Ep. 37 - F*ck Joyful Movement

If you’ve been in the non-diet space, you have likely heard the term “joyful movement”. If you struggle with this concept, this episode is for you!

Many women I work with either totally avoid exercise OR they have engaged with it in an unhealthy way…punishing themselves for what they ate, having an all or nothing mentality about it, thinking certain exercise doesn’t count or isn’t hard enough. Engaging with exercise in this way is shaped by diet culture- which teaches us that exercise is all about weight loss or changing our bodies. Messages like “no pain, no gain” or only looking at it like a mathematical equation “calories in, calories out”.

In my own experience, I found it hard to move from such an unhealthy relationship with exercise to “joyful movement”. The bridge felt too much of a leap!

Hence, my mantra of “fuck joyful movement” LOL. I found it helpful to let go of the idea of needing movement to be joyful. Instead, I focused on:

-being honest about my denial (I would swear I loved some form of exercise but my deeper self HATED it)
-neutrality- starting with exercise that I could feel mostly neutral about
-focusing on gratitude for my body rather than “joy”
-letting go of all or nothing…meaning ALL body movement counted
-recognising where I was already doing movement- dancing, cleaning the house, laundry, my walks with friends, etc
-recognising that even neutral movement will come with discomfort
-focusing on my deeper why (for me, I love travelling and hiking and want to support my body to do this as long as possible)

The paradox is…letting go of the pressure to enjoy movement helped me find joy in it! Weird shit, but I see this all the time with the women I work with!

My guests for today include:

• Jolyn Martin (IG @jolynmartinfitness) is a certified personal trainer, group fitness instructor and intuitive eating & body image coach from Kitchener, ON.  Jolyn guides moms to find peace with food, discover the joy of movement, and ultimately live in a way their children could respect and follow.
• Stefanie Bender (IG @sbenddd) is a certified personal trainer who specializes in strength training, and a body image and intuitive eating coach from Kitchener, ON.
• Kim Hagle is a certified Personal Trainer, Registered Holistic Nutritionist, mom of four and founder of Radiant Vitality Wellness. Through mindset coaching and intuitive movement and eating, Kim helps women go beyond the desire to lose weight so they can feel confident in their now body.  Facebook: @radiantvitalitywellness. Website: www.radiantvitality.ca

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Disclaimer:
This podcast represents the opinions of Vanessa Preston and her guests to the show. Vanessa is an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker and abides by ethics of the Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW). The content here should not be taken as medical or therapeutic advice. The content here is for informational purposes only, and because each person is so unique, please consult your healthcare professional for any medical questions.