What is Intuitive Movement?
Intuitive movement is one of ten principles laid out in the book: Intuitive Eating: A Revolutionary Anti-Diet Approach by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch. The main idea of intuitive movement is to shift the focus away from losing weight or burning calories and toward all of the other benefits of movement, most importantly how it makes you feel. If you want to start practicing intuitive movement, start thinking of exercise as an act of self care that you truly enjoy rather than a chore that you need to do.
Intuitive movement is about tuning into your body, resting when you need to and nourishing your body with enough food to fuel your movement. It’s also about letting go of guilt if you miss a workout and not using exercise as punishment for “cheating” on a diet. For a great in depth explanation of intuitive movement go check out this post by Kelsey McCullough, the 21st Century RD.
How I made the switch to intuitive movement
I’ll be the first to admit that I have not always had a great relationship with exercise. I’ve always loved it, but I would stress out and feel anxious when I missed a workout. I would exercise with the sole purpose of losing weight, I would workout when I really didn’t feel like it and I would push through injuries.
At the time, I owned a gym and was coaching 3-4 classes a day while going to CrossFit. I also had an Olympic weightlifting coach that I worked with 3-4 days a week. The intense pressure to look a certain way as a gym owner was getting to me and I was afraid if I stopped everything would come crashing down. I looked the way that I thought I should and yet I still wasn’t happy with it and I lived in constant fear of gaining weight.
One of the great things about getting pregnant for me was that it broke this cycle. Suddenly I was not “supposed” to lose weight. I had to really listen to my body and honor how it was feeling. Without all the pressure of looking a certain way I had the opportunity to explore movement that I didn’t consider a “good workout” in the past, like yoga and swimming.
These days exercise is a way for me to release stress and anxiety and to strengthen my muscles. It has helped me move without pain when I was postpartum and helped to prevent injury. It is a way to connect with friends, to feel that surge of endorphins and to feel accomplished. I love to challenge myself and work to improve my cardiovascular endurance so I can keep up with my son. I’ve also learned to let go of perfection and the guilt that comes along with it when you don’t live up to it.
How to start practicing intuitive movement
First, let’s find your WHY. What other reasons besides weight loss do you have to exercise? I know this seems like a simple question but this is the heart of intuitive movement. Write down 5 benefits that you want to get out of exercise that have nothing to do with the way you look. Here are some examples:
- Decreased blood pressure
- Decreased anxiety
- Reduced risk for chronic diseases like heart disease and diabetes
- Strengthen muscles
- Injury prevention
- Increased metabolism
- Increased bone density
- Increased energy
- Improved mood
- Improved sleep
- Improved self esteem
- Improved social life if you do it with friends
- Improved satiety and appetite regulation
- Improved wellbeing
Choosing your movement
Next, decide on the type of movement you will do. Ask yourself these questions: If no amount or type of exercise helped you lose weight, what would you do? Is there a type of movement that you enjoy so much that time passes without you noticing? Do you find yourself naturally just doing some type of movement, like dancing around your living room, or gardening?
Find a movement or a couple of different ones that you really enjoy doing and lean into them. My favorite types of movement are weightlifting, Crossfit, dancing, kickboxing, Pilates, walking, hiking and playing sports with my husband. Here are some other examples:
- Swimming
- Running around with your kids
- Biking
- Dancing (for an awesome at-home dance workout check out Shine Dance Fitness)
- Yoga
- Frisbee golf
- Golf
- Going to a workout class
- Online workout classes
- Strength training (You can find a template for building your own workout plan HERE)
Final steps
Now that you have your motivation and movement here are a few more steps to get you started:
Let go of perfection. Give yourself grace, especially if you are just starting out, if you are pregnant/postpartum or still breastfeeding. If you wake up one day and don’t feel like exercising that’s ok, just pick it back up when you do feel like it.
Take rest when you need it. Listen closely to your body and give it what it needs. This is especially true if you are injured. Take the time to let your body heal before exercising again.
Wear comfortable clothes and shoes that make you feel confident. If you are constantly pulling up leggings, or pulling down a tight crop top, you won’t be able to be in the moment and enjoy yourself.
Lastly, find a place to exercise that makes you feel good. If going to a gym is intimidating or too expensive, don’t go! You can get in the same workout right at home.
I hope this helps! Let me know what you choose to do this week in the comments below.