Restorative Exercise Analysis

When I first started studying Restorative Exercise I had no idea I would end up getting rid of all of our furniture, throwing away all of my designer shoes, ditching a desk for a standing work station, and getting rid of pillows. I would have thought those were pretty extreme moves, and to most people they are. But as I learned more and more about natural movement and how much our health depends on it- I began making the changes- a chair here, a desk there. The more I learned about the damage to my body- the more I started going rogue. The shoes and squatting were not so challenging - my feel felt awful in rigid shoes, my neck felt better the minute I ditched the pillows, and my body loved the benefits of standing over sitting. But throwing
away all the beds? I wasn’t ready for that and neither was my husband or 3 girls. The girls all shared a room and the one thing they didn’t need to share was their bed. It was their sacred safe spot and far be it from me to be the evil natural movement witch and throw it away. Until the day that I did.

The opportunity came up to relocate and I thought - well, let’s cut the moving costs and just get rid of everything. So here I am - mother of three, movement specialist, schlepper of kids, buyer of groceries, cooker of dinners and no furniture haver and proud. And maybe natural movement witch too. The girls were not happy to say the least when we unpacked in the new apt and there was no sight of their beloved beds. But after making three super cozy sleeping nooks on the ground covered in 100,000 stuffed animals - they kind of got over it. And I haven’t heard another peep about it. Don’t you love how present kids are?

Now for those of you considering a more minimalist lifestyle and wanting to dive in, here are my recommendations. Go slow and give yourself (and your family) time to adjust. Just like anything (crash diets, extreme exercise) if you go too hard too fast, you may end up regretting it and burning out a really cool option for yourself.

Here are the Top 5 benefits of going furniture free and one juicy caveat.

1. You are instantly moving more. Sounds pretty simple but it’s actually a radical idea. Moving more means making your body do what it’s supposed to - what a novel idea. You will be exercising while you are just living life all day long as opposed to 20 minutes a day in a gym which does more harm than good.

2. Your body feels better. Shocking I know, as most people when they walk into a room the first thing they do is look for a place to sit. Having to use the floor gives your body the gravity resisting that it desires and you will be surprised to see all the different positions and variations you come up with (never mind your kids).

3. Your house is super clean. Simplistic right? No furniture equals nothing to clean but the floor. Now I don’t know about you, but in my book, anything that removes the need for cleaning deserves some consideration. A solid sweep twice a day and we are sparkly and dust free (dust loves furniture- right?).

4.
Your posture is better immediately (which also means you are using your abs, way more). You may not get a ripped six pack from sitting on the floor, but it’s pretty hard to stay slumped over. With nothing giving you the “back support” that sofa’s and chairs do, your body has to work to hold itself up, hello, that is exactly what is was designed to do!

5. Takes you out of the constant 90 degree angle. If you work at a desk, or spend time sitting for more than thirty minutes at a time there is no question that your hips and knees are at a constant 90 degree angle. Why is this bad? You aren’t giving your body the range of motion it needs to be healthy and your muscles are staying in that shortened position for hundreds of hours per month. And not having furniture forces you to get creative and lowers the wear and tear from all that hip and knee flexion.

Now for my warning. It’s not easy going furniture free, I am not going to stand on my soapbox and tell you that it’s like walking on pillows. The reality is it can be tough. We have been sleeping 8 hours a night on a hard floor and the first week was pretty uncomfortable, week two was better and week three was back to normal. It’s not easy but it’s worth it, returning your body to it’s natural state and allowing yourself the possibility of aging super gracefully and avoiding injuries by building strength is 100% worth it. As for the kids, occasionally ask why we aren’t like everybody else, which at this point in my parenting journey I consider a bit of a badge of
honor.