Episode 79: Primal Play: Creativity in Movement
Movement is medicine, and play is the secret ingredient that makes it enjoyable and sustainable. This is the message of Darryl Edwards, a movement coach and founder of the Primal Play Method.
In this episode, Darryl shares his personal journey of overcoming burnout and transforming his health through exercise. He discovered that traditional exercise programs didn’t resonate with him and his clients, so he developed the Primal Play Method, which combines the science of evolutionary biology with exercise physiology and play psychology. The Primal Play Method focuses on three pillars: primal movement patterns, exercise science, and playfulness. Darryl believes that movement should be enjoyable and engaging, just as it was when we were children.
By incorporating elements of play into our exercise routines, we can tap into our inner child and rediscover the joy of movement.
Darryl’s approach is inclusive and diverse, with exercises suitable for all ages, abilities, and fitness levels, certainly including those who are managing or overcoming injury. He emphasizes the importance of finding activities that you truly enjoy, rather than forcing yourself to do something that feels like a chore. Through his work, Darryl aims to inspire individuals to transform their health and well-being by making physical activity fun and engaging. He believes that by embracing our natural human instincts for play, we can optimize our health and vitality.
This is your permission slip to break free from the monotony of traditional exercise and infuse your fitness routine with joy and playfulness. Get ready to color outside the lines and discover the transformative power of primal play.
About Darryl Edwards, Founder of the Primal Play Method:
Darryl Edwards is a former investment banking technologist turned movement coach and author. He is the founder of the Primal Play Method® and a physical activity, health and play researcher.
The Primal Play Method® fuses the science of evolutionary biology with exercise physiology and play psychology.
Darryl wants to inspire humans regardless of age, ability or disability to transform their health by making physical activity fun and engaging.
His work has featured on BBC documentaries, TV, radio, podcasts and international press.
Darryl is author of the best-selling book “Animal Moves” and has released a range of fun fitness cards for adults, juniors, infants, office workers and fitness professionals called the Animal Moves Decks and a children’s picture book called “My First Animal Moves”.
He regularly presents as a keynote speaker at events worldwide. His April 2019 TED talk “Why working out isn’t working out”—has now been viewed over a million times!
Darryl resides in London, England and publishes about playful living at PrimalPlay.com.
In This Episode We're Talking About:
- The mental, physical and emotional health benefits of movement and active play
- The Primal Play Method, which combines the science of evolutionary biology with exercise physiology and play psychology
- Three pillars: primal movement patterns, exercise science, and playfulness
Quotes:
- “Movement is medicine. It isn’t just about getting into shape. It’s also about improving my health.” (08:51 | Darrell Edwards)
- “I went back to my childhood. It was when I was playing out all day, long summer days where literally food was just something you stuff down your face because you want to get back outside again. And it was only when the sun went down and your parents said you had to get back in that you went in. And those days were just absolutely incredible. So that was a sort of like I am living for the moment and all that matters is play.” (18:09 | Darrell Edwards)
- “I don’t just want to do one thing. I want to do a variety of things, one, because it increases enjoyment and longevity of performing that task, sustainability of having different things, variety being the spice of life. Right. So it does that. It also ensures that my body isn’t overly stressed in one particular domain because I’m working at different intensities, using sometimes strength, sometimes cardio, sometimes balance, flexibility, all these all these different facets.” (32:06 | Darrell Edwards)
- “My job is to help individuals embrace their inner child, accept that it’s okay to have a longing for that, but learn how to recreate that now.” (36:20 | Darrell Edwards)
- “As an adult, I don’t want to be doing all the things that I did as a kid. I want to be cognizant of my adult capabilities, my adult abilities, but I want to maintain that mindset of that child.” (37:32 | Darrell Edwards)
- “My personal quote about play is that play is not the activity, it’s the attitude that you have, the mindset that you have. So you can do anything playfully, absolutely anything. And once you realize that you are kind of unleashing your inner child, you know, you can then go for the run. And instead of you going for the run and thinking about, how many laps, your distance, that sort of thing, you can start noticing. You can pay attention to your environment. You can start paying attention to how you can interact with your environment. You can treat it more like a playground rather than a running track.” (47:21 | Darrell Edwards)
Links for this Episode:
Connect with Darryl Edwards:
Website: primalplay.com
Instagram: @fitnessexplorer
Connect with Dr. Lara Salyer:
Website: https://drlarasalyer.com
Catalyst Kit: https://rightbrainrescue.com/p/catalyst_kit
Instagram: @drlarasalyer
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drlarasalyer
Linked-In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drlarasalyer/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/DrLaraSalyer
TikTok: @Creativity.Doctor
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About The Catalyst Host, Dr. Lara Salyer:
I worked as a family physician for 15 years until burnout changed the trajectory of my career. I realized I wanted to start a holistic functional medicine practice in my rural hometown and made it happen. In addition to practicing functional medicine, I now mentor practitioners who are looking to change their paths in healthcare by using what I refer to as the “Catalyst Roadmap”. I share each step of this framework with listeners so that they may apply it to their careers, relationships, personal goals, and projects.
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