What is the "Movement Culture" of the Ido Portal movement coach? Who are the main students of the Ido Portal Method?

Much has already been said about Movement Culture , the idea of ​​a community of enthusiasts and enthusiasts around the practice of Movement.

Although the term is used to refer to all practitioners of the movement today, Movement Culture was coined by Ido Portal and originally referred to his student group.

Scattered throughout the world, students of the Ido Portal Method share the teachings received from the founder and in turn teach in movement rooms that they create .

It is also one of the objectives of the Mouvers Universe to bring together a French-speaking community of practitioners and teachers of the Movement.

I use the MOUVERS Podcast in particular to communicate with all the students of the Ido Portal method in France and other movement training methodologies in the French-speaking world.

Today I'm going to tell you about Ido Portal's Movement Culture and introduce you to some of the most inspiring students .

Very good reading my move

The origins of the “Culture Movement”?

As stated above, this name can be attributed to Ido Portal , one of the most impactful teachers of the Movement today, who brought this practice to light.

It all began about thirty years ago in Israel, more precisely in the port city of Haifa .

The young Ido Portal developed a passion for Capoeira , the Afro-Brazilian dance martial art that combines combat and dance with movements that combine rhythm, aesthetics and acrobatics .

Particularly through the Floreio , the most artistic, most elegant part, which offers the most degrees of freedom, personal expression and improvisation within the Capeira.

He began teaching at his school and acquired a good reputation.

Some of his students even come from surrounding towns to learn Capoeira with him. This is the case of Odelia Goldschmidt , who we will discuss later in this article.

But Ido Portal felt limited in his practice of capoeira. He imagined a broader approach to movement that would transcend the boundaries of disciplines.

He became obsessed with Human Movement and dedicated himself body and soul to the pursuit of this wisdom. His mantra:

He sets out in search of a master in motion who can teach him. He travels the four corners of the globe to learn from all these expert teachers, but they are still not as complete as he imagines.

He then decided to create his own approach to the Movement.

He draws inspiration from other worlds to integrate new concepts into his teaching. Like an alchemist, he blends different approaches and philosophies with each other.

He began exploring gymnastics with Coach Sommers , the coach of the U.S. junior team and the founder of the renowned training system: Gymnastic Bodies.

He also became interested in contemporary dance when he met Shai Faran, an Israeli dancer.

He tests, creates, learns and teaches these discoveries thus attracting a new group of people, a new tribe of “ movers ” as he calls them,

A group of enthusiasts who, in turn, bring their perspectives and varied expertise to the Movement. Artists, dancers, acrobats, weightlifters, fighters, circus performers…

He gets everyone to discuss at the same table the common point in all their practices, that of the Human Movement.

The first Movement Camp was held in the garden behind the Ido Portal Capoeira school and brought together four people.

Who would have thought at that time that the 2018 edition of the camp would bring together more than 200 people!

The group grew rapidly and expanded to other Israeli cities, notably with the creation of Movement Israel , a movement studio in Tel Aviv.

We are beginning to see the emergence of a solid community , with Israeli practitioners as its core, joined by students from all over the world via online coaching and courses organized in Europe, Asia and the United States.

Ido Portal emphasizes the importance of this community in its philosophy.

For him, the practice of movement comes through the group .

The group goes beyond the teacher, the student or the place of practice because we are social beings.

This notion is also very present in the exercises resulting from the practice of the Ido Portal method through games carried out with a partner.

Who are Ido Portal's closest students? (The 4 Horsemen of the Movement)

Some Ido Portal students occupy a special place within its movement community.

Odelia Goldschmidt

Odelia Goldschmidt is one of them. She began training with Ido during her teenage years, when he was teaching capoeira.

Despite a car accident that nearly cost her life, she never left her teacher.

Lying in her hospital bed with four broken vertebrae , she realizes the importance of movement and how lucky we are to live in a capable and healthy body.

A little aside: Yes, Odelia healed herself entirely through the practice of Movement and is now one of the most incredible “movers” of our generation.

With a flexible, resilient spine, capable of bending in all directions, inverting, pushing, pulling... In short, completely free.

