Longevity in motion

Five-day workshop on the “Keys to Long-Term Movement Health” with Jim Lobley.

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If we want to live to a ripe old age and enjoy it, preserving our ability to move freely and effectively is essential. From my conversation with personal trainer and longevity coach Jim Lobley, I learned there’s no time like the present to begin working on this. While it’s possible to build strength and stamina and make adjustments at any age, the best time to enhance our movement capacity is before any issues arise. Lobley’s upcoming five-part experiential series, “The Body in Motion: Keys to Long-Term Movement Health,” can help us get a jump–start.

The program will occur every other week, starting on Jan. 25, with the first and fifth sessions held in person at the Katharine Cornell Theater, and the middle three offered over Zoom.

Lobley has studied movement in one form or another for most of his adult life. He says about the program, “We will explore how the body moves and how to train it for movement within the larger context of a longevity practice. The concepts and topics will apply to anyone of any age, and the exercises will be accessible and adaptable to all fitness levels, from athletes to cautious walkers.” He continues, “Preserving as much movement capacity as possible as we age drives my work. You must push back against losing movement capacity, because it’s fundamental to our sense of who we are and our efficacy in the world. If we start to feel I got this shoulder thing, this hip thing, or this knee thing, then that starts to define us in pretty profound ways, and by and large, that doesn’t need to happen.” And even if we have physical limitations, he assures us, we can still build endurance, resiliency, and strength.

Lobley’s thrust is to help people understand how the body works. The muscles, tendons, joints, and how the nervous system works are part of that entire experience: “These are good things to know as we age, because then we can be more intentional about maintaining our capacity in each of those areas through a conscious way of training the body.”

Participants can expect to move during each session. He will cover a wide range of topics. During the first session, Lobley will address what he calls the “five pillars of longevity”: movement, sleep, nutrition, cognition (brain health), and connection, which is everything from our relationships with ourselves to those with others, even our animals: “What gives you a sense of purpose, joy, and meaning ends up being the No. 1 predictor of longevity.” He will also focus on posture and balance, including movement, correcting postural imbalances, and creating nourishing habits.

The second session will delve into soft tissues, including muscles, fascia, ligaments, and tendons. Lobley will cover two topics: understanding what fascia does for us, and how to use it to our advantage, as well as how to build muscle strength and tone. The third installment will examine joints, looking at, among other things, their design and what they teach us, balancing forces around them, and specific practices for joint health.

The fourth session will explore the brain, nervous system, and recovery. Lobley will address the neurological component of movement, movements that stimulate specific brain functions, and the autonomic nervous system (which regulates involuntary physiologic processes, including heart rate, blood pressure, respiration, etc.), and its role in recovery. Lobley will also teach techniques for calming the mind. In the final session, back in person, participants will look at building an ongoing, sustainable practice.

Lobley’s path to his profession began with his involvement in dance, improvisation, acting, martial arts, and yoga. He then acquired a master’s in dance movement therapy, and is credited with corrective exercise, brain health, and athletic performance training, among other fields.

At the end of the series, Lobley hopes that people will leave with a joy of movement and an understanding of movement principles about the body and how the body works, to use this new knowledge to their advantage when thinking about movement and any exercise.

For more information, please contact Lynne McCormack at lmccormack@clamsnet.org or 508-645-3360, or Liz Shick at lshick@clamsnet.org, or 508-696-4211, ext. 116. The series is co-sponsored by Friends of the Chilmark Free Public Library and the Friends of the Vineyard Haven Public Library. For more information about Jim Lobley, visit thelonggame.coach.