This template helps LMA training organizers structure an LMA session using the five curriculum phases (plus a final reflection). Each phase is a dial you can tune—expand, shorten, skip, or revisit—based on your group's needs.
Seed phase (pick 1 to 2 ideas)
Introduce the core LMA approach—or the specific focus for the session. The Seed phase is for planting new concepts: you already know what you know; this is an invitation to go beyond. "Going beyond" or problematizing assumptions can be Seed ideas in themselves. Or draw from theoretical modules in the Seed section of the curriculum—or any concept from the broader LMA approach. Word it your own way. Share ideas that emerge from your group's inquiry or that are inspired by the framework.
Examples: Float, Problematizing "Martial Arts"
Plant phase (pick 1 to 3 activities)
Plant your roots and ease into training by cultivating comfort, attention, and perceptual attunement. For many beginners, the bulk of the session will live here.
Examples: Melting the Flesh; Field of Vision and Depth
Water phase (pick 1 to 3 activities)
Deepen embodied exploration through movement diversity, applying ease and flow to your practice. Depending on the context and number of practices, you may finish the session here.
Examples: Staggered Sapling with Arm Extension; LMA's Wu Wei in Action; Mutually Evolving Gaze
Nurture phase (pick 1 to 3 activities)
Nourish the body through somatic diversity and restorative movement. Nurture prepares the body for deeper play. Depending on your schedule, you might stop here.
Examples: Neck Diversity (choose 1–2 movements); Wu Wei Walking; Front and Back Reach
Growth phase
Growth activities are longer, open-ended explorations that often span multiple sessions. Once practitioners enter Growth, it tends to occupy most of the session time. Choose one deep-dive activity and allow it to unfold. This section will evolve alongside your practice.
Examples: Unoccupied Space (juggling); From the Ground Up; Disappearing Musical Chairs
Circle Time
After your final LMA activity, gather to stretch, tidy gear, and reflect. Share insights, celebrate strengths—both personal and shared—and reconnect to your Seed phase ideas. This pause consolidates learning and embeds it into long-term memory. How you do one thing is how you do all things. Like Melting the Flesh, pause for growth.
Using this template as periodization
This framework can guide not just a single session, but a series of sessions—each one gradually shifting emphasis as practitioners deepen their engagement.
Early sessions: Spend most of the session in Seed and Plant. Prioritize relaxation, comfort, and orientation to LMA.
Intermediate sessions: Seed can be brief or skipped; Plant shortens; devote the remaining time to Water practices. Water can also appear in early sessions, depending on available time.
Later sessions: Seed, Plant, and Water become optional or brief; spend most of the session in Nurture and Growth—or just Growth. Introduce Circle Time as soon as Growth enters the mix. You might reach Growth even in the first session, depending on the practitioner(s). Don't be rigid.
Regression: If practitioners need support within Growth, revisit any earlier phase before returning to it.
Deep sessions: As sessions deepen, the practice becomes more conceptual—especially for competitors. Early and deep sessions are when Seed ideas matter most. In deep work, Seed and Growth become tightly integrated, anchoring both theory and practice.
Practical tips for training organizers
Phases aren't just "parts of a session"—they're dials you can turn up or down over multiple sessions.
It's often easier—and better—to start with people who have no martial arts experience. There's less to unlearn.
Start small to ensure space, attention, and safety.
Don't rush. Let comfort and attention mature first.
Ready to start your own LMA pod?
Grab some comrades and co-create your training. Over your first few sessions, tune the dials of each phase to match your group's needs. Like a homeschooling curriculum, LMA is designed to support you—regardless of your experience level.
– Sam