Ep 166 - Psychologist Kelly McGonigal Reveals Why Movement Matters

Today, we're speaking with an author, psychologist, and educator who is passionate about helping you understand the mind-body connection. Her TED Talk titled "How to Make Stress Your Friend," has amassed a staggering 25 million views. In her latest book, The Joy of Movement, she explores how just 20-minutes of physical exercise can be a powerful antidote to the afflictions of depression, anxiety, and loneliness. The key takeaways from our conversation include why physical activity during the pandemic is absolutely essential and how it is strongly linked to mental health, the importance of collective joy, distinguishing dependence from harmful addiction, how movement and music fuel you for everything else that matters in your life, and the vital role of "hope molecules" in improving our levels of resilience Please welcome the mind-body visionary, Kelly McGonigal, to the Escape Your Limits podcast. For more information visit https://escapefitness.com/podcast Video – https://youtu.be/-MzvWIX_q0s   Kelly McGonigal, PhD, is a health psychologist and lecturer at Stanford University, and a leading expert in the new field of "science-help." She is passionate about translating cutting-edge research from psychology, neuroscience, and medicine into practical strategies for health, happiness, and personal success. Her latest book, The Joy of Movement, she explores why movement can and should be a source of joy. Kelly McGonigal is a health psychologist and lecturer at Stanford University who is known for her work in the field of 'science help' which focuses on translating insights from psychology and neuroscience into practical strategies that support health and well-being. Visit http://kellymcgonigal.com/ to find out more about this mind-body visionary.   Episode highlights - You can't practice happiness without exercise. Just 20-minutes of continuous movement triggers a reliable change of brain chemistry to give you energy, reduce pain, decrease stress and anxiety, and increase optimism and hope. Movement changes people's lives. It's as important as eating and sleeping. Your capacity to release higher levels of adrenaline comes with your conditioning and fitness level. We can actually use stress as a catalyst for things like courage, social connection, and growth. Thinking about movement as a vehicle for experiencing joy in life, as opposed to something you have to get through in order to burn calories. Stress is energy that you can harness. Physical activity throughout this pandemic is strongly linked to mental health. It is essential. Now is the time to invest in a relationship with an activity that really brings out a side of you that is important. A harmful, destructive addition to exercise is when people never feel like they've done enough. They start to organize their entire lives around it to the point where it interferes with their job or their relationships. Moving your body is good for your mental health, your happiness, your meaning in life, and your relationships with others. Exercise and movement fuels you for everything else that matters in life. Different forms of movement release a lot of the same chemicals as substances that people use recreationally or abuse. Exercise is the only rewarding thing that upregulates chemicals in your body to make your brain more sensitive to joy. When you exercise, when you use your muscles, you are giving yourself medicine. And it is medicine you can't access any other way. Your muscles are this amazing pharmacy that are manufacturing and storing chemicals that have profound effects on your physical and mental health. Join Matthew Januszek in this fascinating and in-depth conversation with Kelly McGonigal.