Default to movement

Maybe this is just me dealing with my own personal brand of anxiety, but do you ever have those days where the spiral just wont go away?

You can’t stop fixating on your body or the tone that your husband used with you this morning when he just woke up. You’re overwhelmed with work or worried about having to pay the bills this month.

I tend to lean more into being a worrier. In the moment I can tell myself that worrying isn’t going to make the problem go away, but sometimes our brains are just too powerful to override.

“the number one way that we can combat feeling ‘off’ is by moving our body.”

And on those days where you feel like you have no control over your thoughts and emotions, I want you to remember one thing:

Default to movement.

Default to movement is a phrase that I believe everyone could benefit from—anxious or not.

It says that regardless of how you feel in this moment, let your first action be moving your body.

Anxious? Do a HIIT workout.

Writers block? Take a walk in nature.

Jet lagged? Go for a jog.

Depressed? Call a friend and try a pilates class together.

Exhausted? Find a stretching routine to do.

When our body is feeling off—the number one way that we can combat that is by moving our body. Sometimes that will look like doing a super intense workout that releases tons of endorphins. Sometimes that will look like loosening your body with a walk or stretch to get out of your head.

And on those days where you feel like you have no control over your thoughts and emotions, I want you to remember one thing: Default to movement.

There is not a single time in my entire life that I’ve defaulted to movement and regretted it. It’s the closest thing to a fitness hack that we have.

And just remember, defaulting to movement doesn’t need to be a full hour workout. It can be just five minutes of you moving your body to get the blood flowing. If we have too challenging of parameters on that movement, it loses it’s stress management appeal.

Next time your body is feeling off? Remember to default to movement.

Your body and mind will thank you for it every single time.