7 Dominant Movement Patterns: Squat, Hinge, Lunge, Push, Pull, Rotation, and Gait

What are the 7 dominant movement patterns?

The 7 dominant movement patterns are foundational human movements that form the basis of all physical activity, functional strength, and athletic performance. Mastering these patterns is crucial for optimizing movement efficiency, preventing injury, and enhancing overall physical capability across daily life and sport.

Introduction to Fundamental Movement Patterns

In the realm of exercise science and kinesiology, understanding fundamental movement patterns is paramount. These patterns represent the basic ways our bodies interact with gravity and the environment. They are not merely exercises but rather the building blocks upon which all more complex movements are constructed. Whether you're lifting a child, reaching for an overhead item, or performing a complex athletic maneuver, you are engaging one or more of these core patterns. Recognizing, practicing, and strengthening these movements ensures a resilient, adaptable, and highly functional body.

The 7 Dominant Movement Patterns

While various classification systems exist, the following seven patterns are widely recognized for their comprehensive representation of human movement. Each pattern engages multiple joints and muscle groups in a coordinated fashion, reflecting the integrated nature of our musculoskeletal system.

Squat

The Squat is a bilateral lower-body movement characterized by simultaneous flexion at the hips, knees, and ankles, lowering the body towards the ground.

• Primary Joints: Hips, knees, ankles.
• Key Muscles: Quadriceps, glutes, hamstrings, adductors, erector spinae, core stabilizers.
• Biomechanics: Requires significant ankle dorsiflexion, hip flexion, and knee flexion while maintaining a stable, neutral spine. The torso should remain relatively upright, and the weight should be distributed evenly through the feet.
• Examples: Sitting down and standing up, picking up an object from the floor, bodyweight squats, goblet squats, barbell back squats, front squats.
• Functional Importance: Essential for daily tasks like sitting, standing, and lifting. It is a cornerstone for athletic movements such as jumping and landing.

Hinge

The Hinge is a posterior chain dominant movement primarily involving hip flexion and extension, with minimal knee flexion. The movement originates from the hips, driving them backward while maintaining a relatively straight, neutral spine.

• Primary Joints: Hips, with slight knee flexion.
• Key Muscles: Glutes, hamstrings, erector spinae, core stabilizers.
• Biomechanics: Focuses on dissociating hip movement from lumbar spine movement. The spine remains rigid and neutral, acting as a lever, while the hips are the primary movers.
• Examples: Bending over to pick up an object (properly), deadlifts (conventional, Romanian), good mornings, kettlebell swings.
• Functional Importance: Crucial for safely lifting objects from the ground, developing powerful glute and hamstring strength, and protecting the lower back.

Lunge

The Lunge is a unilateral (single-leg dominant) lower-body movement involving stepping forward, backward, or laterally, resulting in flexion at the hips, knees, and ankles of both legs, but with one leg taking the primary load.

• Primary Joints: Hips, knees, ankles (bilaterally, but asymmetrically loaded).
• Key Muscles: Quadriceps, glutes, hamstrings, adductors, abductors, core stabilizers.
• Biomechanics: Challenges balance and unilateral strength. Requires coordinated stability and mobility across both lower limbs and the core.
• Examples: Walking, running, climbing stairs, forward lunges, reverse lunges, lateral lunges, split squats.
• Functional Importance: Fundamental for locomotion, sports requiring changes in direction, and maintaining balance on one leg.

Push

The Push pattern involves moving an object or one's body away from the center of the body. This pattern encompasses both horizontal and vertical components.

• Primary Joints: Shoulders, elbows, wrists, scapulae.
• Key Muscles: Pectoralis major, deltoids (anterior and medial), triceps brachii, serratus anterior, core stabilizers.
• Biomechanics: Requires strong scapular stability and coordinated joint action. Horizontal pushes involve pushing straight out, while vertical pushes involve pushing overhead.
• Examples:
  • Horizontal Push: Push-ups, bench press, chest press.
  • Vertical Push: Overhead press (shoulder press), handstand push-ups.
• Functional Importance: Essential for pushing open doors, lifting objects overhead, pushing a stalled car, or bracing against an impact.

Pull

The Pull pattern involves moving an object or one's body towards the center of the body. Similar to pushing, this pattern includes both horizontal and vertical components.

