IIf the benefits of physical activity were distilled into a pill, everyone would take it. Research shows that movement improves nearly every aspect of health, increasing sleep, physical fitness, and mental health, and reducing the risk of chronic disease and premature death. What's more, research shows that exercise can have positive effects even when done for very short periods of time without the need for equipment or fancy gym memberships.
Still, most people don't get enough exercise. Data released in 2023 shows that fewer than one-third of American adults consume the government-recommended amount of physical activity in their free time. That means I do at least 20 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise (like a brisk walk) per day, plus a few rounds of muscle exercise. – Weekly strength sessions (such as resistance training).
Why is it so hard to get people to do things that are good for them and easy for them to do? More than half of U.S. adults have some type of chronic illness, and with more than half of adults in the United States living with some kind of chronic illness, they are faced with physical limitations and health challenges. The issue is certainly a factor for many. Modern life also has many responsibilities. Long, sedentary work hours and infrastructure often make it easier to jump in the car than walk or bike somewhere.And research has long shown that People who earn less are less likely to exercise than wealthy peoplein part because they may live in relatively dangerous areas. Lack of space for safe and comfortable activities.
But research suggests there's another disorder that affects us all. It's just that our brains don't want to exercise.
wired to be sedentary
For most of human existence, people needed to be physically active to perform the basic functions of life, such as finding and growing food. Humans have evolved to tolerate high levels of activity, but we've also evolved to gravitate toward rest when possible and conserve energy for times when movement is needed or when we're having fun, says Humans. explains evolutionary biologist and author Daniel Lieberman. Practice: Why it's healthy and rewarding for us to never evolve.
In other words, hunter-gatherers didn't jog to burn off extra calories. From an evolutionary perspective, “that would be foolish,” Lieberman said. “You're wasting your energy on things that don't bring you any benefit.”
As a society, we move less in our daily lives, but Lieberman says our evolutionary instinct to conserve energy remains. “That reluctance, that passivity, that voice that says, “I don't want to do it,'' [exercise]’ is completely normal and natural,” he says.
Mathieu Bowantier, a physical activity researcher and associate professor at the University of Ottawa, demonstrated this phenomenon: 2018 survey. People can now control their digital avatars while connected to brain activity monitors. They were told to move their avatars away from images of sedentary behavior displayed on a computer screen and toward images of physical activity. Bowantier and his colleagues found that it takes more brain power to avoid sedentary behavior, reflecting the “automatic tendency to choose relaxation over movement.” ”, he says.
This conclusion appears repeatedly in research. According to researchFor example, people consistently choose to take escalators rather than stairs. That natural instinct is not inherently bad. Modern life offers so many opportunities to succumb to the desire for rest that “we have reached an extreme state that is no longer beneficial to health,” says Bowantier.
According to Jackie Hargreaves, senior lecturer in sport and exercise psychology at Leeds Beckett University in the UK, many people unconsciously harbor negative feelings about exercise, dating back to childhood. It is said that there is. Hargreaves said being embarrassed in gym class or having an unpleasant experience on a youth sports team can keep people from exercising as adults.
Sometimes it's a matter of confidence. According to research People who think of themselves as competent exercisers are more likely to stick to a regular routine, while people who think the opposite may struggle to find consistent motivation, say behavioral scientists. Stephanie Williams says. british organization It is about putting health research into practice.
How to trick your brain into exercising
Sam Zizzi, an exercise psychologist at West Virginia University, says feeling good about your abilities is critical to finding motivation to exercise. He recommends starting small, perhaps starting with just a few minutes of walking a day, and building on that progress over time. Williams says watching your peers do what you want to do can help you realize that you can achieve it, too, especially if you're of the same age, gender, or health status.
Lieberman added that a counterintuitive way to build confidence is to simply recognize how your brain fails you. “People say people who don't like exercise are lazy or there's something wrong with them, but in reality, people who exercise purely for fitness are working against their natural instincts.” says Lieberman. Replacing guilt and shame with self-compassion and an understanding of how the human brain works can go a long way.
So is reframing what is important as an exercise. He doesn't have to spend an hour training with weights at the gym. Numerous studies have shown that even just a few minutes a day dancing in the kitchen or weeding the garden can have positive effects on your mind and body. “It's not about going out and playing active, competitive sports,” Hargreaves said. “It’s about moving,” and finding ways to actually enjoy getting around.
Finally, Zizzi recommends having a “dual purpose” in your exercise. For example, plan a bike ride with friends so your workout doubles as a social occasion, or turn an existing work meeting into a walk-and-talk. Gizzi says that by combining exercise with something you already want or need to do, it's easier to ignore the part of your brain that tells you you're better off sitting on the couch.
