Be a writer who moves, a mover who writes.

colourfulmovement

You know how they say sitting is worse than smoking?

In lockdown, I’ve spent the past months mostly sitting down. Sure, I sit in different ways and places: on the floor, in hard chairs, on the soft couch. I move around, but I don’t go out and about like I used to. I know my movement has lost… variety.

Now my body is saying, this is not good. It has its own language.

An arresting pain shoots down my right hip and leg. My osteopath has instructed me to stop sitting. To go for lots of long, long walks.

After so many months living through this pandemic, you might also be hearing new messages from your body. It makes sense. Along with everything else, our way of living in the world — and I mean, moving through it, physically — has likely changed, too.

So I installed a standing desk in my office. (One with a hand crank and not a button: the more inconvenient movement the desk requires from me to use it, the better!) I also purchased a pilates ball — a big white pearl that is pleasantly bouncy. I’m happy to say that using both, alternating with floor sprawls and long walks, has helped ease the pain.

And I’m sharing an older post with you today, because it’s even more relevant today than when I first shared it.

I read Katy Bowman’s book, Move Your DNA, on my osteopath’s recommendation. (Katy Bowman has since published another excellent title, Movement Matters — a collection of essays on the nature of movement that are a joy to read, and more relatable for people who don’t know the details about anatomy and biomechanics.)

Learning about what Katy calls “nutritious movement” inspired me. I got it: sitting for hours every day is no good. But there’s more to it than that.

A variety of movement is important to a healthy body, just like food.

As I read each chapter, I only wanted to move more and more, and sit at my desk less and less.

Okay, but… if I’m supposed to move and crouch and walk all the time, like my hunter-gatherer ancestors (instinctually, this feels healthier and better), how can I also write?

How does Katy Bowman write her books? I mean, she’s an author, too. She has a website. She’s got to have a laptop. And a chair, right?

I asked Katy if she would give us advice. Show writers how to write books without ignoring our bodies. She said yes.

Keep reading to learn how to make your writing life more dynamic.

 


A Writer Who Moves, A Mover Who Writes

I write a lot, mostly about movement — how to move, and more specifically, the biological need for movement — nutritious movement. Nutritious Movement describes not just the movements we need, but also the frequency at which we need them — not for flat abs and a well-toned butt, but for our basic biological systems to function well.


books

(These books have all been published since 2011. I also write for my website, have a podcast, and an entire business that is not being a writer. I have two kids. I credit my ability to pull all this off entirely to my commitment to a movement-based lifestyle.)


I’ve written nine books and hundreds of blog posts about movement since 2011. I choked on my coffee when my editor pulled five years of writings from my professional Facebook page and found they amounted to over a hundred thousand words.

One hundred thousand words, on Facebook.

While I would never claim to be a good writer, I am certainly a very productive writer, and a successful one in terms of readers reached; my work has motivated hundreds of thousands of people to move. I believe this is because, whether good or not, my writing is authentic. I’m a so-called expert in movement science — our need for movement — and I believe my message is heard (and my posts are read, and my books are sold) because I haven’t decreased my own frequency of movement in order to write about the human need for it.

Culturally, we still hold the belief “Nature" that the relationship between time and productivity is direct. As if writing consists solely of the output of words, your typing speed being the indicator of how long it would take to write a thousand-word word article (ten minutes) or a novel (one week). But of course, time spent coming up with ideas and themes, and organizing and reorganizing these threads in our minds, is also “writing.” The trouble is, we’ve come to see sitting at a desk as an integral part of the writing process. We imagine the mulling, the idea-forming, the organizing, the process — the creativity — can occur only when the butt-chair circuit is closed. I (and researchers) have found the opposite to be true: movement can be a conduit for creativity.

The chair, so intertwined with our humanness these days, has become, in our minds, tangled with our writing process. And so we sit and sit and sit, diligently attending to our process, when what we think of as our process is probably less tied to sitting, and more related to the passage of time. Sometimes you just have to wait for the next idea. While the waiting seems to be, at least for me, part of the writing process, sitting still while waiting doesn’t have to be.

What if you could give your body the movement it desperately needs, and also work diligently? What if you started moving while you were waiting for inspiration, for the next idea, for the next paragraph?

I’ve found that I’m not just passing time creatively when I’m moving, Walking but that movement actively helps my work in two ways. Like you, I have many other obligations beyond writing. I have work and household errands, and a family to tend to. And so I’ve learned to accomplish some of my mindless tasks with movement — a walk to the post office to mail out review copies of my books, for example — during my work/writing time. The break from my screen coupled with movement-based tasks gives me both time to format great ideas and more time to write them down once they’re flowing.

But not only can you do much of the “background” work of writing while doing big movements away from the desk, you can also move while you write. I write every day, often for hours, and I know I’ll suffer some biological consequence if I keep still during my writing time. So I move in subtle ways that don’t require me to move away from my keyboard.


