Movement Medicine: How To Think About Exercise For Your Health
If you lead a busy life like mine, you have many responsibilities and priorities beyond fitness. Fitness shouldn't consume your life, but it's important to find ways to incorporate it and define what fitness means for you.
Engaging in regular physical activity tailored to your individual needs can strengthen your body, improve cardiovascular health, enhance mental clarity, and build emotional resilience.
I understand the demands you face, such as meeting work goals that often require more than 40 hours per week, taking care of family, and spending time with friends. Achieving a work-life balance can be challenging.
Any wellness program we develop must integrate balance directly into your current life circumstances. My approach recognizes that not everyone can do everything all at once, aiming to support you effectively within the constraints of your life. This tailored perspective ensures that wellness initiatives are practical and sustainable for your unique needs.
My philosophy, Movement Medicine, promotes a balanced approach to exercise, emphasizing enjoyment and sustainability over intensity or performance. Through consistent practice, movement can serve as medicine, helping you cultivate a lifestyle that supports longevity and vitality, enhancing your overall life journey.
Some key reminders:
You have your whole life ahead of you to exercise. Take it one step at a time and stay consistent.
Choose exercise habits that improve your body without trading one problem for another.
The best exercise to improve any health outcome is the one you will do.
My goal is to give you the tools and variety. I'm not here to provide all the answers but instead to help you explore what's working or not working for yourself when it comes to fitness. I want you to help improve your body's health, physically, without trading one problem for another.
Rethink your exercise mindset
1. Exercise isn't primarily about weight loss; that's largely influenced by diet. While exercise can contribute, it's not the primary tool for fat or weight loss. Exercise is about improving internal health—enhancing cellular function and reducing the risk of metabolic dysfunction. The physical changes you see are a bonus that can boost confidence. If you want to live your life with ease, it is important to view exercise as a tool to build and not to burn calories for weight loss or look a certain way.
2. Doing less exercise could mean more. Consider other essential factors that impact your fitness, such as sleep, stress, and nutrition. You might experience greater benefits by reducing exercise and prioritizing improvements in these lifestyle areas.
3. Don't rely on calories burned, soreness, or sweat to gauge the success of your workout, instead of focusing the effectiveness of your workout on the effort of the muscles.
Calories Burned - Calories burned during workouts don't determine results. Our bodies have a daily limit on calorie expenditure based on size. On average, most people burn around 800 active calories daily. Consistently reaching this limit is sufficient. Exceeding it can disrupt energy balance by diverting energy from vital functions like digestion and hormones. Instead of fixating on the number of calories burned, focus on staying active throughout the day. Incorporate short strength workouts, walks, and regular movement.
Soreness - Muscle growth can occur with or without soreness. Ideally, aim for minimal to no soreness after workouts. Consistency and volume are key for results. Excessive soreness can hinder consistency and impede progress, potentially causing harm. Initial soreness when starting a new workout is normal but should diminish with time as you adapt. A lack of soreness doesn't indicate a lack of progress; focus on consistent effort and gradual improvements.
Sweat - Sweating regulates your body's core temperature, influenced by factors like workout environment, clothing, and activity type, with individual variations in sweating levels. Increased core temperature and sweating don't necessarily correlate with a better workout or muscle building. Health benefits from exercise can be achieved without sweating, as sweating doesn't determine exercise effectiveness.
4. The best exercise to improve any health outcome is the one you will do. Any exercise that challenges adaptation benefits metabolic health and longevity. Choose a modality that suits your body and lifestyle for optimal results. Identify genuine limitations when committing to exercise, rather than making excuses. You have a lifetime to exercise—no need to overdo it or set unrealistic expectations. Focus on sustainable actions and what you can comfortably maintain.
Cornerstones of Exercise for Longevity
As a certified health coach, I am not a physical trainer or bodybuilder. My knowledge of fitness is for those who are looking for general exercise advice, and tools to increase longevity, reduce joint damage, keep hormones under control, and improve your body composition (fat-to-muscle ratio).
The Cornerstones of Exercise for Longestivey Include
1. Hypertrophy or Muscle Building Routine:
2. Movement (Think Cardio)
Hypertrophy or Muscle Building Routine:
A muscle-building routine involves increasing the size of your muscles through specific routines designed for muscle growth. Another common term you might hear is strength training. Any muscle-building can be done using exercises that focus on resistance or weight training.
TYPES OF MUSCLE FIBERS
After the age of 30, we start losing about 3-5% of our lean muscle mass (type 2 muscle fibers) each decade. Building muscle becomes critical as we age because it helps maintain strength, mobility, and metabolic health.
We all have varying amounts of type 1 and type 2 muscle fibers from birth. Some individuals naturally have more type 2 fibers, making it easier for them to build muscle, while those with more type 1 fibers must consistently work hard in muscle-building routines.
TYPE 1 MUSCLE FIBERS
Type 1 muscle fibers are primarily endurance fibers and are less critical for muscle growth. They are more related to activities like Pilates and cardio for toning.
Benefits: Improves endurance
Aging Impact: Less important for reducing the impacts of aging
Workouts that stimulate these fibers: Pilates, Running, Yoga
TYPE 2 MUSCLE FIBERS
Type 2 muscle fibers offer substantial benefits for overall health, both internally and externally.
Benefits: Improves your health inside and out
Aging Impact: Properly stimulating these fibers through a muscle-building routine not only promotes strength and muscle development but also helps combat visible signs of aging such as wrinkles and loss of skin elasticity.
Workouts that stimulate these fibers: Including exercises that fatigue the muscles is key to activating these muscle fibers
Most important for longevity
5 fundamentals to Building Muscle
Let's break down the 5 basics of muscle building. By focusing on these fundamentals, you can maximize the effectiveness of your muscle-building routine and achieve your desired results.
Structure: A hypertrophy routine is more than just lifting weights randomly. It requires a structured plan tailored to your goals.
Exercise Selection: Choose exercises that target specific muscle groups and support muscle growth.
Muscle Failure: Ensure your workouts challenge your muscles enough to induce fatigue, which is essential for growth.
Recovery: Allow adequate time for rest and recovery between workouts to allow muscles to repair and grow.
Nutrition: Fuel your body with proper nutrition, including sufficient protein and nutrients to support muscle development.
2. Movement (Cardio):
This includes any activities aimed at improving cardiovascular fitness and overall endurance. It is important to choose the right approach based on your lifestyle and fitness goals.
Using the visual below, I encourage you to determine which cardio fits your life best. If you are someone with high stress, I suggest focusing on light to moderate cardio throughout the week. If you enjoy group fitness classes, aim for 1-2 classes a week to reduce added stress to your body, and on the other days focus on a muscle-building routine.
You’ll notice lasting benefits for heart health and overall fitness when focusing on movement consistently. Start at your own pace and gradually increase intensity and duration to achieve optimal cardiovascular fitness.
Book A Free Call
If you need help kickstarting your fitness routine, more information about building muscle, or how to know what your next step is let's connect.
