Seven Reasons to Move Your Body That Have Nothing to Do with Weight

Most women I know started “working out” for the first time for one of two reasons. Either to get in shape for sports or to alter their appearance, usually with the goal of thinness in mind. Fast forward to today and most of us aren’t participating in team sports anymore. That second reason though. Woof. It is still looming large for many women. Today I want to remind you that there are a ton of awesome reasons to move your body that have nothing to do with how you look.

I am not here to judge you for working out with the goal of weight loss in mind. I’d be lying if it wasn’t on my mind too sometimes. How could it not be in a world of highlight reels and carefully targeted anti-aging ads? I will say though that your weight has a lot more to do with stress, hormones, genetics, and environmental factors than it does with food and exercise. I also believe at a soul level that the internalized messages of diet culture and the glorification of thinness are hurting all of us, especially those with marginalized bodies. 

So... Let’s dive into a handful of REALLY GREAT reasons to move that beautiful body of yours!

  1. Stress Management:
    Physical activity is the most effective and efficient way of processing the body’s stress response. Your body’s physical reaction to modern stressors is the same as it was to being chased by a saber tooth tiger - except you don’t get to do sprints in the middle of a big presentation or a nightmarish bedtime routine. Even when that stressful event is over, your body still needs to process your physical stress response. The increased blood pressure, adrenaline, cortisol, and glycogen pumping through your body needs to be regulated. When we don’t do this we remain in a state of chronic stress, which can wreak havoc on our entire system. Regular exercise for 20-60 minutes a day is the most sure fire way to process those stress hormones and neurochemicals so your body can return to a neutral state. It doesn’t have to be intense or long. Even just dancing it out to one song can make a difference. 

  2. Reconnecting to Play
    Moving your body can be FUN (if you let it). As mamas we understand the importance of play for our children, but did you know that adults need play to thrive too? Like exercise, play helps reduce the levels of your stress hormones so imagine the magic you’ll feel when you put them together?! Play improves brain function and improves memory. It can also reduce your risk of depression and anxiety. Engaging in play with others can strengthen relationships, encourage cooperation, and build new connections with kids, co-workers, partners, and friends. Whether you join an adult soccer league or play freeze tag with your kiddos moving play is a win-win. It’s also a great cure for boredom and the monotony that parenting often involves. Chasing Hudson around and laughing our faces off is my favorite way to play.

  3. Explore your Creative Side
    You don’t have to be an artist to be creative. In fact, humans are innately creative beings. I don’t know one mom who gets through a day without coming up with countless creative solutions to all kinds of problems - from figuring out what the heck to feed everyone (again) to stemming a mega-meltdown. Yet we often don’t think of ourselves as “creative types.” Movement can be both a way to explore our creative sides. Getting creative with movement can look like trying a dance class or making up your own yoga flow at home. Maybe it looks like figuring out a new route for your daily walk or listening to new music. Movement of any kind is also a great way to reduce stress and fill up your own cup so you have the physical, mental, and emotional energy to come up with all of those brilliant creative solutions. 

  4. Social Time
    Being a mom can be extremely isolating. Whether you're tethered to nap time or you moved further out of town to be able to afford more space or childcare. Getting together for walks, hikes, and outside run-arounds are my favorite ways to meet up with friends. Maybe someday we’ll have time for happy hour again, but for now it’s one of the easiest ways I know to stay connected with friends. If your friends and family are far away or on a different sleep schedule, walks can be a great time to catch up on the phone. Even before I had a kid, walks and runs were my favorite way to connect. My head feels clearer and my stress levels are lower when I am moving, which makes it much easier for me to relax and connect with others (hello social anxiety). Running groups, yoga + fitness classes, and mom-and-me movement meet-ups are also an amazing way to meet new people - no easy feat as an adult, especially with young kids. 

  5. Build Confidence and Resilience
    We can do hard things. As mamas we have to, every single day. Pushing ourselves physically (within reason) is a great way to build resilience, mental toughness, and greater comfort with discomfort. It gives us an opportunity to practice facing, sitting with, and moving through uncomfortable feelings. This is an extremely valuable skill that will undoubtedly support you in life, especially the important and difficult work of parenting, anti-racism, and other forms of activism. Many yoga practices include a mindfulness element, which can also help improve your ability to handle difficult emotions, situations, and stressors. Building new skills and movement practices can also increase your confidence. As a parent there is so much out of your control and even when you’re doing your best it can feel like you suck at it. Sometimes it just feels good to be GOOD at (or be getting better at) something whether it’s improving your flexibility or lifting heavier weights. 

  6. Connecting with Nature
    Movement is an amazing way to get out into nature, which has innumerable benefits. Spending time in nature can lower blood pressure and stress hormone levels, reduce nervous system arousal, enhance immune system function, increase self-esteem, reduce anxiety, and improve mood. It can also reduce symptoms of Attention Deficit Disorder and aggression (including mom-rage in my experience). Hello magical antidote to all that ails me!! Moving in nature looks a lot different for me most days than it did before I had Hudson. I desperately miss remote camping trips, epic hikes, and long trail runs. While it might be a while before I get those back it is still 100% worth the effort to get out in small ways - with and without my little. We try for at least a few beach trips a week (rain or shine), toddler-sized runarounds at a trail head, backpack hikes when he’ll stand for it, and solo trail runs for mama. I also dream of putting together a Little Explorers Club here in Bellingham.

     

  7. Feeling Strong and Ready for Anything
    If this past year isn’t a reminder that shit can go down at any moment I don’t know what it is. Movement is a great way to build your physical, mental, and emotional strength in a way that will allow you to be more prepared for whatever life throws your way. Movement can positively impact nearly every system in your body including your digestive system, nervous system, and cardiovascular system. As someone with anxiety and IBS movement has been a life saver. Nothing diffuses my digestive distress in the moment like a short walk. I don’t know about you, but I feel way more ready to take on the world when I’m not bloated beyond belief or hyperventilating in a corner to begin with. Walks even helped me manage breastfeeding-related anxiety that had been preventing me from getting a let down during one especially stressful point of the pandemic. I love how moving my body helps me feel strong, steady, and prepared to show up for my family and community the way I want to. 

I hope this dive into what I like to call “joyful movement” helps even just one person reconnect to the beauty and magic of moving your body. The last piece of advice I want to leave you with is this:

REJECT AN ALL OR NOTHING MINDSET. SOME IS BETTER THAN NONE.

This is so, so, so important. Growing up I learned to believe that all workouts had to be long and sweaty to “count”. That is a lie. In fact, moving your body more frequently in smaller ways may actually be better for you than sitting still all day and then killing yourself at the gym for an hour. Too much extreme or high intensity exercise can mess with your hormones, cause burnout, and lead to unnecessary injuries, all of which will cause you more stress and frustration in the end. I highly encourage you to get in what you can, when you can, and continue to take time for rest too. 

Remember that wherever you are on your fitness journey, you are always enough. You are worthy of deep care and rest and cannot serve anyone well when you fail to invest in yourself.


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Brittany Fay