Halaand, Posture and Performance

The world cup has just been on.

I haven’t watched any of it, I’m not a football fan, nor do I spend much time in front of the TV.

However, you’d have to be even more of a caveman than I to not have come across this Haaland fella.

A big, blond lump of a lad who plays forward for Norway.

The dude is a machine, superb athleticism and skill, but thats not what caught my attention.

What stands out to me is twofold

1. Attitude

2. Posture

Attitude: Performing vs. Being Performative

I talk about attitude a lot.

What I see from Haaland is a man enjoying himself.

A dude who’s performing because it’s fun to perform, not because he’s a “badass” or he wants to dominate his opponents, win at all costs or whatever.

It’s a stark and direct contrast to much of what the internet has been selling over this last while.

If ever there was an antidote to the “manosphere” it’s this big Norwegian with his cheeky smile!

It was only a few weeks ago I was chatting to a client of mine who is an “ex-american” and lives in Germany.

We say “ex-american” as a tongue in cheek jab at how his own attitude has changed in the years he’s lived in Europe.

How he’s learning the difference between performing and being performative.

How we can take out work, our training and our competitions seriously, but we can still laugh at ourselves and have fun.

I listen to a few podasts and remember laughing along with a story being told by a former US special operator about a training exercise he’s been on with the British SAS.

And how he and his crew were all serious, “professional” no smiles, no banter.

And the SAS lads were running around with water pistols and having the craic.

In his mind, his all serious US crew was going to win this competition.

In reality, the SAS lads took them to school, clearing the task in a fraction of the time.

You see, we can be too serious.

And the worst of all is to take yourself seriously.

Be like Halaand, like my “Ex-American” client.

Take a leaf from the Royal Marine handbook that says “maintain cheerfulness in the face of adversity”

And have fun!

Posture: The Illusion of "Perfect" Alignment

So what about posture?

Online guru’s love to pathologise posture, which means I have to listen to clients who’ve been listening to various guru’s tell me about their own bad posture.

And then we have Halaand.

The dude sprints like a cheetah, jumps like a gazelle and other players bounce of him as if he were a rugby forward rather than a soccer forward.

But look at him with that forward head posture and odd walk.

He’s not being held back by his posture

Just as Usain Bolt had a huge lumbar lordosis and anterior pelvic tilt, while being the fastest man alive

Just as Phelps with his kyphotic posture, the rounded upper back, and more Olympic medals than anyone else before him in Olympic history

There are many more examples.

I believe a photo of Kobe Bryants feet set the movement guru’s alight

Posture is interesting, but time and again it is shown to not be predictive of injury.

It may give clues about an existing injury, but it doesn’t predict injury.

So relax.

If you move well, perform well and are not fighting pain

Then you’re good.

Simple

Not easy

Dave

www.DaveHedges.net