Diet culture tells us there’s only one reason to work out – and that’s simply to manipulate your body. Lose weight, get more toned, lose those hip dips, get rid of your double chin I mean the list goes on and on. However, when we use exercise solely as a means of changing our body, it can be difficult to find joy and cultivate a healthy relationship with it. But as someone who spent a majority of their college career in the gym, counting steps, and tracking calories, I promise you it is possible to move your body because it feels good instead of as a way to change it.
What is Joyful Movement?
Joyful movement is an approach to physical activity that emphasizes finding pleasure in the way we move. In my opinion, one of the best things about joyful movement is that you don’t even need to own a gym membership to participate! You can play on a recreational sports team, walk your dog, go for a hike on a beautiful day, do an online yoga video, or throw a dance party for one! The limit does not exist.
By engaging in movement that brings us joy, we are more likely to stick with it.. In fact, “Movement: Feel the Difference” is the 9th principle of Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch’s book Intuitive Eating. When we shift our focus from the number of calories our exercise burns to the way it makes us feel, we become more motivated to engage in it again. Instead of aiming for a higher number of reps or an extra mile on the treadmill, we can tap into our stress and energy levels, sleep quality, and general well-being.
Joyful movement also emphasizes choice. When we use exercise as a way to burn off that extra slice of cake or punish ourselves for spontaneously having a pizza night with friends, it can seem more like a chore than anything. However, when we decouple exercise from weight loss, it becomes much more desirable to move our bodies because we genuinely want to. When we ditch the diet mentality around working out, it becomes much easier to ask ourselves “what type of movement sounds good?” and then do it. Some days it may be an intense strength training session, some days it may be a refreshing yoga class, and some days it may be no movement at all. And that’s perfectly okay! The point is that you are in charge of the way you move, and not the external rules that diet culture makes us feel obligated to follow.
Benefits of Joyful Movement
There are many benefits of joyful movement that have absolutely nothing to do with weight loss. These include strengthening bones (which can prevent osteoporosis later in life), boosting your immune system, improving sleep quality, decreasing stress, improving cholesterol and more!
However, when we turn to exercise for the sole purpose of changing our bodies, it can lead to weight cycling ( frequent weight loss and regain), because it’s unsustainable. Also known as yo-yo dieting, weight cycling is associated with metabolic and cardiovascular diseases such as diabetes and hypertension. It’s also linked to fluctuations in blood pressure, heart rate, and renal filtration (the way your kidney’s filter out toxins), which can lead to kidney damage and heart disease.
How to Start Moving Joyfully
In order to start moving joyfully, you must separate exercise from weight loss. Ask yourself, “if exercise didn’t have any effect on my body, how would I choose to move?” Would you join a pick up basketball game? Swim laps at your local rec center? Find a new trail to hike? Sign up for a color run?
Once you’ve identified this, find small ways to include it throughout your week. Trying to incorporate these forms of movement, in small doses at first rather than all at once, can not only make your goal seem less overwhelming and more manageable, but will allow time to reflect on how this is making you feel.
Whatever form movement you decide to do, make sure you’re eating enough. Food is fuel. Just like a car can’t drive anywhere without gas, you’ll likely find that when you’re not providing your body with enough fuel, you won’t have the energy or desire to move in the way that you’d like to. Additionally, be sure to allow your body enough time to rest and recover!
People to Follow
Meg is a Texas based fat athlete and author who believes fitness does not have a size. Not only will Meg test your limits with her intense Tikok fitness challenges, but she’s sure to bring a daily dose of body positivity that will brighten your day.
Lauren is a personal trainer and barre instructor from Philadelphia. Lauren’s aim is to bring inclusivity and body liberation into the exercise world and bring light to the unflattering things we don’t talk about when we talk about fitness.
Ilya Parker is a physical therapist assistant and medical exercise specialist dedicated to making fitness inclusive. Decolonizing Fitness aims to break free from toxic mainstream fitness and instead, provide support to those who have not felt welcomed in these spaces.
Author of Train Happy and host of the Train Happy Podcast, Tally is a personal trainer based in the UK. Through her inclusive approach to fitness, Tally is determined to make fitness fun and intuitive again.
As a fat marathoner and running coach, Martinus helps people be active without the pressure of weight loss. Through his inspirational posts, Martinus spreads the message that fitness has no size, weight, color, or gender.
Kira is a non-diet certified personal trainer from Ontario, Canada. Her posts are sure to debunk any and all diet culture myths as well as provide you with your daily dose of sass.
Zabrina is a Denver-based, HAES aligned personal trainer who’s dedicated to providing exercise tips without the diet culture BS. Zabrina’s passion for dedication to weight inclusive fitness will be sure to leave you feeling inspired.
As an anti-diet, weight neutral personal trainer, Carolyn’s goal is to promote body acceptance and joyful movement. Not only will her page leave you feeling motivated to ditch diet culture, but her “coffee talk” videos will be sure to enlighten you with every anti-diet and Health at Every Size.
Blog contribution by Holly Greenberg, Dietetic Intern.
Review and Edited by Marissa Kai Miluk, MS, RDN, LD and Kaitlyn Allen MS, MEd, MS, RD
