The Somatix I CAN 5 Challenge: Six Months to Discover What You CAN Do
What could change if you gave yourself six months to work gently on your movement, balance, coordination, body awareness and confidence?
Not to become an athlete.
Not to run a race.
Not to compete with anybody else.
Simply to discover:
“What might I be capable of six months from now that I don't feel confident doing today?”
That question has led me to develop something new within Somatix:
THE SOMATIX I CAN 5 CHALLENGE
A simple, inclusive movement challenge that Somatix participants can work towards over a six-month period.
The final challenge consists of just five achievable movement experiences:
I CAN Rise
I CAN Balance
I CAN Step
I CAN Turn & Reach
I CAN Move
There is no stopwatch.
There is no competition.
There is no pass or fail.
The challenge is simply about showing each participant how far they have come.
Why Create a Challenge?
One of the things I have always admired about programmes such as Couch to 5K is that people have a destination.
They don't simply exercise week after week.
They are working towards something.
There is a date in the calendar and a moment when they can eventually say:
“I did it.”
I wanted to bring that same sense of purpose into Somatix — but in a completely different way.
Many people attending gentle movement classes are not interested in running races or climbing mountains.
Some may experience stiffness, fatigue, reduced mobility or difficulty with balance.
Others may simply have lost confidence in their bodies after years of inactivity.
So the Somatix challenge needed to be different.
It needed to be challenging enough to create a sense of achievement, but adaptable enough that different people could succeed at their own level.
That's how the I CAN 5 Challenge began.
Six Months of Somatix
The challenge itself takes place at the end of the six months.
But the real journey happens during the classes leading up to it.
Somatix explores movement from a broader perspective than simply stretching muscles or completing repetitions.
Classes can incorporate elements such as:
-
body and sensory awareness
-
proprioception
-
balance
-
eye and head coordination
-
gentle neurodynamic nerve sliding and gliding
-
controlled mobility
-
somatic movement
-
pandiculation
-
comfortable breathing awareness
-
Tai Chi and Qigong-inspired movement
-
contralateral movement
-
coordination
-
motor learning
-
posture
-
movement confidence
These different elements gradually encourage participants to become more aware of how they move, rather than simply how much exercise they can complete.
The goal is not to make every exercise harder.
It is to make movement more meaningful.
The Nervous System and Movement
Movement isn't controlled by muscles and joints alone.
The brain and nervous system continually receive information from throughout the body and from the environment.
Vision contributes information about where we are and what surrounds us.
The vestibular system helps with orientation and balance.
Proprioception provides information about where different parts of the body are positioned.
The nervous system brings this information together to help organise movement.
That is one reason Somatix can include exercises involving:
eyes + head + balance + feet + coordination + movement
rather than focusing solely on individual muscles.
The I CAN 5 Challenge gives participants an opportunity to bring many of these elements together.
Challenge 1 — I CAN RISE
The participant begins sitting comfortably in a sturdy chair.
The movement is simple:
Sit → organise → stand → settle → sit again with control.
They may repeat the movement several times at a comfortable pace.
Some people may use their hands or the chair for assistance.
Others may be comfortable standing without using their hands.
Neither is considered better.
The challenge is about their movement.
This simple action brings together:
-
lower-body control
-
posture
-
proprioception
-
coordination
-
body awareness
-
confidence
For someone who previously felt uncertain getting out of a chair, completing this with greater control can be a very meaningful achievement.
I CAN RISE.
Challenge 2 — I CAN BALANCE
Balance does not simply mean standing on one leg.
Good balance involves information from several systems working together.
For this challenge, participants may stand beside a sturdy chair or support and follow a simple sequence.
For example:
shift weight left → return to centre → shift right → return → step onto a floor marker
We may then introduce a gentle visual or head movement.
Perhaps:
look left → centre → right → centre
while maintaining a comfortable stance.
For somebody requiring support, the chair remains available.
For somebody more confident, the movement can be performed independently.
This challenge brings together:
balance + proprioception + vision + head movement + awareness
I CAN BALANCE.
Challenge 3 — I CAN STEP
Walking is something many of us take for granted until it becomes less comfortable or confidence begins to disappear.
For the third challenge, participants follow a short pathway of coloured floor markers.
The pattern may involve:
normal step → wider step → shorter step → change direction → step over a very low safe marker
There is no hurry.
The participant looks at the pathway, decides where to place the foot and moves through it at their own pace.
This combines:
-
visual information
-
foot placement
-
proprioception
-
motor planning
-
balance
-
coordination
-
confidence
Again, support can be available where appropriate.
The goal is not speed.
The goal is purposeful movement.
I CAN STEP.
Challenge 4 — I CAN TURN & REACH
This is where several of the ideas used within Somatix start coming together.
Different coloured targets can be placed around the participant.
