement, helps participants with their vitality: to help them feel, with enthusiasm, that they have beautiful experiences to look forward to, and to feel, with gratefulness, that they have important and pleasurable memories from the past to support and nourish them.

To enhance vitality means to resist succumbing to that which saps it out of us, such as negativity, also toward the body. Puckett notes, “We may have to learn how to like our bodies because of outside influences throughout our lives. People come to me, and they say they hate their feet. The feet are the hands that touch the earth. If I don’t know where my feet are, I’ll fall. And there are a lot of people falling these days. Especially in New York—it’s a dangerous territory with scaffolding and construction. We have to be aware of where our body is in time. Can you ask your body, “Where am I right now? How do I feel? What is bothering me right now?” Talk to it. It helps. Somatic practices bring a compassionate attitude to how we view ourselves—one of the goals is to learn to befriend the body. “Somebody has taught us these negative thoughts. Let go of them. Dance is a beautiful way to find a new way to enjoy your body,” Puckett concludes.

Further Suggestions

By way of conclusion, I would like to offer some suggestions to explore the theme of vitality further, with awareness of the senses and the body. •

Find your “vitality moves.” Is there a movement, a stretch, a dance step, a certain shape that you do when moving or dancing that always has a positive effect on you and you like distinctly? Maybe it gives you aesthetic satisfaction by making you feel beautiful and graceful. Maybe it makes you feel strong or flexible. Maybe it makes you feel like you are grounding, or purifying, or releasing stress. It can be something as simple as lifting the arms to the sky, lowering them to the horizontal, and bowing down. Notice these “vitality moves” and incorporate them into your daily life.