Peter Ross Murray | Photographer

You've been told you need to suffer through exercise for it to count. Here's what the science actually says: consistency matters more than intensity.

A 47-year longitudinal study showed that adults who became active later in life improved their physical capacity by 5 to 10 percent. The researchers didn't specify which type of exercise. They specified that people moved regularly.

The best exercise program is the one you'll still be doing next month.

If you hate running, don't run. Dance. If the gym feels like punishment, go outside. If you dread the treadmill, find a trail. If you love swimming, swim. If gardening makes your heart sing, garden.

Movement isn't supposed to be miserable. Your ancestors didn't go to CrossFit. They walked, climbed, carried, danced, played, and built. Movement was woven into living.

In my practice, the patients who maintain exercise for years aren't the most disciplined. They're the ones who found something they love.

The woman who walks with her neighbor every morning. The man who bikes to the farmer's market on Saturdays. The couple who does tai chi in the park.

They're not exercising. They're living. And their bodies are responding.

Stop forcing movement. Start finding it.

What's a way of moving that actually brings you joy?