Perhaps one is:
ahead
another:
to the left
another:
to the right
and another:
slightly higher
A colour is called.
The participant locates it visually, gently turns towards it, shifts their weight where appropriate, reaches and then returns comfortably to centre.
This apparently simple activity can involve:
vision
head movement
rotation
balance
proprioception
weight transfer
coordination
spatial awareness
motor planning
A seated version can also be used.
That means somebody who is not comfortable performing the challenge standing can still participate fully.
I CAN TURN & REACH.
Challenge 5 — I CAN MOVE
The final challenge brings everything together.
During the latter part of the six-month programme, participants gradually learn a very short Somatix movement flow.
Nothing complicated.
Perhaps:
RISE → OPEN → SHIFT → TURN → REACH → RETURN
The movements are slow and controlled.
Participants are encouraged to move within a comfortable range and breathe naturally.
Some may perform the sequence standing.
Some may use support.
Others may perform it seated.
Everybody is completing the same challenge in the way that is appropriate for them.
The entire group can eventually perform the flow together.
And then comes the finish.
I CAN MOVE.
The Finish Line
Although the Somatix I CAN 5 Challenge is not a race, I still want it to have a real finish line.
Because finishing something matters.
At the end of the challenge, participants walk — or move in the way appropriate for them — through a simple:
SOMATIX I CAN — FINISH
There can be applause.
A photograph.
A certificate.
Perhaps eventually an I CAN medal.
And most importantly, the participant gets to say:
“I DID IT.”
That moment is what the six months have been leading towards.
Your Movement. Your Level. Your Challenge.
This is one of the most important principles of the I CAN 5 Challenge.
There isn't an “easy” challenge and a “hard” challenge.
There is:
SUPPORTED
and
INDEPENDENT
A participant may use:
-
a chair
-
a wall or rail
-
a smaller movement
-
a seated version
-
additional rest
where appropriate.
Someone using support has not failed the challenge.
They have completed their challenge using the movement that is right for them.
That is exactly what Somatix is about.
Your Movement. Your Level. Your Challenge.
One Personal I CAN Goal
There is another part of this programme that may eventually become the most meaningful.
At the beginning of the six months, I would like each participant to answer one question:
“What would you love to feel more confident doing six months from now?”
Their answer does not need to be dramatic.
It might be:
“I'd like to feel steadier.”
“I'd like to get out of my chair more confidently.”
“I'd like to trust my balance more.”
“I'd like to move without worrying so much.”
“I'd like to feel more confident in my body.”
That goal can be written onto their personal I CAN card.
Six months later, we look at it again.
The real question isn't:
“Did you beat somebody else's score?”
It is:
“How do you feel now compared with where you began?”
We Are Not Training for Five Tests
This is very important.
Somatix classes will not spend six months repeatedly practising these five challenges.
The challenge is simply the destination.
During the programme, participants continue exploring the full Somatix approach:
balance, sensory input, proprioception, vision, eye and head coordination, gentle neurodynamic movement, somatic movement, pandiculation, breathing awareness, Tai Chi/Qigong-inspired movement, coordination and motor learning.
Only towards the end of the programme do we begin putting some of those abilities together in preparation for Challenge Day.
The five challenges are simply a way of saying:
“Let's see what all of this work has helped you become more confident doing.”
Why “I CAN”?
Because sometimes the biggest restriction isn't simply physical.
It is the belief:
“I don't think I can do that anymore.”
Or:
“I'm too stiff.”
“My balance isn't good enough.”
“Exercise isn't for me.”
“I'm afraid I'll make things worse.”
Somatix isn't about forcing somebody through those feelings.
It is about gradually building movement experiences that help them discover what feels possible.
Perhaps six months later that original:
“I don't think I can…”
has become:
“I CAN.”
And that is the real challenge.
The First Somatix I CAN 5 Challenge
This will deliberately begin small.
I don't want the first challenge to feel overwhelming for participants — or complicated to organise.
Five movements.
One personal goal.
One finish line.
One achievement.
As Somatix develops, the I CAN concept may develop with it.
There may eventually be larger Movement Confidence Challenges incorporating more movement skills and activities.
But everyone has to start somewhere.
And that's exactly the philosophy behind Somatix itself.
Start where you are.
Move at your pace.
Discover what you CAN do.
THE SOMATIX I CAN 5 CHALLENGE
Six months. Five challenges. One powerful message.
I CAN.
Somatix — Gentle movement with a real purpose.
Somatix is a gentle movement and wellbeing programme and is not intended to diagnose, treat or cure medical conditions. Activities can be adapted according to individual ability. Anyone experiencing significant or worsening pain, unexplained numbness or weakness, significant balance difficulties or other concerning symptoms should seek appropriate advice from a qualified healthcare professional.