5 Simple Ways to Start Moving More (When You Don’t Know Where to Start)

Small, science-backed habits that build momentum, confidence, and real health

Despite what you might have been told (or sold), getting started with your movement journey doesn’t require a perfect plan, a gym membership, or an hour of free time. You don’t need a product or service. You don’t need to have it all figured out.

Truthfully, most people don’t struggle because they don’t know what to do. They struggle because they overthink where to start.

I’m here to tell you, you don’t need more complexity. You need a few simple actions you can repeat.

These are the ones I come back to again and again.

1. More Walks, More Steps, More Often

One of the most effective movement habits is right in front of us. So simple that it often gets overlooked as not being a real activity. I’m talking about walks.

Walks are the gateway habit. Morning walks, post-meal walks, nature walks, boredom walks, walking meetings. They’re all great.

And no, you don’t have to start with 10,000 steps. Start with something realistic for you. I usually recommend adding 1,000 extra steps or about 10-15 minutes of walking. That’s it.

Research consistently shows that even small increases in daily steps are linked to better cardiovascular health, improved blood sugar control, and lower risk of chronic disease.

More importantly, it builds identity. It reinforces that you are someone who moves. The more you walk, the more you want to walk.

Start small. Stack it daily. Walk after dinner, on your lunch break, during a meeting, or after work.

A long-term study found that people who took at least 7,000 steps per day had a 50–70% lower risk of early death than those who didn’t. That’s massive.

Keep it simple, repeatable, and sustainable.

2. Move More Throughout the Day (Not Just in One Workout)

Many people think they have an “I don’t exercise enough” problem when really they have an “I’m too sedentary” problem. There’s a difference.

We don’t just need more exercise. We need less inactivity.

Long, uninterrupted periods of sitting are linked to increased risk of cardiovascular disease, metabolic dysfunction, and low energy. Even if you exercise, staying still for hours at a time can work against you.

The good news is the fix isn’t complicated.

Break up your sitting. Stand up. Move for a few minutes. Reset your body.

You might have heard of “exercise snacks.” The only snack I actually encourage binging on.

These are small, scattered bursts of movement throughout your day. A few squats while your coffee brews. Calf raises while brushing your teeth. A quick walk between meetings. A plank during a break.

Popularized by voices like Andrew Huberman and Andy Galpin, these micro-movements improve circulation, boost energy, sharpen focus, and help regulate blood sugar.

They also lower the barrier to entry. No gym. No equipment. No schedule. No friction.

Set a simple rule. Every 30 to 60 minutes, stand up and move. Take calls on your feet. Stretch. Walk. Shift positions.

Movement isn’t something you do once a day. It’s something you layer into your life.

Small bursts. Repeated often. That’s where the real impact happens.

3. Start Small. Use the Minimal Effective Dose to Stay Consistent

If you want to move more, do yourself a favor and start small. I can’t tell you how many people start too big and burn out or get discouraged because they can’t keep up.

The full workout. The ideal routine. The, dare I say it, “optimized” program. Those mean nothing if you don’t do it consistently. And guess what? Life won’t always allow for optimal, so most people end up defaulting to nothing.

This is where a crucial shift comes into play. From all or nothing to always something.

Anchor with a minimum. Or, as we call it in exercise science, the minimal effective dose.

The Minimal Effective Dose (MED) is the smallest amount of effort needed to produce a meaningful result. This does not mean doing the least. It means doing just enough to create progress without burnout, injury, or decision fatigue.

Most people assume transformation requires going all in, all the time. But research and real life show otherwise. One study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found that just 11 minutes of moderate exercise per day can reduce the risk of premature death. That’s less time than a lunch break or a session of scrolling your phone.

When you remove the pressure to do more, you give yourself permission to focus on what matters: showing up, moving well, and being consistent.

Confidence doesn’t come from hitting a huge goal. It comes from showing up consistently. Five minutes. A short walk. A quick circuit. Something you can repeat without friction.

Lock in the habit of doing something. Then build from there.

Because often, the smallest step is the one that keeps everything moving forward.

4. Listen to Your Body

Your body is always communicating. Tightness, fatigue, soreness, pain, low energy, brain fog, and poor sleep. These are all signals. Yet sometimes we treat them as problems to ignore.

As Dr. Kelly Starrett says, “Pain is a request for change.”

Listening to your body doesn’t mean quitting every time something feels off. It means staying curious. Do you need to modify the movement, lower the intensity, adjust the volume, or swap in recovery work?

The goal is to keep showing up, not blindly pushing through. Sometimes, grit is not the problem. The inability to pivot is.

Studies show that individuals who adjust training based on how they feel have better adherence and fewer injuries over time.

Pause. Reflect. Adjust.

That’s how you stay in the game. That’s how you make availability your best ability.

5. Let Movement Be Simple

Despite what you might believe, movement isn’t reserved for athletes, gym-goers, or people following a structured plan. As I’ve mentioned, you don’t need fancy gear, a strict routine, or even a specific reason to get started.

Here’s what you don’t need:

You don’t need to be “in shape.”

You don’t need a gym.
You don’t need an hour-long workout.
You don’t need to sweat buckets.
You don’t need a coach or certification.
You don’t need to wait for the perfect time.
You don’t need a goal.
You don’t even need to call it exercise.

Movement doesn’t have to be loud or flashy to count. In fact, most of the best movement isn’t. It’s quiet, uncomplicated, and ordinary.

It’s walking to clear your head. Playing with your kids on the floor. Dancing in the kitchen. Stretching before bed. Standing while you work. Doing five squats during a break.

We often overcomplicate health. We think if we’re not doing it “right,” it’s not worth doing at all.

But that thinking keeps people stuck.

The truth is, movement meets you where you are. And the only wrong way to move… is not to.

Final Thought

There are 1,440 minutes in a day and 10,080 in a week.

If you exercise for 30 minutes a day, five days a week, that’s just 150 minutes total. About 1 percent of your entire week.

1 percent.

That’s the minimum recommendation from the CDC. And yet only 1 in 4 Americans hits that target.

We have a movement crisis on our hands. Not because people don’t care, but because life gets busy and we stop noticing how little we move.

Let this be your sign. Your call to action.

Movement doesn’t need to be extreme to be effective. It just needs to be consistent.

Start with one of these. Or a couple. Just start.

Build momentum. Stack wins. Let it compound.

Because when it comes to health, the smallest actions, done consistently, are the ones that change everything.

If you enjoyed this article, you will LOVE my new book Move, Thrive, and Come Alive. This article draws on a few ideas from the book. It comes out June 2nd and is available for pre-order! Thank you for your support, and share this article or the book with someone who might need an extra kick to get moving or move more.