I know this sounds obvious, but SERIOUSLY when I move my body it makes a huge difference for me. It makes me feel better about myself and respect myself more because I know that I’m taking care of my body. I treat other people better, because I’m in a better mood. It helps me to manage my frustrations or emotions better. I also can tell I have so much more energy and my body feels better. Sometimes when I haven’t moved my body enough one day, my body will just hurt like it’s crying out for me to move!
Try to figure out what kind of movement you enjoy doing. My husband loves to run and he would love it if I was a runner, but I just really don’t like running. I have made attempts to become a runner several times in my life. I just don’t like it. I love to bike or walk if I’m outside, and I like using the elliptical, doing yoga or doing group exercise classes in-person or virtually. Sometimes I will favor one type of exercise over another for a little bit. Sometimes I like to mix it up a bit more and have more variety in the exercises.
Try to find the kinds of exercises that make you feel good and give you energy. Build up the routine of doing the exercises that you enjoy consistently, and then slowly start challenging yourself once the strong habit has been established. For example, if you like to do yoga, start with some simple classes that stretch your body and feel like a little bit of a challenge but don’t tire you out too much. Keep going with that class until you are exercising consistently. Once you’re ready for your next challenge, find a new class that is a little bit more challenging and try that class once/week and go back to the first class other days that week too. You ease your way through progress so it feels natural and doesn’t overwhelm you.
The point is you want exercise to be a happy and sustainable part of your life so you can live your best life and not feel like it’s a terrible obligation. Moving your body and having health and life is a gift. Moving your body is something that you can celebrate and be thankful for! Not everyone has that ability. Taking care of yourself is also a way to take care of the people you love who want you to be happy and healthy and want to keep you around for as long as possible.
Lastly, I wanted to add that I don’t have this figured out. It’s a process. Sometimes I do a great job exercising consistently and sometimes it’s quite a struggle for me and I lack the motivation to be consistent. The winter is always when it’s the toughest for me to be consistent, but there have been other winters that I have done great with consistency. This isn’t about being hard on yourself when you get out of the habit. It’s just about getting back up and trying to move your body. The connection between the way you move you body and living your best life seems to be a strong one.
Here are some exercise resources that I love:
Yoga with Adrienne on YouTube: it’s free and Adrienne is so great. She has a great variety of classes. She has a class for when you’re feeling anxious, when you’re sick, a class to target different parts of your body, AM or PM yoga, etc. She has so many great options. Check her out here.
The Rise App: I love Rachel Hollis and pretty much everything that she puts out there. This app has an amazing approach to moving your body and focuses on the joy of moving your body. You can select the amount of time you want to work out and even how you want to feel during the workout. Do you want to be motivated? There’s a workout for that! It also has great instructors and has really great meditations. It’s very positive and motivating. As they say, this app is for everyone and EVERY BODY. I like using this app while I’m on the elliptical and seeing the walking path while I’m on it. This one is about $10/month. Get it here.
Beachbody on Demand: Around $100/year but comes with some great and well known programs that you can stream on the app like the 21 Day Fix, Insanity, P90X and more. They have a ton of variety of workouts and they have really good options for using weights or just your body weight. Check it out here.
Cosmic Kids Yoga: Sometimes I do this with my kids so that all of us get a workout in. She makes it really fun, because she tells stories that incorporate the yoga moves. It’s entertaining and fun! We have watched it for free with Amazon Prime Video. You can watch some of it on YouTube too. Check it out here.
Other apps I have used that I like:
Blogilates: Also free on Youtube but she also has a website and app. She is really fun and positive. There’s a great variety of workouts with a pilates/yoga type focus. Check it out here.
Sweat app: Leads you in different workouts but I especially like that it includes weightlifting. The videos do a great job of showing you how to do all of the moves and give you a good variety of moves from day to day. There have a free trial you can try. Check it out here.
Sworkit: workout with your body weight or with weights and you can select the amount of time you want to work out for. Really videos to show you how to do the moves. There’s a free version and a paid version. Check it out here.
Grokker: good variety of workouts. Some companies pay for their employees to access this app for free. Check it out here.
Couch to 5K Runner: If you’re going to start running, I found this app very helpful and approachable. I bought it it was only about $5. Check it out here.
Weight Loss Running by Verv: I used this one when I was trying to lose weight after having babies. I find it simple and helpful. I just used the free version, but you can upgrade. Check it out here.
Danette May: she has separate programs you can buy or an app called the FitRise 365 that you can join for $29/month or $197 annually. I have only tried her separate programs. I think she does a great job explaining the workout and giving workouts to target specific areas. She has some free videos on YouTube. You can check it out here.
I would love to hear from you and learn together! What apps/resources do you use when you move your body/exercise?
One response to “Moving your body: from drudgery to joy”
Wow this is great. I love how you shared so many great resources. I completely agree how important it is to move our bodies and that it is indeed a gift. I change my exercise routine alot. It used to be only yoga but lately I’ve been going for walks and using the stairs to climb for exercise. Sometimes I miss a day or two if I need to rest but mostly I tend to do some movement because it makes me feel so much more energized. Thank you so much for sharing about this. Really enjoyed reading and look forward to reading more!