Movement as Biological Nutrient--Beyond Exercise

Key Quotes

"So when you think about what are the nutrients that humans need, you would list the nutrients, vitamins and minerals, the macronutrients that are found in food. These are things we have to put into our body to make sure our body works correctly. And then there are also non-dietary nutrients, and we need exposure to the sun to be able to have our physiological processes working well. And so what I mean literally on one level is movement is not really an optional input to the human body."

Katy Bowman argues that movement is a fundamental requirement for human health, akin to essential nutrients found in food or sunlight. She explains that just as dietary nutrients influence cellular behavior, movement also directly impacts the cells of our tissues, making it a literal nutrient for the body.

"So all exercise is movement, but not all movement is exercise. So it's a much smaller circle. And exercise, clinically defined, is about physical activity that you are doing that is you've pre-selected a mode, you've pre-selected more or less a duration, an intensity at which you're going to be participating in that movement, and you're really doing it with the intention of making yourself physically better. And it's usually done in exclusion of getting anything else in your life done. It's really just isolated physical activity for health."

Bowman clarifies the distinction between movement and exercise, stating that exercise is a specific subset of movement. She defines exercise as a pre-planned, intentional physical activity focused solely on improving health, often performed in isolation from other life tasks.

"Trying to do something because someone else told you to do it is not usually a good long-term motivator. So what we're looking for is first identifying your values so that you can figure out how your interests, your values, the way you want to show up in your life actually relate to movement as a way to overcome some of the hurdles of the aversions you have to feeling what movement brings up for you."

Bowman suggests that external directives are ineffective for sustained motivation. She emphasizes the importance of identifying personal values to connect movement with one's interests and desired self-presentation, thereby overcoming aversions to physical activity.

"So it is really important to tune in with the ways that you would like to use your body. Some of them could be from memory, some could be aspirational. Maybe you would like to take a trip with your family members in the future and it's not necessarily a hiking or biking trip, but you know, maybe everyone's going to go to Europe and they're going to be trekking through these museums. Maybe you love art, but you don't think that you could be on your feet for two or three hours."

Bowman highlights the significance of aligning movement with personal enjoyment and aspirations. She advises individuals to recall past joyful movement experiences or consider future goals, such as traveling, to find activities that resonate, rather than adhering to a narrow definition of exercise.

"So I'm always looking to figure out what's the more dynamic option here, not only just for my own body. I'm usually, like I said, involving other aspects of community, figuring out if I could be of service, you know, whatever these domains you have in your life are. And when you look at it as a much broader picture, you end up with, I wouldn't say time is fixed. You don't get more time, but you get more, not even more things done. You get more needs met because we're getting a lot done, but a lot of the things that we're doing aren't necessarily meeting needs."

Bowman explains the concept of "stacking your life" as a strategy to meet multiple needs within a single activity, rather than completing tasks sequentially. She suggests that by integrating movement into daily activities, one can fulfill more fundamental needs, leading to a greater sense of accomplishment and well-being, even without increasing the total amount of time available.

"So the idea is to consider like, I've been in this space before. I've moved. I've transitioned from one stage to another. How did I deal with it physically? Well, or some of these pieces, bring them up and then give them life again. So instead of going, you know, maybe going to the gym and trying Jim and trying to be cheerful in a classes and both you need, maybe you need to get on a surfboard and actually not talk to anyone for a full Saturday and to spend all day floating around in the water being active in that particular way."

Bowman suggests that when facing physical discomfort or life transitions, individuals can draw upon past experiences of managing similar challenges through movement. She proposes re-engaging with previously effective physical activities, even if they differ from conventional exercise, to navigate current discomforts.