2 minute read
Health Clubs
oday, there’s no shortage of new age health and wellness programs. Whether pedaling up virtual hills on a Peloton or taking a Pilates classes over Zoom, the cross-section between fitness and technology has become as fast and overcrowded as the internet itself. But if you ask Derek Notman, a strong mind and body might be best achieved by going back in time—way back.
Based at Ellisville Harbor in Plymouth, Massachusetts, Notman teaches what he describes as “movement arts” and “body-based meditations” that were developed centuries ago in the Far East. His repertoire includes tai chi, qi gong, jin shin jyutsu and somatic education. Yet perhaps his most striking modality is the ancient art of club swinging.
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Long before there were dumbbells and the bench press, there was club swinging. “It is an old martial tradition that has been used to develop the physicality of a martial artist for thousands of years,” Notman explains. “Club swinging is a very engaging practice that teaches rhythm and timing while helping to develop connected strength and flexibility. It is very meditative and calming, yet demands present moment awareness and focus. The patterns that we swing require a high level of concentration and coordination.”
With the clubs ranging in size and weight, Notman teaches a series of swinging patterns that forces the practitioner to summon concentration, strength and stamina. “Clubs help cultivate an organized, functional body,” he says. “The clubs develop our spatial awareness while reminding us of the geometry that shapes us. You can have very aggressive cardio-based training with the clubs or very subtle gentle movements; your intention is what determines the degree of engagement.”
Plymouth resident Derek Notman teaches the ancient art of club swinging
Notman discovered club swinging during a long, personal journey that has spanned thirty years. While earning a bachelor’s degree in philosophy, Notman became intensely fascinated in Eastern philosophy, particularly around practices that integrated health, mindset and martial studies. This burning curiosity drove him around the world to study under revered teachers and practitioners. He lived in China and Thailand for several years studying in the Buddhist and Taoist traditions of cultivation. “I encountered club swinging while researching traditional forms of physical culture,” he says. “I have trained in the traditional Indian, Iranian and Western methods. However, I do not represent those traditions. Clubs are usually an aspect of an overall curriculum and that is how I teach them.”
For a number of years, Notman taught this curriculum on Martha’s Vineyard. While he plans to return to the island monthly to teach courses this summer, his regular classes are mostly held in Plymouth or online where he reaches students around the world. Watching Notman swiftly swing his beautifully carved wooden clubs in hypnotic patterns, the movements exude a deep connection between mind and body that you just won’t find on a stationary bike or bench press. NEL
Learn more about Derek Notman and his teachings at islandphysicalculture.com.
