If you haven’t already read part 1, you can do so here.

We sadly live in an image obsessed society, in which one body type is idealised. We are consistently subjected to diet culture and the unrealistic beauty and body standards. Though logically we can grasp that these body standards are unreasonable, unrealistic and harmful (often the result of air brushing, editing, filters, surgery and genetics), there are times when stepping away from them can be really challenging. Though we may have every intention to move away from diet culture, this process can take time and we may have to work at it for a while. It is also important to acknowledge this process is even harder for individuals that face societal systems of oppression based on body size, race, gender and sexuality.

The harmful narratives that we have internalised for so long about using exercise as a weight-loss tool can be hard to move away from. But, be gentle with yourself. Stepping away from diet mentality and embracing intuitive movement may not be easy and even feel counter-intuitive at first, but with time and space for unlearning, you’ll be able to tune into your internal cues and learn what your body needs and how you want to move it or if you need to rest.

Unhelpful ‘Fitspo’ Phrases

While physical activity is a part of overall health, it is by no means all of health. The only reason “fitness” is put up on a pedestal is because it is often linked with weight loss (for which there is actually much good evidence). It’s also a seemingly exclusive, sexy and highly profitable industry. For many, rather than feeling like a self-care act or a pleasurable activity, exercise may feel more like a punishing choice.

Here are a few examples of the harmful phrases that the fitness industry throw at us:

“no pain, no gain”

“sweat is your fat crying”

“I really regret that workout - said no one ever”

These are the typical phrases that we see plastered all over Instagram and on “Fitspo” accounts, intended to be funny and/or motivating. But the reality is, this is what we have been sold led to believe. It is not so funny anymore!

We have been taught that over-doing it, evading needs, suppressing emotions, and taking ourselves to our absolute limits (like exercising during illness or injury) are synonymous with success. We are tricked into believing that this is also virtuous and about discipline and willpower. This is where it becomes really toxic as we can feel like skipping a workout is a personal character flaw.

Sexualised ‘Fitspo’

The majority of mainstream images associated with fitness are extremely sexualised. This reveals how fitness has become more about the pursuit of an idealised body shape or weight, than about inclusivity, joy and “health”.

A content analysis of 600 images on Instagram, found under #fitspiration, a tag used to inspire people to become fit and healthy, found that the majority of the images contained only one body type: thin and toned (1). Additionally, most of the images contained objectifying elements which have been found to have negative effects on body image and self-esteem (1). This may encourage unhealthy obsessions with exercise and disordered eating in the pursuit of the thin-ideal. It also excludes body types including larger and disabled body’s from the fitness industry. Subsequently, these individuals may avoid gyms / pools etc and therefore miss out on the plethora of benefits from movement.

Reevaluating Motivations for Movement

Now may be a time to reevaluate your motivation for exercising and determine if your current workout routine is truly benefitting your “health” (including both mentally, emotionally and socially) or is it causing more stress than it’s worth or taking away from other areas of your life? Do you really love that exercise workout plan you purchased from that “Fitspo” Instagrammer or does it feel like an obligation?

Interestingly, research has consistently shown that exercise doesn’t result in significant weight loss for the majority of people (2). Exercise carried out with the goal of “improving” appearance and losing weight has been related to a variety of negative outcomes such as low self-esteem and high body dissatisfaction (3), heightened anxiety concerning body size/ shape (4) and decreased psychological well-being (5). Furthermore, individuals motivated to lose weight for appearance reasons are more likely to engage in disordered eating behaviours (6), binge eat (7) and have higher concerns about body image (8).

Ask yourself, “what is my motivation for exercising?”.

If it is done in an effort to change your body, to burn calories or to compensate for what you ate at the weekend then engaging in exercise for any of these reasons are not beneficial for you or your wellbeing.

Movement is not meant to be an obligation or a punishment. Your reasons to move your body should have nothing to do with changing the way your body looks and should have everything to do with honouring your body, not punishing it!

Benefits of Movement Regardless of Weight Loss

Intuitive movement focuses on moving the body to feel good rather than to look “good” and to alleviate mental and physical stress, not to add to it.

Imagine how empowering it would be if we all focused on moving our bodies for enjoyment, fun, and pleasure, rather than to punish or change the way our bodies look? There are so many benefits of moving our body that have nothing to do with weight loss or the size of our body. Regular movement has been shown to reduce risk of all-cause mortality by 30%, cardiovascular disease by up to 35%, type-2 diabetes by up to 40%, depression by up to 30%, dementia by up to 30%, colon cancer by 30%, and hip fractures by up to 68% (9). It is important to remember that in order to obtain these benefits exercise must be adequately fuelled, not forgetting rest days.

It’s also worth knowing that very strenuous exercise is not required to reap the benefits as most can be attained with relatively moderate-intensity movement (such as brisk walking) (10). Studies have shown that mini bursts of movement are just as beneficial as longer activity sessions. For example, moderate 10-minute physical activity like simply moving around in your day to day life (think commuting, taking the stairs, popping out to pick up some lunch) can reduce blood pressure. The effects of these short bouts of physical activity spread throughout the day may also be more effective than a single 30-minute session of exercise for lowering systolic blood pressure throughout the day (11). Moreover, the benefits of a single exercise session can persist for a few days e.g. enhanced insulin action (12).

A famous meta-analysis which looked at the association of cardiorespiratory fitness and weight status on mortality demonstrated that aerobically fit “overweight” and “ob*se” individuals as categorised using BMI, have a similar mortality risk as their non-“overweight/ob*se” aerobically fit counterparts (13). Individuals with a BMI above 40 can move from a ‘low’ to ‘high’ fitness category with 2.5 hours of movement per week and in doing so reduce the risk of heart disease independently of weight loss (14). It is also important to note that aerobically fit “overweight” and “ob*se” individuals generally have lower mortality risk than unfit individuals within the “normal” BMI weight range (15).

The important thing to remember is that movement should be done to celebrate your body and all that it is capable of. It should be done because it makes you feel good, energised, and happy. It doesn’t matter how you do it, if you have a gym membership or not, or even if you’re wearing fancy Lycra!

Intuitive movement is not another diet tool or another way to punish or change our body, but rather a framework used to help celebrate our body and realise how great movement can make us feel.

References

Intuitive Movement - Part 2

Connect with me

Intuitive Movement - Part 2

My Childhood Relationship with Food.

Intuitive Movement - PART 1

Connect with me