Here's what an hour of me writing dynamically looks like (sped up because who has an hour to watch someone else work?)


This kind of movement might be confusing at first, especially when our only understanding of movement is exercise. In fact, most of my books challenge that very idea — that exercise is the only way that we, a sedentary culture, can nourish our bodies. The cool thing about cells is that every motion counts as a movement to them — even changing up your body’s geometry. The physical act of writing requires you to stay in front of your computer (or your paper and pen, or crayon and napkin), but it does not require that you stop moving, stop changing your position, or stop nourishing your body.

The easiest way to start is to swap your sitting desk for a standing one and start taking a ten-minute walk every hour. But these changes aren’t really enough to get writers out of the “sedentary job” category. Changes in body geometry need to be frequent, and the shape that you are assuming while you write needs to vary more than the two positions of sitting and standing.

While I’m engaged in actually writing (vs. mulling, planning, interviewing, meeting with other people, wondering, or procrastinating, all of which I do while walking or climbing trees with my kids or otherwise being active), I cycle between a standing and floor-sitting desk. My standing work station is littered with massage balls, textured mats, and devices specifically designed to keep your body active while standing there.

My floor-sitting desk allows me various geometrical Workstation options: sitting cross-legged, folded-legged, with legs spread into a V, and in many more ways. I’ll haul my laptop around the house and crouch near a window, lie on my stomach, and sometimes just forward bend while working. I take frequent eye breaks to look into the distance. I squat at my desk for a while, then stand at the counter.

I kneel outside for a bit, then sit down. Then I take a ten-minute walk, or sometimes even a two-minute one, which comes so much easier because I’m not forcing stiff and weakened legs out of a chair once an hour — I’ve been moving the entire time.

If you want to be a mover who writes, Roanor a writer who moves, or even just a mover, you must become more dynamic, and live a more dynamic life.

Break your body free from that one particular configuration, that exclusive shape of your body you’ve come to associate with “writing.”

Limber and strengthen your muscles and joints so they can be used in many different ways — all while you’re writing.

Organize your day (and mind) so that lulls in actual writing — the space you hold for thinking and planning — are filled with movement.

Learn to “stack your life” so that your movement is not for movement’s sake, but accomplishes other tasks essential to your life (grocery shopping, going to the post office, visiting friends, getting coffee), leaving you with more time to write…and move.



Katy Bowman

Bestselling author, speaker, and a leader in the Movement movement, biomechanist Katy Bowman is changing the way we move and think about our need for movement. Her nine books, including the groundbreaking Move Your DNA and Movement Matters, have been translated into more than a dozen languages worldwide. Bowman teaches movement globally and speaks about sedentarism and movement ecology to academic and scientific audiences. Her work has been featured in diverse media such as the Today Show, CBC Radio One, the Seattle Times, and Good Housekeeping.

One of Maria Shriver’s “Architects of Change” and America Walks “Woman of the Walking Movement,” she has worked with companies like Patagonia, Nike, and Google as well as a wide range of non-profits and other communities, sharing her “move more, move more body parts, move more for what you need” message. Her movement education company, Nutritious Movement, is based in Washington State, where she lives with her family. Find corrective movement programs at nutritiousmovement.com.


Photo credit: Ahmad Odeh on Unsplash.


Think of yourself as a verb. It's freeing.
Am I living out my novel?

22 comments

Lisa
 

Fantastic article! Thank you for lending your nutritious movement thoughts and practical tips to a writing life. It's so helpful to move away from the idea that writing is about doing time in the chair.
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Laurie Elmquist
 

I really enjoy receiving your posts Sarah. Thanks so much for Katy's article about moving around. I'd like to get one of these desks that allows me to sit on the floor. I've always loved to sit on the floor. I'm not sure why, but it brings out the kid and the creativity in me.
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Valorie Grace Hallinan
 

I always love your email/blog posts. I was excited about this topic as I do need to move more throughout my day, but when I visited Katy's site I was overwhelmed by it and not sure where to begin. I like the video of her working for an hour, but I can't figure out where one goes to actually learn the techniques without making a significant time and money commitment. And there is a LOT of explanatory text on her blog. So she is tantalizing and obviously an expert. I suppose I could start with one of her books.
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Anna
 

This is so appropriate for me right now. I have been experiencing some excruciating back pain on and off in the last two months because of sitting at a computer or with a laptop all day. I know I don't move enough, yet I always forget to do it. I feel like my body is punishing me. Thanks Sarah for this post, and thanks Katy for writing it. I will be going over to Katy's blog to do some reading.
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Karen
 

You gave some wonderful advice. I have MS so moving can be quite difficult some days, however there are things that you mentioned that I recently started doing like taking short walking breaks, I recently went to a park close by and enjoyed the fresh air and short walks. I enjoyed your points, thank you.
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Wendy Woods
 

