Peter Appel

If I’d describe myself shortly, I’d say I’m a body-mind explorer. I’m passionately exploring how our minds express themselves through our bodies. And how our bodies show up in our minds and sometimes totally surprise us – in both good and bad ways. The last thing I discovered in life was my own body. I started my adult life in Finland as a journalist. Later, I founded my own company and became a workaholic in the media business. However, juggling thoughts, ideas and concepts in my head only made my life dry and meaningless. Not to mention painful! After decades of sitting, my back turned into a mess. For some time, I fixed it by supporting a handful of local physiotherapists. But gradually I figured out I had to do something myself. So I started practicing yoga, dance, and other forms of somatic methods. Many movement teachers have been movers all their lives. That’s not me. Many also have a background in martial arts. That’s not me either, even though I briefly practiced Aikido as a youngster and still have joyful memories in my body from the effortless circular movements. As you can see, I come from a different direction. From a disembodied life. Looking around me, I can see I’m not alone. Right now, so many people are out of their bodies. Yes, I’m talking about the majority of us, not the exceptions! And from my own experience, I know they don’t know about it. They think this is how life should be. For many years, I was constantly in training. Maybe I tried to swallow too much? I don’t know. But one day I tired and stopped going to courses and retreats. And then something happened. During sleep, waking up, and on the yoga mat, my body started to spontaneously move by itself. It was like my body showed me how it wanted to be moved. I experienced a kindness and warmth from my own being I’d never felt before. From this, Movingness was born. And I promised to use this magic gift to help others break the spell of disembodiment. In Movingness, I’m inviting my students to start their own personal journey. I want to create a space for them where they can learn to know and feel themselves. And find ways of moving from within, in their own individual way. Ahimsa (not forcing yourself) is another important guideline. That’s what my body taught me. And then there’s the mind part – the inclusion of prehistory, human development, brain science and trauma therapy in the method. So on one hand, I want to share the joy of being in the body, the happiness of consciously letting body and mind flow together, and ultimately the intensity of life itself in all its colors. And on the other hand, an understanding of human evolution, biology and psychology, to give us a possibility to reframe our lives, both as individuals and society, and make them truly embodied.