Move

One of the most important and instinctive functions we can do as humans is move.

When it’s a case for survival, moving is necessary. We move forward from mistakes. We must move to exercise. We must move ahead in our careers. When we’re in an idol state our limbs want to fidget (move). We move for better perspectives.

We aren’t meant to be stagnant.

We are not designed for a sedentary lifestyle. We have strong, endurance-oriented legs that are meant for walking, hiking, rucking, and running.

When in doubt, move. If it’s a short drive down the street decide to walk instead. Take the stairs, don’t fret over repeatedly moving from point A to point B, and find other areas in life and work for opportunities to move.

There is a term in exercise science (specifically the NIH) that sums up daily movement quite well: NEAT.

Non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT) is the energy expended for everything we do that is not sleeping, eating, or sports-like exercise. It ranges from the energy expended walking to work, typing, performing yard work, undertaking agricultural tasks, and fidgeting.

Source

For us workout types, I call it “The Other 23.” If you workout for an hour per day, ask yourself what you’re doing in those other 23 hours. Ideally, it should be a combination of quality sleep, focus/concentration at work, and the rest being NEAT. I’m talking about stuff like playing with your kids, taking leisurely walks, house/yard work, and anything you can do at work to increase your NEAT levels.

Get a standing desk, take the stairs, take a walk break every 30 or 60 minutes, have walking meetings, and avoid sitting for long periods.

Whatever you do, keep moving.

Our default activity in life is to move.