Lee Moodley is an established South African Movement Therapist and Mobility Specialist. He grounds internationally accredited practices in mindfulness, creating accessibility through Kinisi Therapy, a practice focused on balanced healing.
Beginning a new fitness routine can be exciting, but without a solid understanding of body mechanics, it’s easy to fall into habits that may lead to discomfort or injury. Whether you're training for strength, endurance, or overall well-being, the foundation of effective movement starts with knowing how your body functions.
Setting your fitness goals
So, you’ve decided to embark on your fitness journey but don’t know where to start. Whether you’re a raucous teenager or a retired grandparent, I recommend reading this article: Shifting from 2025 fitness resolutions to fitness investments for an energetic retirement. I believe that long-term training plans are essential because our bodies require consistent maintenance, and the lack of it becomes increasingly noticeable as we age.
I appreciate the use of analogies to understand principles. Let’s compare the maintenance of our bodies to that of cars, as both require regular servicing for optimal functioning. But when and how do we service our bodies? This article aims to provide a basic understanding of body mechanics to enable effective and safe training.
Understanding your fitness needs
When we first drive a car off the showroom floor, it is brand new, has that fresh car smell, and is ready to take on the world. This is how we feel in adolescence and early adulthood, capable of handling rigorous loads and stress with quick adaptation and recovery. However, as we age, we cannot sustain the same intensity without reaching a level of accommodation, which can result in chronic pain or injury.
Depending on the car you choose, you usually ensure it fits your lifestyle. Sometimes, we just make it work, but rarely is that a good option. In the case of our bodies, we truly have no choice about the genetics we are born with. The article mentioned above will help you determine the requirements you’ll need for your lifestyle.
Unlike a car, you can’t just select a body from a catalogue and hope it works. Instead, you have to ensure it meets basic human functions first. And I don’t mean simply sitting, standing, or sleeping for eight hours a day, but moving the way our ancestors did thousands of years ago.
The ultimate training tool: CARs
Dr. Andre Spina, founder of Functional Range Systems, created controlled articular rotations (CARs), a simple tool for maintaining and developing essential human functions. CARs can be fundamental in tissue-specific training and injury mitigation while maximizing reward for effort.
No matter your training type, you must know how to move your body. It’s like attempting to fix your car without knowing its mechanics. CARs teach you how to move your joints independently and effectively through their available range. Like most things in life, if you don’t use it, you lose it. This is true for your body’s capacities and range.
You can find a link to my follow-along CARs tutorial here.
Applications for CARs
Assessment/Prerequisites
You can use CARs to evaluate the health and function of a joint. This is achieved when a client actively moves a joint through its maximum range of motion, during which we assess compensations to determine whether the joint can function independently. Additionally, we examine abnormalities in capsule function. We may also isolate the ranges to linear planes to evaluate whether the client possesses the prerequisite range of motion to perform specific shapes or movements. If someone does not meet the necessary requirements, their body will utilize other joints to compensate for the lack of range of motion or capability to achieve the desired outcome.
Without assessing your car, how would your mechanic know what to repair? Each individual component must function effectively for the entire system to operate properly.
Neurological control
Many people lack the ability to move unconsciously. This is often highlighted during an assessment. I cannot emphasize enough the importance of having independent joint articulation. If your body cannot navigate through space and must rely on other areas (interdependence), eventually, you will encounter limitations in all areas, leading to potential injuries.
Doing your CARs daily will help you maintain independent joint movements. This will improve your unconscious competencies so that your body moves effectively without thinking. You cannot build your competencies unconsciously. CARs are an excellent tool for mindfulness training and moving meditation.
Mobility training
The term "mobility" is frequently misused online, and many exercises claim to improve it. According to the Functional Range System, mobility includes flexibility (range of motion), strength (the strength to manage those ranges), and joint health. Controlled articular rotations (CARs) can focus on each joint separately, targeting the specific tissues that need attention. This method differs from most online exercises, which generally do not adequately address all three components.
How you use your CARs will determine how you develop your tissue. Working at low intensity for longer durations can help your body reset and build endurance. Alternatively, you can load your CARs to strengthen and tone.
When designing a car, you consider its use. You might decide to have more power but sacrifice agility, or you might want to drive on mountains rather than a racetrack. Your body is like a vehicle, and mobility training will determine what type of vehicle it becomes.
Continued maintenance
CARs are recommended at the start and end of your day. We sometimes refer to this activity as brushing your joints. CARs are so simple that they can be incorporated into your daily routine, allowing for more consistent input over time. This daily effort signals to your body that you need the space, as you use it regularly through its full range of motion. If you don’t use it, you lose it. This is essential for maintaining joint health and function.
Developing your competency as a mover
Regardless of the style of training you choose, you want to develop your competency for moving well. CARs work on many layers (as listed above) in their application, but you need to think about your ability to control and move your body as a skill. Like any skill, it takes time to develop. You need to move through the four stages of competency:
Unconscious and incompetent: This is like a teenager driving for the first time. They do not know their ability, power, or how to control their vehicle.
Conscious and incompetent: It's like obtaining your advanced driver’s license. You know you’re not skilled, but you're aware enough to learn and ready to fill in the gaps.
Conscious and competent: It’s like being a racecar driver on the track. You completely control the car and can maneuver it around the track. You know your abilities and how to use them.
Unconscious and competent: This is like a racecar driver instinctively preventing an accident.
I hope this article has helped you realize the significance of knowing your body and caring for it. For a foundational understanding of CARs, check out the follow-along tutorial here.
Read more from Lee Moodley
Lee Moodley, South African Movement Therapist And Mobility Specialist
Lee Moodley is an established South African Movement Therapist, Mobility Specialist, and founder of Kinisi Therapy. Lee bases his practices on internationally accredited certifications in 13 styles of yoga, calisthenics, mobility, strength and conditioning. While pursuing his own learning, Lee felt that Yoga practice had become misaligned, as it focused on body conditioning instead of its true essence - healing and peace. Born of this is The Kinisi Method, a modern yoga approach that holds space for the balance between body, mind, and soul. This balance allows a tailored movement practice to stem into self-empowered growth and insight, leading to supported and gentle healing.
