On 22 October 2019 I signed up for the Brighton Marathon. What ensued was a gorgeous pair of new Nikes and the download of a six-month plan to get me on the streets of the seaside town; but 30 days later, the marathon was cancelled, and it was all over.
Though I’d completed a handful of weekend runs – driven by the lollies in my front pack rather than a love of running – during the weeks I had put them off. So, the day the marathon was cancelled was one of the happiest days of my life.
I ordered another G&T at the bar and raised a ‘cheers’ to my zero-running future. I thought I’d discovered three things about myself:
- I hated running
- I lacked self-discipline
- I lacked willpower
But I was wrong.
Self-discipline and willpower have absolutely nothing to do with it. I simply hadn’t found my form of movement.
You see, I’m a former high-intensity, exercise-obsessed runner. Over the last 10 years my exercise life has swung from daily HIIT sessions at Sydney studios to pounding the pavements of London. I loved to sweat, but I hated to be consistent.
The silver lining? It’s led me to a full exploration of different types of movement. And, the nail in the coffin by way of a covid-cancelled first marathon attempt, led me into a discovery of pilates. This low-impact yet sweat-inducing exercise entirely redefined my relationship with exercise. For the first time in my life, I craved movement.
It was my first taste of a sustainable form of fitness that kept me coming back for more. But my takeaway is not that everyone should do pilates. Pilates won’t be for everybody, and that is exactly the point. I have friends who are completely enamoured by running. I salute them! But it’s just not for me. Or, more aptly, not for me right now.
Movement or exercise shouldn’t feel like a chore or punishment. I firmly believe this. Of course, some days will be more challenging to get to that class or lace up those trainers. But overall, I know it’s possible to fall in love with movement, and here are my top tips how…
DON’T SETTLE
If we watch a movie we despise, we don’t sit down next weekend to re-watch it in the hope that it’ll come alive for us second time. You move on. If you haven’t found a form of movement you genuinely look forward to (most of the time!), I would encourage you to keep looking. For me, it’s pilates, for you it might be interval training, hiking, yoga… and so on.
DITCH THE END GOAL
For so many years I stuck with running because I was adamant that it was the way to a leaner, athletic physique. I was chasing the end, aesthetic result and completely bypassing the way that this form of exercise felt for my body. For once, ditch the end goal and focus on the process of discovering movement again.
EMBRACE SEASONALITY
I never knock high-impact forms of movement like HITT training. During my earlier years this type of fitness served me incredibly well. It helped me fall in love with exercise and created relief amongst a stressful job. In my current season, HITT training doesn’t serve me. In another five years’ time, perhaps it will again. Understand that some forms of movement may serve you during different seasons in your life and in other times they may not stack up.
STACK AND STACK AGAIN
When trying to build consistency in your movement – whatever it is – layer and attach a new movement form onto a formed habit you love. This is especially helpful on those days you find more challenging than others. For example: as soon as my morning coffee is made (a habit I love), it’s a trigger to get out the door and on my walk to move my body.