What an amazingly insightful article. Thank-you for opening my eyes to this way of working Sarah. I have all of a sudden become very aware that I've been sitting in the same chair at a coffee shop for the last two hours and my hip-flexers are feeling the effects.
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Karna
 

This is fantastic and so validating. For years as a teacher, I would set a time for thirty minutes. Thirty minutes to grade papers while sitting. (But I rarely sit still.) Then, I would get up to do 10-15 minutes of a task. Food for thought: Far too many times, kids are given the wrong impression about movement. Teachers and parents would rather have kids diagnosed as ADHD and put on meds rather than see them moving constantly.
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Kimberley McGill
 

Thank you so much for this! I've ordered her book and today I am changing some of the dynamics of my writing habits.
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Diane
 

I'm a writer and accountant, so this is a huge issue for me. Now, I'm sitting on an exercise ball. I get up to throw something in the garbage, I walk when I need to talk on the phone and I usually get up once every hour to do a household small chore. (I work from home.)
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Sheri
 

Wow! Where were you the year I wrote my book?? Honestly, I got my book contract only to come out of that year of writing with the worst back issues I have ever had. I'm now writing book number two, so I will be purchasing your book to keep the blood flowing and the spasms at bay. It's funny, as an artist, I create with a high table. I've done that for years. I will be moving my laptop into the studio and putting it on that table today! Thanks so much.
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Jennifer
 

The physiotherapist in me geeked out over this one - thank you! Butt-to-chair is a great prescription for disciplined writing but a prescription that can often really hurt and cause all sorts of really painful muscle imbalances. I wonder too about muscle memory and all of the intuitive, subconscious stuff that you can get flowing while moving & 'writing'.
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wendy mcleod macknight
 

There are no coincidences! I have been in agony and just started a regime of getting up every 45 minutes, walking, yoga. Such great information and will definitely follow up on this!
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Amber
 

I'm curious, have either of you ever tried any of the talk to text programs? If so, I would love to hear your thoughts on them. They seem like an great idea and a way to unhook the tether of a desk, but are they practical?
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Helen McLaughlin
 

Holy wow! The timing of this post couldn't be better. As a writer and coach, I'm forever struggling with the butt-chair circuit versus the power-walking circuit (we're full-time RVers, too, so all that driving has to be tempered with movement, as well). Maybe it's strange to say this, but I feel as though Katy just gave me permission—permission to revise my definition of 'writing time' (because, yes, so much of it is of the stationary, "background" variety, just as Katy says) to better suit my body's needs. I've just downloaded a whole slew of Katy's podcast episodes and will be listening to them throughout the day, while doing everything from walking the RV park to cleaning up the lunch dishes (and performing accompanying stretches and leg rotations ;-) ! Many thanks to the both of you, Sarah and Katy. xx
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Lauren Ruiz
 

I am an editor as well as a writer, so my days often revolve around the computer. I already do some of the movements I saw in that great video, but I see I can learn a lot more from those books. Thank you.
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wendy mcleod macknight
 

I'm with Amber - would love to hear if anyone has liked any of the talk to text programs!
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Lisa Z
 

Have you tried a coffee table or even an ottoman? That's all I use for a floor desk, and Katy has just sawed off the legs of regular tables for hers. It works great and looks good!
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Lisa Z
 

Thank you for writing this! As a proofreader and copyeditor a few hours a day from home, I have been doing this since late last winter. (I'm also a writer and huge reader, so sitting has been a default way of life for too long.) I was having so many issues with sitting all day and with my feet, and then I found Katy. Now I'm a huge Katy fan too, and love combining what I do with the natural movement way of living. It's so great to see another writer doing the same thing!
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Katy B.
 

Hi Valorie! I know, I have put out so much information it is very tough to see easily how to begin. I think you could begin with either the book Don't Just Sit There as it's directly explaining how to make your work space more dynamic. If you like short (20-30 minute) movement sessions, the Alignment Snacks are a great way to learn about alignment and movement and all-day positioning. There's a free one on the site for the neck and shoulders. Maybe the book and that and see how it goes? Thanks for your comment! -KAB
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Pam
 

This is a great post, thanks for sharing this Sarah. I remember reading something from Margaret Atwood talking about the peril of not taking care of your back as a writer. I can't wait to check out Katy's program.
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Linda Sand
 

My favorite "show and tell" was a blog post where Katy and her 2-year old daughter were sitting and playing. Katy kept changing positions. Pretty soon her daughter cycled through those same movements. Then the daughter made new ones and Katy repeated them. It helped me understand her frequent movement technique. I wish I could figure out which post that was but maybe Katy can tell us.
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Writing and moving | Philip Brewer
 

[…] I still struggle with the tension between time spent moving and time spent writing, even as I come to recognize that the tension may not even exist. So I love this post by Katy Bowman, on being A Writer Who Moves, A Mover Who Writes. […]
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