What Broccoli Can Teach You About Physical Activity

Gary Geoffroy November 14, 2025 Health, physical activity

For some parents, dinnertime is one of the most dreaded moments of the day. Why? Because it’s often at this time that one of the most complex negotiation sessions begins, rivaling the G7 and other world summits: getting children to eat broccoli.

Before going any further, there’s no intention here to damage broccoli’s reputation. And the author of this article has received no funding from the Brussels sprouts industry…

Faced with this seemingly simple task — getting someone they love to eat something healthy — parents often resort to all sorts of creative tactics: blackmail, trickery, intimidation, or rewards promises. Yet, despite their efforts, the result is often the same: the child ends up forcing themselves to eat, barely perceptible, without any enjoyment.

Does this sound familiar? This is pretty much what happens to many people with physical activity.

How can physical activity be considered the “broccoli” of adults?

Many people have the same relationship with physical activity as children have with their green veggies. They know it’s good for them and have often even tried to force themselves to “consume” it more regularly. But the feeling of obligation, the lack of enjoyment, or internal and/or external pressures have ultimately transformed this healthy activity into an unpleasant and tedious chore. And as is often the case with human behavior, the harder you try to force yourself, the stronger the resistance becomes.

The challenge: restoring the joy of moving, with no rigidity

What behavioral psychology teaches us is that pleasure and autonomy are far more powerful motivators than coercion. The solution, therefore, is certainly not to force yourselves to be physically active or to feel guilty by saying things like: “I should be moving more” or “I just lack discipline”, but to understand how to change your relationship with physical activity.

Basically, it’s not so much about “eating broccoli at all costs” as it is about learning to approach it differently, to make it more palatable: finding the right sauce, the right texture, or the right side dishes. In other words, less “I have to eat my broccoli, I know it’s good for me” and more “How could I cook broccoli differently so I enjoy it more?”

If physical activity evokes mixed feelings for you, here is a non-exhaustive list of practical questions that can serve as a starting point for approaching physical activity differently:

• In what environment(s) do I naturally feel like being active? (At home, outdoors, at work, in nature…)
• Who do I enjoy being active with? (Alone, with friends/neighbors, while walking a pet, in a group…)
• What does my body tell me during a particular activity? (Is it pleasant, too intense, stimulating, calming…)
• What could make physical activity more enjoyable? (A music album, a podcast, an audiobook…)
• What small physical activity could I do with pleasure daily or almost daily with no stress? (Walking for 5 minutes, moving to music while cooking, taking an active break between tasks, stretching on the sofa…)

Hopefully, the answers to these questions will help you make physical activity more manageable and enjoyable in your daily life! If you would like personalized support to explore this approach further, please feel free to contact me at [email protected].

Author

Gary Geoffroy

After four years of medical studies in Guadeloupe and France, Gary decided to reorient himself to follow his passion for physical activity. He completed a bachelor's degree and then a master's degree in physical activity sciences at the University of Montreal. Today, he specializes in the science of behavior change, a discipline that aims to make physical activity more accessible, regular, and realistic for everyone. As the founder of Kinobi Conseil, he provides personalized support to people experiencing motivational difficulties when it comes to physical activity. He is also a clinical instructor at the Kinesiology Clinic of the University of Montreal, where he contributes to student training.