• Primary Joints: Shoulders, elbows, wrists, scapulae.
• Key Muscles: Latissimus dorsi, rhomboids, trapezius, posterior deltoids, biceps brachii, forearm flexors, core stabilizers.
• Biomechanics: Focuses on retracting and depressing the scapulae, and engaging the large back muscles. Horizontal pulls bring weight towards the torso, while vertical pulls bring the body up or weight down from above.
• Examples:
  • Horizontal Pull: Rows (barbell, dumbbell, cable), seated rows.
  • Vertical Pull: Pull-ups, chin-ups, lat pulldowns.
• Functional Importance: Crucial for opening doors, lifting objects, climbing, and maintaining good posture.

Rotation

The Rotation pattern involves twisting the torso or moving an object across the body's midline, engaging the core musculature in a rotational manner.

• Primary Joints: Spine (thoracic and lumbar), hips, shoulders.
• Key Muscles: Obliques (internal and external), transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, erector spinae, glutes, hip flexors.
• Biomechanics: Requires mobility in the thoracic spine and hips, coupled with robust stability in the lumbar spine and pelvis. Power often originates from the ground up, transferring through the hips and core.
• Examples: Throwing a ball, swinging a golf club or baseball bat, twisting to reach something, Russian twists, cable wood chops.
• Functional Importance: Vital for sports performance (throwing, striking), turning to look behind you, and dynamically stabilizing the spine during movement.

Gait (Locomotion/Carry)

The Gait pattern, often referred to as locomotion or carry, involves moving the entire body from one point to another, often while simultaneously managing an external load.

• Primary Joints: All major joints of the lower body (hips, knees, ankles) and spine, with significant contribution from the shoulders and core, especially when carrying.
• Key Muscles: Entire body, with a strong emphasis on lower body propulsion (quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, calves) and core stabilization. When carrying, the upper body (trapezius, deltoids, forearms) and core are heavily engaged.
• Biomechanics: A complex interplay of balance, coordination, strength, and endurance. Involves rhythmic, alternating movements of the limbs and trunk. Carrying adds an external stability challenge, demanding increased core and grip strength.
• Examples: Walking, running, hiking, carrying groceries, farmer's carries, waiter's carries.
• Functional Importance: The most fundamental pattern for independent living and mobility. Carrying enhances functional strength, grip strength, and core stability, directly translating to daily life tasks.

Why Master These Patterns?

Integrating and mastering these 7 dominant movement patterns into your training offers a multitude of benefits:

• Injury Prevention: By strengthening the muscles and improving the coordination involved in these fundamental movements, you build resilience and reduce the risk of injury during daily activities and sports.
• Improved Performance: Athletes across all disciplines rely on these patterns. Enhancing their efficiency and power directly translates to better performance in their chosen sport.
• Enhanced Daily Function: Simple tasks like lifting, carrying, reaching, and moving become easier and more efficient, improving quality of life.
• Foundation for Advanced Training: Proficiency in these basic patterns provides a solid base for safely and effectively progressing to more complex exercises and athletic maneuvers.
• Balanced Muscular Development: Training all seven patterns ensures a comprehensive approach to strength and conditioning, preventing muscular imbalances.

Integrating Movement Patterns into Your Training

To effectively incorporate these patterns into your fitness regimen:

• Prioritize Compound Movements: Exercises that mimic these patterns (e.g., squats, deadlifts, rows, overhead presses) engage multiple joints and muscle groups simultaneously, offering greater functional benefits.
• Focus on Proper Form: Emphasize technique over load. A well-executed movement is safer and more effective than lifting heavy with poor form.
• Vary Your Exercises: Explore different variations within each pattern (e.g., back squat vs. front squat, bent-over row vs. single-arm row) to challenge your body in diverse ways.
• Address Weaknesses and Imbalances: Identify which patterns you struggle with and dedicate extra attention to improving them.
• Progress Systematically: Gradually increase the intensity, volume, or complexity of exercises as your strength and coordination improve.

Conclusion

The 7 dominant movement patterns are the bedrock of human physical capability. By understanding, practicing, and strengthening these fundamental movements, you lay the groundwork for a body that is not only strong and resilient but also highly functional and capable of navigating the demands of everyday life and specialized athletic pursuits. Embrace these patterns as the core of your training philosophy, and you will unlock a lifetime of enhanced movement and well-being.