So you think you can dance?

Abstract

We usually manoeuvre through our environment so effortlessly that the complexity of voluntary movement is taken for granted. Most of the time the processes involved in running for the morning bus, flipping through the pages of a magazine, or cutting a rug on the dance floor never cross our mind…that is, unless something goes wrong. An embarrassing trip or stumble is what usually draws attention to our movements. But, even then, how much insight do we really have about what we just did? And how is it that we can normally be so oblivious, yet still move effectively? In this article we review recent experimental research in healthy individuals and patients with abnormal motor awareness, in order to explain how they can help us to better understand our own movements.