People typically go to the gym to either get fit, lose weight, or both. These are also the most popular reasons people hire a trainer. In previous posts, I’ve talked about how more fitness and nutrition information is rarely the solution that will help people with these goals. What will help is a consistent daily movement.
In my book, The Fitness Curveball, I explain how the solution starts with Mindset and then moves to building key habits in your life that set you up for success.
One of those habits is daily movement
No, I’m not talking about going to the gym. It’s much more simple than that. The gym is useless if your body isn’t ready for what you ask it to do in the gym (or in life). Properly preparing your body goes far beyond a proper warm-up before exercising.
Here’s a car example. You can warm up your car all you want, but if you are driving a 30-year-old neglected bucket of rust, it probably won’t perform well and has a greater chance of breaking down when you try to race it on a rally course.
Now, before you think it’s age that makes a difference, a 30-year-old car that’s been well taken care of and is properly tuned will perform great in a race.
Most people understand this example concerning cars but often fail to see the connection with their health, fitness, and well-being. Yet, this is what people do every day when they go to the gym.
They’ve been neglecting their body for years, and keep trying to get it to perform at the gym or in a fitness class.
You see, success in the gym starts WAY before you ever think of going to a gym
It starts with the mindset with which you approach your goals, the performance habits you put in place, and the consistency with which you practice those habits.
One simple habit can be the catalyst for transformative change in all areas of life
There are many positive habits you can have, and there are also many ways to incorporate movement as a positive habit.
However, I like to keep it as simple as possible for my clients. A favorite mantra of mine is that “health and fitness are much simpler than you think”.
One of the most effective daily habits I’ve found is the “Mobility Minute” movement
It’s one of the “gateway” habits that have an immediate impact on moods, energy, mindset, and other daily actions. The first success habit I work with clients to build is a solid evening and morning routine.
While there are many components that we can potentially add within each of these routines, starting with just 1 minute in the morning, and 1 minute in the evening is so simple and easy that anyone can do it.
The bar for success is set extremely low, but the interesting thing is that this simple 1-minute routine done in the morning and evening has massively outsized benefits, and leads to the incorporation of many other success habits.
It’s as simple as this…
Wake up, stand up (with good posture), breathe deeply, starting at your head, and move every joint in your body through its full range of motion for a few seconds.
Here’s a quick sample of what to do:
- Head: Turn side-side, tilt up-down-sides, glide forward-backwards
- Shoulders/Scapula: Fwd-Bwd-Up-Down-Circles, Arms to overhead from sides & front
- Spine: Rotate & Tilt left-right, flex-extend
- Hips: Rotate In-Out, Flex-Extend, Adduct-Abduct (In-Out)
- Knees/Elbows: Flex-Extend
- Ankles/Wrists: Flex-Extend, Adduct-Abduct (In-Out), Rotate
- Fingers/Toes: Flex-Extend, Adduct-Abduct (In-Out)
This isn’t as complicated as you may think and can take less than a minute (or more if you desire). Some moves such as a “breathing squat” will get most of the above items in one simple move.
Here are a few of the benefits of this daily “Mobility Minute” movement routine
- Feel better (mood, energy)
- Improve blood flow to the body and brain
- Relax/Energize (depending on tempo, intention, etc.)
- Practice mindfulness
- Greater self-awareness
- Build habits
- Build confidence
- Improve balance, coordination, and physical awareness
- Identify any aches, pains, restrictions, etc.
- Makes it more likely that other positive habits will be added and followed
Pretty darn good for 60 seconds. All it takes is to make the time to do it…properly…and consistently. I’ve yet to meet a person who wasn’t willing to invest 2 minutes a day in their personal performance.
Here’s my challenge to you…
- Starting today, make a promise to yourself to do the “Mobility Minute” immediately before you crawl into bed, and again as soon as you get out of bed in the morning.
- Do this consistently for 2 weeks
- Message me to let me know if you are doing it, and what benefits you’ve seen.
That’s only 28 minutes in the next 2 weeks…think you can handle it?
Comments
I love this “mobility minute” tip. Starting small is a great way to prepare your mind and body to finally hit the gym. Baby steps! Thanks for sharing!
Exactly Ginger! Thanks for the feedback!
Body movements with exercise is essential to having a healthy body and good physique.
Yes, they are! Thanks for commenting!
Mobility minute, I definitely can manage this! Sounds like a good way to start the day.
Fantastic way to start your day. Try it out and let me know what you think.
Always love to keep moving, it’s my habit now, and every day I have to do it. I’ve been doing it for a long time and it feels great.
Glad to hear that Fransic. Keep doing it, and keep reading our posts!
This is such a great post and it’s so important for us all to keep in mind that moving daily is a great way to stay healthy and assist with our mobility. I have started walking but I know I need to move way more, starting small is a great way to set my mind and my goals.
We are glad you found our post helpful. Thanks for commenting!
Hhhmmm….challenge accepted from me! Let’s try that for a change from strict jogging and press ups.
Dont stop with your usual routine. Just add “mobility minutes” to your daily habits.
I’m going to start doing this. A minute a day to just move a little and get the blood flowing sounds good to me.
Sounds great if you ask me!
This is great, it’s so simple I just did it while reading your post am gonna try to do it every day
Simple yet very effective.
This article on daily movement as an essential habit is incredibly motivating! I love how it emphasizes the importance of incorporating physical activity into our everyday lives, not just as a workout but as a natural part of our routine.
Well said Catherine!Creating an everyday habit out of movement is the goal.
I do try to make sure that I move as much as possible on a daily basis. This is such a great reminder for us all There are so many great health benefits for those that make movement a daily habit. The best are that it makes you feel better both mentally and physically.
Yes, we should always think about the benefits when doing something.
I am trying to be more active and looking for good, easy morning exercises to start my day. Mobility Minute looks like a good one to try. Thank you for the suggestion.
Try it out and let me know what you think!
Great tips and also it’s very important to keep moving! While we exercise “once in a while” it’s important to keep it as a habit and do it regularly. Thanks for sharing this!
Thank you for reading and commenting!