Just like one of the first guests of the Podcast, Méhdi Jaouadi, who tells us about his adventure from his diagnosis of Meunière's disease to his natural healing through movement.

It's possible!

Coming back to Odelia, Ido and she will develop the universe of movement together and we cannot imagine Ido Portal without Odelia.

A bit like Batman and Robin!

She is still part of the team of instructors present at important events that mark the current state of Movement Culture, such as the famous Movement Camp that takes place in Thailand every year.

It is always impressive to see her demonstrate locomotion exercises.

You can watch these feats on her Instagram account: @odeliagold

Roye Goldschmidt

His younger brother, Roye Goldschmidt, is also one of Ido Portal's close students.

While Odelia and Ido traveled the world teaching workshops, he took over the classes in Israel. He's also the one who runs Tel Aviv's iconic movement studio.

Roye displays even more impressive athletic abilities than his sister.

He participated in Ninja Warrior Israel and made appearances on national television, which gave him some notoriety on social media.

Roye is both a genetic freak and a super athlete . He represents the elite of the elite in terms of human movement.

A former swimmer, he has a slender body and yet is able to move his enormous muscle mass and contort himself in all directions as if he weighed only 50 kg...

She is one of the most followed figures of the movement on social networks and today contributes to the promotion of the practice of the movement thanks to her aesthetics

And the impressive content that attracts the attention of the general public and other high-level athletes.

You can follow him on Instagram @roye_gold and drool over his feats like most of us ordinary humans… hahaha

Shai Faran

Shai Faran was Ido Portal's dance instructor. She now teaches dance in Europe.

She is the one who created the work around the mobilization of the spine in the Ido Portal method.

Like Odelia, Shai is one of the advanced teachers of the method and a leading figure in Movement Culture.

She brings her world and her sensitivity to it.

Shai was my teacher to Martin for the two years he trained using the Ido Portal method.

You can follow Shai on social media: @shaifaran.

Johnny Sapinoso

Johnny Sapinoso is the only non-Israeli in the core of the Movement Culture.

He met Ido Portal when the Capoeira teacher was an active member of the Gymnastic Bodies community created by Coach Sommers.

Then he joined the group to become one of the most advanced students.

You can see him in a famous YouTube video in which he shows how he recovered from a complete tear of the pectoral muscle WITHOUT having surgery.

The entire rehabilitation process is based on exercises used in the Ido Portal method.

Today, Johnny teaches movement classes at SF Movement in San Francisco, California.

You can follow Johnny on social media: @johnny.sapinoso.

Who makes up the Movement Community?

Social media highlights people capable of performing exceptional movements like the four students I told you about above.

However, the community of people who practice the Ido Portal method is much more diverse.

Not everyone can do one-arm pull-ups, handstand push-ups, or triple backflips…

The practice of movement is accessible to everyone.

A good teacher will know how to adapt the exercises so that each student can flourish and progress . In no case should you have any prior experience.

This is also why it's best to avoid comparing yourself to other practitioners. This can be discouraging and prevent you from getting started.

I have taught the movement to 20-year-old former Capoeristas, 55-year-olds, and cancer patients.

I have adapted my approach to create a practice context conducive to skill acquisition, play and personal development.

It's important to have role models, people who inspire us. The movements I've talked about in this article may be those role models for you.

But remember that there is a whole community of less advanced practitioners who work in an office, have children and enjoy practicing the exercises of the Ido Portal method.

If you want to discover the practice of movement and find the type of teaching that suits you, you can refer to my article which explains where to practice the Ido Portal method in France and around the world .

Begin a Movement practice adapted to your current level

At MOUVERS, we share movement training to help you start your journey towards more movement and more freedom in your body, simply.

Among the more than 6,000 students who follow our training courses, we have elderly people, high-level athletes, women, men, accident victims who want to recover or sedentary people who want to get back into shape.

We also teach certain aspects of the Ido Portal method in our FLOORWORK and LOCOMOTION training courses.

If you want to dive straight into the practice of movement and form your own opinion without going through training or joining a class,

You can try our movement and mobility training sessions on our online training platform: LE DOJO DES MOUVERS .

The message has been received. I'm waiting for you to move!

Thank you again for your attention.

Nomad Slim
Founder of MOUVERS