If we can incorporate regular movement into our daily lives we will feel the physical and mental benefits, yet many of us view exercise as a punishment or an obligation.
Feel Better Live More Bitesize is my new weekly podcast for your mind, body and heart. Each week I’ll be featuring inspirational stories and practical tips from some of my former guests.
Today’s clip is from episode 109 of the podcast with Kelly McGonigal. Kelly is a US research psychologist, a lecturer at Stanford University and an author.
Kelly reveals how it’s possible to change our mindset to view physical activity as a way to engage with life. If we focus on calories and metrics, we may be missing the joy we can experience from movement.
She explains how going beyond what you think you’re capable of, whether that’s an endurance event or lifting heavy weights, can change the brain in positive ways.
Any movement is good for you though and can provide a reset for your mood and your brain chemistry. Repeatedly contracting any muscle, whether working out with weights or doing gardening, releases antidepressant substances called myokines that scientists have dubbed ‘hope molecules’.
Kelly gives us tips on how to incorporate more movement into our lives and find ways to move our body that we truly enjoy.
Show notes and the full podcast are available at drchatterjee.com/109
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Actionable Insights
1. Shift Movement Mindset
Shift your mindset about physical activity from punishment or obligation to a way to engage with life, aiming to find pleasure in the simple joy of movement.
2. Personalize Your Movement
Seek out physical activities that genuinely bring you joy and meaning, rather than focusing on conventional exercise metrics or activities you dislike.
3. Integrate Movement Naturally
Integrate movement into your daily routines by making it part of recreation, using active transport for errands, or incorporating it into social interactions to foster connection.
4. Connect Movement to Passions
Identify things you already love (e.g., animals, spending time with specific people) and find movement activities that allow you to do those things with your body.
5. Movement for Stress Resilience
Engage in regular movement to build resilience to stress, improve mood, and increase sensitivity to joy by positively altering brain chemistry and function.
6. Any Movement is Beneficial
Start with even a minimal amount of movement, as any dose, even a minute or a single squat, provides physical and mental health benefits.
7. Challenge for Deeper Benefits
For deeper mental health benefits and a sense of transcendence, especially when facing challenges or isolation, consider pushing beyond your perceived physical limits, such as training for a marathon.
8. Move Outdoors for Well-being
If you dislike exercise, try moving outdoors in any safe natural or green space, as this is often the most powerful way to immediately connect with the psychological benefits of movement.
9. View Movement as Essential
Reframe movement as an essential, non-negotiable part of human life, similar to eating and sleeping, rather than a chore or something to be ‘shoved into your life’.
10. Daily AG1 Supplement
Incorporate AG1 daily, a health drink containing five strains of gut bacteria, to support digestion and enrich your gut microbiome.
11. Subscribe to Friday Five
Subscribe to the ‘Friday Five’ email at drchastity.com/FridayFive for weekly doses of positivity, articles, books, quotes, and research.