Finding Fluency in Movement

I can’t stop moving and it’s always been this way.

Movement entered my life with teeny-tiny ballet shoes and a sprinkle of attention deficit. With that being said, ballet was followed by a sharp pivot into a soccer career that lasted through my adolescence and teenage years, alongside a very brief stint in track and field. I loved being fast, I loved being competitive.

The Peterson family often notoriously struggle with the inability to sit still for long. For us, there’s a designated time on holidays where we all split off into our own personal active silos – dad on a bike ride, my sister Nilsse on a long run, my mom on the treadmill, and myself, likely doing a Pilates by Izzy workout.

Movement was there in college. And so was the adjustment of not having the structure of a team or coach. I worked out the only way I knew how: running for miles, sprinting school bleachers, and doing Kayla Itsines workouts in the backyard of my college house. Why so many jump squats? I also, and absolutely under NO circumstances, was not using the weight section at the university gym – that was the ultimate fraternity nightmare.

After graduating, I moved back to Aspen, CO for my first office job – where I sat from 9–5 at a very ergonomically unsound desk situation. I remember my feet dangling from my chair with my desk being so high, and my computer that felt like it was a million miles away from my face – making my glasses and poor eyesight-induced squinting habits work overtime. At that point, I hadn’t developed a routine with movement that really stuck in a post-college state – it was sudden, or it was nothing. When it was sudden, it was intense and haphazard. The fragments caused by the consistent state of shock my body was experiencing started to come on slowly, then all at once – leading me to be in a considerable amount of pain on a daily basis.

I attribute my knowledge of movement being medicine to my life as an athlete, and all of the exhaustingly redundant knee injuries that followed as a result. I often pair this with my unrelenting inability to not catastrophize over something (typically an ailment of mine) and simply believe that I can fix it on my own without seeing a doctor or specialist. To be clear, I always end up seeing a specialist. I just have a tendency to kickstart the healing process with a fanatical rabbit hole of research.

In this specific case, I was told I need to simplify movement and get back into alignment. I had a hunch that mobility was going to be my North Star for my healing, and thank heavens everything I had researched up until that moment led my hypothesis to being correct.

I developed a mobility routine based on movements that could support full body healing – did that in the morning when I woke up, then right before I went to sleep. I stuck with this cadence everyday, alongside many (MANY) walks. Sure enough, the consistency and commitment to healing began to come to fruition. I realized that bringing mental awareness into each physical movement, and actually feeling the results progress, was completely addictive. So, therefore, adding on layers of movement had truly begun.

The pandemic feels like a natural point to weave in, given how much it shifted this newfound journey for me. Living in Aspen, hiking, being outside, but also having way too much time on my hands - I became the ultimate consumer of the rise of the “online fitness influencer era.” I was doing live IG workouts with Lindsey Harrod, Aubre Winters, Meg Leyen, and Sami Clarke (amongst so many others) and I was living for experimenting with all different types of movement.

I looked forward to every Sunday during COVID, because that was the day that I would plan what movement looked like for me that week. I neurotically checked the IG live schedules of all of my favorite fitness influencers who I was parasocially attached to, and eventually enough time had passed where I was able to piece together the exciting game plan of workouts I was going to accomplish that week. I’d outline them in my notes app and “tick” them off once complete. The joy in that alone… probably something only a fellow Virgo would fully appreciate.

At this point, I’ve just about scoured every corner of the internet, done every YouTube / IG Workout - and it’s still COVID. What can I do? How can I expand beyond where I am actively outgrowing this personal obsession of mine?

At the time, my best friend and I stayed closely connected through the workouts we were doing each day. Feeling like I could probably “graduate” and start writing workouts of my own for us to follow, one for each day of the week, I started putting together plans that were mostly rooted in strength-based movements with a mix of cardio and core sprinkled considerably on top of the rest. I had no idea what the hell a workout “split” even was (and I have a distaste for the word, so that’s probably the last time you’ll hear me use it), but I did learn the term “superset” and hyperfixated on those quite a bit throughout each workout I wrote. As a result, I put my friend and I through some overly complicated, rather time-consuming workouts that I refuse to ever share publicly.

Over time, my knowledge of fitness expanded significantly, along with a stronger sense of what my body could do. I, by definition, was strong and stumbled so deeply in love working out. I leapt out of bed everyday at 5:30AM to be the first in the gym so I can do my at-home pilates class before the world wakes up. Promptly after, I would slip outside to get a long walk in before work - letting the sunshine and vitamin D permeate and my daily step count get a head start. I was obsessed with being so proficient in movement, I felt what it was like to lose control of reality a little bit.

Fast forward through a mental reset, I landed in my favorite fitness era of mine to date: the Lagree Instructor era. This era taught me everything about myself. I didn’t realize there was something I could be so naturally good at, passionate about, and come out of every single class with a smile on my face, thinking about how much fun I was really having. I felt the most gratitude towards movement during this era and experienced the halo effect and impact of what being a teacher really has on people. Because of Lagree, I learned flow, form, structure, science-based principles, and became the certified pro I always knew I had in me. The compliment,“You’re my favorite instructor,” is still one of my favorites to date.

It’s the years in between and since then that have challenged me the most. I’ve flirted with every edge of movement in my life, and learned that balance is an ever-moving target for me.

Like I mentioned in my previous post, since living in New York City, I’ve landed on a wellness and movement routine that feels like a true match for my lifestyle right now. Over the years, I’ve experienced injuries and setbacks that have changed how I’m “allowed” to move (a story for another post), and I know what it feels like to feel lost, be in pain, too short on time, or a little in the weeds. I also know what it feels like to want to be the best version of yourself – and the beautiful gift that movement is as a stepping stone to help you get there.

This is simply the first layer pulled back on the stakeholder that movement is within my channel.

Which brings me to an update.

Each Sunday, I’ll be sharing out weekly workout routines for the week ahead:

Each workout plan will include:

• A 5–6 day structured schedule (Mon–Sun, not just a list of workouts)

• Sets, reps, and timing - no guesswork

• Equipment needed for each session (from strength and Pilates, to at-home Lagree & core)

• “Why” notes to guide form, balance, and how I structure the week

• Simple modifications so you can level up or meet yourself where you are each day

Subscribers get:

• Free subscribers: access to 2 full weekly workout plans per month, plus a short intro and preview each week

• Paid subscribers: every single weekly plan, delivered consistently every Sunday

These workouts are a dedication to the joy of movement. They’ll be filled with nostalgia, a mix of YouTube/IG workout recommendations, and a career’s worth of experience creating fun, progressive, and dynamic training.

This newsletter is for educational and informational purposes only and isn’t intended as medical advice. Please check in with a physician before starting any new exercise program, and as always, move in a way that feels right for your body!