Movement and Memory
Memory is a theoretical construct that explains current behaviours by referencing them to events that happened in the past. Memory is basically how we function everyday. We don’t wake up every day and have to re-learn how to walk, how to dress ourselves, how to brush our teeth. This is cemented, it is learned.
Memories are complex and divided, further sub-divided into various categories, but the two main umbrellas are short-term and long-term memory. Short-term describes what we learn to get through today. Say you’re on a trip and you learn how to get to the ATM machine. This information serves you well when you’re on the trip, but you won’t need it after you return home. It goes into short-term memory.
Long-term memory is a bit more complex. It is further divided into explicit (recalled consciously) and implicit (unconscious experiences). Implicit is further divided into priming (familiarity) and procedural (learning something new) and affective (relating to emotions).
How we learn is based on repetition and familiarity. It is part of our implicit memory processes. We don’t learn and think “oh look at me I’m learning”. Like the very first time you tried Pilates. You had to learn “how”, the verbiage, the equipment, etc…Gerald Edelman who won a Nobel Prize in 1972 for his work on the immune system stated that “the central point in embodied memory theory is that the sensory motor coordination structures the sensory space by inducing regularities” (Basically by doing something regularly, we begin to do it as second nature and we no longer need to learn how).
Now here is where it gets interesting. The explicit memories (conscious memories) are thought to be stored in the hippocampus which is part of the temporal lobe. It organizes, codes, selects memories.
The implicit memories are stored in the amygdala and this part of the brain manages emotions. It’s also connected to the hippocampus via neural pathways.
So…. this might explain “how” we learn.
This is simply food for thought”, but let’s hypothesize that if we learn by aggressive leadership, loud coaches, increased heart rate and forceful suggestions, we might be associating it with previous experiences.
On the opposite side of the spectrum, if we learn from encouragement, supportive words, affirmations, gentle persuasions, we might also be associating it with past experiences, and this is how we are primed to learn. Neither is right nor wrong, it’s simply familiar.
At The Cornerstone Pilates, we favor the gentler way of promoting movement. It simply resonates with our culture. It doesn't mean the results are not outstanding, it just means we took care of implementing them in a supportive manner.
Contact us HERE for further information.
Jocelyne Pelchat
Founder - MScNeuro - Movement Specialist
905-631-8352