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Check-in: Why do (or don’t) I Move my Body?

Kelsey McCullough, RD, LDN

When thinking about disordered eating, diet culture, and weight stigma, we often focus on the role of food: the beliefs, behaviors, and emotions that dictate how we eat. In fact, we even have a framework for unraveling diet culture’s influence on our eating, Intuitive Eating, which includes 10 principles, 8 of which focus on food and eating, while only 2 principles explore body image and movement. One might think that because body image and movement were only granted a single principle each, they may not be as important, or as difficult to work through when compared to the food part of diet culture. I hate to burst any bubbles, but these topics can be just as complicated, and sometimes more so, than the food piece. It is so important to untangle diet culture from our relationship with movement because diet and exercise often go hand-in-hand in the desire to change the shape and or size of one’s body. Addressing the food “stuff” is only a portion of this work which is why today, in this post, we are focusing on movement.

So, how do you know if your relationship with movement is problematic, healthy, or somewhere in between? Unfortunately, there is no single marker for a healthy relationship with movement. However, this blog provides some reflective questions to help you better understand your relationship with movement and if it could use some attention. Do your best to answer these questions with honesty and curiosity; be sure to read to the end for additional resources if you feel you could use some support!

What thoughts and feelings arise when I think about movement? 

Painful memories of pushing yourself at the gym with too little to eat? Happy memories of playing a sport with supportive teammates? Feelings of guilt, shame, anxiety, or perhaps excitement, stress relief, or confidence? It’s common to have mixed feelings about movement, perhaps feeling a sense of achievement in moving plus feelings of stress and obligation. 

Have my feelings about movement changed throughout my life? If so, at what points in my life did movement feel more positive and more negative?

For example, did toddler you, elementary you, young adult you, or new mom you, have different reasons for engaging in movement? If you have found yourself yo-yoing between having intense movement routines (usually at the same time as engaging in a diet) to avoiding movement altogether (usually while being off the diet) know this is incredibly common. There can be a sense of euphoria around the start of a diet and or movement routine, but with time it gets harder to abide by the plan. Eventually, you may ditch the plan altogether and feel zero motivation to move your body. 

Reminder to be curious and compassionate with yourself as you explore these questions!

  

What are my beliefs about movement? 

Do you think everyone should have a movement routine? Do you think people that don’t move are “lazy” or “unhealthy”? Do you see certain types of movement as “counting” while other forms that don’t cause sweat or create soreness as being less than? Or do you believe that any form of intentional movement is rooted in body manipulation?

Where do these beliefs come from? 

Try reminding yourself we are not born with our beliefs but they are influenced by the world around us and our own experiences. Consider the privilege behind a movement routine- having the time, resources, and energy needed, is this realistic for everyone? 

When could movement be detrimental to health? 

Thinking about your own definition of health, is it health-promoting to engage in movement when undernourished, injured, exhausted, or ill? In what ways could movement be a stand-in for self-esteem? 

Why do I move my body? Does movement feel like an obligation or a choice? Is my reason for moving driven by self-care or self-control?

Self-care might look like: enjoying the endorphins, increased energy, or mental clarity brought on by movement. Self-control on the other hand might be moving to attain or maintain a certain shape or size, to burn off calories, to justify eating something, or to maintain a certain image as being “the athletic one”. For example, you may despise cardio, but you do it anyway in order to get sweaty which makes you feel like your workout “counted”. However, on the other hand, certain types of movement you engage in could be more rooted in self-care, like taking your dog for a walk after work in order to unwind from a hectic day.

OR what comes up when thinking about why I avoid intentional movement? 

Movement avoidance can be rooted in self-preservation; countless folks have experienced trauma around movement whether it be from cruel gym classes as a developing child to utilizing movement as a way to manipulate the body. Your body’s innate wisdom may very likely need unconditional permission to rest or to not move. Your worth is not tied to your movement. Allowing the body to be still is likely necessary to tune inwards and reconnect with your intuition around movement. At some point, you may be called to movement, and perhaps you can experiment with how it feels and the thoughts/emotions that come with it. Keep in mind there are so many different ways to move the body and it doesn’t have to look a certain way. 

How did I move as a child before I attached any judgment to movement? Could you approach movement, when you feel safe and called to do so, with the curiosity of a child? 

What was movement like for you when you didn’t care or notice if anyone was watching? Did you like moving with friends or by yourself? What are some types of movement that you’ve never tried but have been interested in? Does your definition of movement need to be expanded?

“Running a marathon and having a Netflix marathon are morally equivalent activities.”

-Regan Chastain (via Anti-Diet by CHristy Harrison)

You are not “good” or “bad” for choosing to move or not move. Movement and health are not moral obligations even though fitness culture may be telling you otherwise. We have this image in today's society that implies one is "being good", "being disciplined", or "having made it" with "being the perfect picture of heath" - that image being a white cis-woman in a small or straight-sized body, wearing a matching athleisure outfit, drinking an organic cold-pressed juice after a spin class. While on the other hand an image of wearing pjs, drinking cocoa, on the couch watching Schitt’s Creek, is often thought of as being “lazy” or “bad for you”, especially for folks existing in larger bodies; thank you fatphobia…NOT!. Instead of accepting these assumptions, challenge them! People’s health and or worth can not be assessed by their body shape or size, the food they are or aren’t eating, or by the way they move or rest their body. Your beliefs regarding rest are a crucial piece of the puzzle in your relationship with movement. You can grant yourself permission to rest; heck you never have to partake in a movement routine ever again if you don’t want to. Sometimes giving ourselves permission to not engage in movement is exactly what we need when reclaiming movement from toxic diet and fitness culture beliefs.

Now, you may be thinking something along the lines of “what about health?” Keep in mind that health is not just determined by movement and exercise. In fact, these two factors account for only a portion of the “modifiable health behaviors”, which make up approximately 30% of the social determinants of health, meaning about 70% of our health outcomes are determined by factors beyond our individual control. I am not providing you with these statistics to make you feel powerless, but instead to keep things in perspective. Health is so much more complex than how we move and rest our bodies.

You may feel like if you permitted yourself to not engage in movement you would never move again. However, keep in mind that movement routines, rooted in diet or fitness culture, are typically not joyful, but instead punitive and done without adequate energy or calories to fuel the movement. It makes a lot of sense that you would not want to engage in movement when it has felt like a chore or punishment. Allow yourself to lean into rest! Eventually, with time and patience, you may feel your body craving movement which can feel quite different than your brain calling the shots. Bringing you closer to your authentic and embodied, self! 

If you would like to continue exploring creating a positive more intuitive relationship with movement consider joining the upcoming round of Read & Flourish Book Club where we are exploring Meg Boggs, Fitness for Every Body. Enrollment ends on 12/29/22, so save your seat today!

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