Moving your body with joy
Exercise shouldn’t be a punishment for eating badly. It’s so much more complex—and life-benefiting.
I remember turning 15 and having a keen sense of the shape of my body. I could already tell that my body was growing differently compared to the other bodies around me. I curved in places people didn’t, and I was soft in places that magazines said should be tight and trim.
Of course, in my little 15-year-old brain, I thought it was all my fault. It must be something I’m eating or doing to cause my body to shape differently—and I needed to stop it immediately. So I picked up those magazines and started using their recommended workout programs and dieting guidelines. I have the most vivid memory of myself lifting weights in my living room, trying to do these intense workouts, and soon being completely covered in hives. Maybe it was allergies? Maybe it was my body changing? But truthfully, now knowing what my body is, I know I was stressing myself out. Stressing my body to the complete breaking point in order to get myself to the golden “standard” of what my body should be.
I told myself that if I overate, I had to punish myself with a workout. Because that’s just what everyone did.
We easily joke about “eating bad” and having to “work it off” the following day, thinking that an intense sweat sesh could completely wash your “sins” clean as you work off those calories from the night before.
But truthfully? Exercise just doesn’t work that way. Research shows that while moving your body is essential in keeping your body healthy for a long time to come, it doesn’t really do much for weight loss.
The myth & the truth
It’s been previously conceived that if you want to lose weight, you have to work out. Working out has been coined as the “solution” for all of your “bad eating habits” and the key to reversing any of your “sins.” Weight loss programs almost always come with some sort of workout regiment and in order to look a certain way, you have to follow these specific routines.
The truth is...working out really doesn’t do much.
I continually turn to this in-depth piece from Vox that shows how exercise doesn’t do much for weight loss in general. Exercise accounts for a small amount of total daily calorie burn, while the rest comes from either the calories you burn breaking down food or your basal metabolic rate—which accounts for 60% to 80% of your total calories burned.
Physical activity accounts for between 10% to 30% of your calories burned. Not just exercise, but all physical activity—walking to and from places, cleaning your home, and other forms of daily movement.
And while many individuals try to exercise to lose weight, studies show that exercise just makes you hungrier. A study from PLOS ONE shows that people actually increase their food intake when they exercise.
Plus, when you exercise, your body does burn some fat—but it also burns glucose. As you exercise, your body will reach a certain “max” point where it utilizes fat for energy, and will soon rely on glucose. That’s because your body’s demand for oxygen increases during intense exercise. This has to do with the difference between aerobic and anaerobic glycolysis
So if your body isn’t burning as many calories, what’s the point? Numerous studies show that not only is exercise closely linked with improved mental health, but it also can benefit your sleep, stress, energy, cholesterol, warding off disease, and even your sex life, according to Primary Care Companion: Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. Some studies show it can even extend your life.
With so many benefits to exercise that isn’t weight loss alone, it had me looking at movement in a completely new way. To the point where I actually enjoy working out regularly.
Find movement you actually enjoy
First and foremost, I am always a fan of choosing the workout that you love the most. There are some people whole love running (not me), some people who love stationary cycling (not me), some people that love burpees (me…actually). Whatever that workout is, that’s the one you should do. Like a hobby, you should commit to it simply for the love of doing it—and also how it benefits how you feel physically and mentally.
For example, I have a friend who absolutely loves to swim as her workout. So she’ll go to the pool at her local gym and actually swim a few laps. That’s her chosen workout that she loves, so she made the commitment to make it happen for herself.
However, if you are still trying to figure out what you love, I found YouTube to be an excellent place to start my workout journey and try new things. So if you’re looking to work out at home, here are video workouts for pilates, yoga, weight training, kettlebell, HIIT, and dancing.
Other types of workouts that you can add into your routine (that are outside your house, obviously) could include hiking, biking, running, swimming, or even simply walking can be an effective workout. Here’s a closer deep dive into how many steps you should really take a day.
I hope you’re able to find something you truly love that has you moving in joy!
Photo by Stephanie Greene on Unsplash