Exercise is optional but MOVEMENT is vital

Exercise is optional but MOVEMENT is vital, it’s indispensable.

Exercise is a planned routine intended to build or condition muscles, improve cardiovascular health, and increase the range of motion, dexterity and your levels of fitness. In order for it to be effective, you need to commit to exercise on a regular basis with sustained effort that gets you where you want to be, depending on your goals. 

Hitting the gym or trying to follow a planned exercise routine is good for you; however, exercise alone cannot counter the negative effects of sitting or inactivity for up to 15 hours a day. 

Movement, on the other hand, is a collection of actions the body does naturally. Movement is primordial, it was here first. Walking, climbing, running, jumping, crawling, lifting, swimming, fighting, bending and carrying are all movements the human body is made for and evolved from. 

Plenty of public health research now points to needing more movement in our everyday lives, as opposed to exercise alone, to remain healthy. You could go your whole life without ever doing exercise but instead move as part of your everyday life and remain healthy.

It’s certainly a lot less threatening to many people than the word “exercise”. In fact, when you mention or talk to many people about exercise, they shut down. Exercise has its value and if you can incorporate it with everyday movement, all the better. By focusing on movement, as a way of life, may be the best way to maintain your mobility, now and as you age.

Too often we have extreme periods of inactivity and lack of effort that sends our bodies into a state of stress. The body will become better at whatever you do, or don’t do. There are simple ways to engage in low-grade, constant movement actions throughout your day, using natural movement like walking, squatting, gripping, pulling, pushing, twisting and bending.  

All you need to do is to recognize movement as the life and mobility-saving friend it is to your body; physically, mentally, psychologically and spiritually.