An Exercise About Exercise

Let’s do a quick experiment. 

Close your eyes. Well, no don’t do that because then you can’t read. But take a moment to just check in with your body. We’re going to do a word association experiment.  

Read the following words, then take a moment after each one to notice what your body feels like. What emotions come up? What physical sensations arise in your body? What stories come to mind about the words?

Here we go:

Exercise

Workout

Movement

Play

Take a moment with each one. You might want to write some things down if one brings up particularly strong feelings or stories. What stories do you tell yourself about working out? About play? How do you feel about yoga? Exercise?

This is a good exercise to check the barometer of your relationship with movement. Movement is really what all of the other words have in common, yet I’m guessing that “movement” might be the word you had the least strong feelings about. I can’t tell you how often I get the response “No but I should...” when I ask someone if they do yoga. When I ask how often someone works out they inevitably say “not as much as I should.”

I used to be the same way—a “workout” only counted if it was at least 30 minutes 4-5 times/week. And I had to sweat. Even in yoga. Somewhere along the line that shifted though. Now my “workouts” are just movement. And movement is something my body wants to do. It might mean 10 minutes of sun salutations in the morning. A walk with the dog. MovNat ground movements that I learned online.

Yes I go to the gym a couple times most weeks (and not just because I’m paid to be there!), but I go because the classes are fun and I like the people! It feels more like play most days than a workout. It’s sneaky fitness.

If you had a lot of negative associations with the words above, or if the stories you tell yourself are that you should do this or that, I encourage you to expand your definitions. Find a playground and hang from the monkey bars. Take out your yoga mat (or pull up some carpet) and move in ways that make your body feel good. Make it up as you go. Your body is wise and will tell you what it wants—that’s really what pain and stiffness often is, just a signal that your body needs something different.   

I want people to be liberated from the “workout” expectations that our society has built. It doesn’t have to be complicated. It doesn’t have to be expensive. You don’t have to look a certain way or wear certain clothes. It just needs to feel good.

So tell me: where are you going to start?