The concept of ‘natural movement,’ while popularised more recently, has its principles deeply rooted in evidence around evolution, human development, motor skill and learning, physiology, psychology and sociology and is supported by a growing body of academic literature on functional fitness, holistic exercise, and nature-based physical activity.
The underlying premise is that the human organism is not only evolutionarily optimised for a wide range of varied, multi-planar motions but is also fundamentally designed to move and exist in diverse natural, built, and social environments. A lack of this fundamental movement variability, psychological adaptability and social connectedness, common in modern sedentary lifestyles, is a contributing factor to various physical and mental health issues.
This review synthesises peer-reviewed research to explore the development and application of natural movement, with a specific focus on its physical relevance to biopsychosocial care. It argues that the key to understanding the benefits of this approach lies in the principles of ecological dynamics, where movement behaviour is shaped by the interaction between an individual and the ‘affordances’ of their environment, rather than being solely an internal, pre-programmed action. This review demonstrates how this ecological perspective provides a holistic and practical framework for enhancing physical literacy, fostering resilience, and improving health across diverse populations.
The Development and Principles of Natural Movement
The modern formalisation of natural movement draws from early 20th-century physical culture, but its core principles are supported by evidence from evolutionary biology and biomechanics. The approach emphasises fundamental human movement skills, often categorised as:
Locomotoive skills: Walking, running, balancing, crawling, climbing, and swimming.
Manipulative skills: Lifting, carrying, throwing, and catching.
Combative skills: Striking and grappling.
This system, which views the body as an integrated whole, contrasts with traditional fitness models that often focus on isolated muscle groups. This paradigm shift is supported by research showing that compound, multi-joint movements are more effective for overall physical development and functional strength.
The Role of Physical Literacy, Motor Learning, and Play
A key distinction of the natural movement approach is its focus on developing physical literacy, a concept defined as the motivation, confidence, physical competence, knowledge, and understanding to value and take responsibility for engagement in physical activities for life. Natural movement, by its very nature, provides an ideal framework for fostering these components through playful and creative approaches to motor learning.
Motor Learning Principles: Research on motor learning consistently highlights the effectiveness of variable practice over repetitive, ‘block’ practice. Natural movement, by its nature, is highly variable. For example, balancing on an uneven log requires constant, subtle adjustments, which is more effective for long-term motor skill acquisition than balancing on a fixed surface. Similarly, lifting and carrying an oddly shaped object, such as a large rock or log, promotes greater neuromuscular plasticity and skill transfer to different situations than a standard barbell lift.
Play and Creativity: Academic literature on human development and motor competence underscores the importance of playful and creative approaches to movement. In rehabilitation settings, for instance, the use of creative activities such as obstacle courses, games, and even arts and crafts has been shown to improve motor skills and engagement. This approach taps into an individual's intrinsic motivation, which is crucial for long-term adherence to an exercise or rehabilitation program. For children, particularly, creative play is foundational to developing motor competence and problem-solving skills, all of which are pillars of physical literacy.
Application to Fitness and Health
Academic literature consistently supports the benefits of the multi-joint, compound movements that form the cornerstone of a natural movement practice. These movements are superior to single-joint, isolated exercises for developing practical, real-world strength that translates directly to daily tasks.
Improved Functional Strength and Cardiovascular Health: Research in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research and other peer-reviewed journals demonstrates that multi-joint movements effectively improve both muscular strength and cardiovascular health by engaging multiple muscle groups simultaneously, leading to greater energy expenditure and a more holistic training effect. As noted in a comprehensive review in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, there is strong evidence for the health benefits of varied physical activity (Warburton et al., 2006), supporting the notion that a broad range of movements contributes to a reduced risk of chronic diseases such as obesity and heart disease.
Risk Exposure and Resilience: Natural movement often involves calculated risk-taking, such as climbing or navigating uneven terrain. Academic discussion on this topic suggests that appropriate risk exposure is crucial for developing physical and psychological resilience. For instance, safely navigating a challenging environment helps individuals learn to assess their own capabilities and make informed decisions, fostering confidence and self-efficacy. This controlled exposure to physical stressors prepares the body and mind to handle unexpected challenges in daily life, reducing the fear of movement and improving overall confidence.
Application to Wellbeing and Rehabilitation
The principles of natural movement are highly relevant in both psychological well-being and physical rehabilitation, where the focus is on restoring fundamental human capabilities and promoting a lifelong relationship with movement, primarily through the lens of ecological dynamics.
Mental and Cognitive Wellbeing: A significant body of evidence, including a systematic review by Thompson Coon et al. (2011), shows that physical activity performed in natural environments has a greater positive effect on mental wellbeing than activity in an indoor, built environment. This is often attributed to the psychological benefits of nature, such as reduced stress and improved mood. From an ecological perspective, the varied and unpredictable terrain of natural environments presents a constant series of ‘affordances’ (e.g., a rock affording climbing, a log affording balancing) that demand real-time problem-solving and decision-making. This cognitive challenge can enhance focus and problem-solving skills, further supporting the mind-body connection.
Injury Rehabilitation: While systematic reviews on ‘natural movement’ specifically for rehabilitation are nascent, its core principles are validated within the literature on functional rehabilitation and holistic physical therapy. The Cochrane Collaboration (2017) confirmed, in its review of stroke rehabilitation, that task-oriented, functional movements are effective in improving mobility and gait. The principles of natural movement—such as restoring a person's ability to move from the ground to a standing position or navigate uneven terrain—are directly applicable to improving function and preventing re-injury. Furthermore, a systematic review on chronic low back pain highlights that varied exercise-based rehabilitation is an effective treatment (White et al., 2016), underscoring the value of the diverse movements found in a natural movement practice. By focusing on how the environment affords specific movement behaviours, natural movement provides a holistic framework for rehabilitation that not only restores physical function but also rebuilds confidence and competence, contributing to the individual's overall physical literacy.
Conclusion and Future Research
This review has demonstrated that the core tenets of natural movement are supported by established academic literature on functional fitness, motor learning, and nature-based physical activity. While the benefits and scientific principles are clear, a significant limitation is the lack of specific, direct research on ‘natural movement’ as a formalised discipline. Future studies should focus on implementing and evaluating structured natural movement programs to provide more direct evidence of their efficacy across diverse populations and in various settings, from public health initiatives to clinical rehabilitation.
Reference List
Brito, M., Carraca, E., et al. (2022). The effects of nature-based vs. indoor settings on the adaptability, performance and affect of calisthenics exercisers. ResearchGate.
Cochrane Collaboration. (2017). Physical rehabilitation approaches for the recovery of function and mobility following stroke (Review). Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.
Thompson Coon, J., et al. (2011). Does participating in physical activity in outdoor natural environments have a greater effect on physical and mental wellbeing than physical activity indoors? A systematic review and meta-analysis of the research. Public Health England.
Warburton, D. E., Nicol, C. W., & Bredin, S. S. (2006). Health benefits of physical activity: the evidence. Canadian Medical Association Journal, 174(6), 801-809.
White, G., et al. (2016). A systematic review of the effects of exercise and physical activity on non-specific chronic low back pain. Journal of Pain Research, 9, 393-404.