Form

Forms are the movement tasks / basic units of organization of Baseworks Practice. Examples: Squat, Star Tilt, Z-lunge, Simple Cross. Forms can be conceived as “empty shells” / contours that are “filled” with Baseworks Movement Patterns — like coloring contours in a coloring book.

The core curriculum (which has been filmed as video content) consists of approximately 80 forms. Forms can be practiced as a set or individually.

Entry, Execution, and Exit

Forms are entered and exited in exactly the same way, following FSA: the entire movement sequence — including all transitional movements — is strictly controlled. Releasing or exiting a form is done by reversing the movement sequence.

Forms vs. Movement Tasks in Other Practices

The word “form” is used in Baseworks specifically to avoid the connotations of “exercise,” “pose,” or “position.” A form is not primarily defined by its endpoint (a position to achieve) but by the control strategy applied throughout — the simultaneous application of Movement Patterns and The Six Principles.

Relationship to Foci

Each form is associated with one or more Foci, which describes the macro-movement goal of that form. The Focus is the what; the principles and movement patterns are the how.

Related

• Movement Patterns — what forms are “filled” with
• The Six Principles — the how of executing a form
• Focus — the macro-movement goal of a form
• Set and Sequence — how forms are arranged in practice
• Fixing-Separating-Isolating — governs how forms are entered and exited