The body revolution we need: function over form | Tiffany Stewart | TEDxLSU

If our bodies aren’t functional, does it matter what we look like? Many times, when we talk about getting healthy we’re really using coded language to discuss something else - looking healthy. Clinical psychologist Tiffany Stewart takes us through the process of revolutionizing how we think about ourselves when it really matters - when the health of our bodies is on the line.

Body perception matters, which is why Dr. Tiffany Stewart, an LSU graduate with a Ph.D. in clinical psychology, has devoted most of her career to research on how we view bodies as they relate to performance. Her work is leading a movement to focus beyond simple appearance notions to functional health. More than 10 years as a competitive gymnast helped spark Tiffany’s interest in behavioral medicine research, which she later combined with a love for technology. As the director of the Behavior Technology Laboratory at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Tiffany works to break the illusion of a perfect human form with apps and games that aim to improve health and performance. She takes cues from soldiers and athletes about what an “ideal” body really is and collaborates with local and national organizations to explore and illuminate the idea that a body’s idealized form and actual function are not always one and the same

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

I have a question for you.

Would you exercise if you thought
it would not impact your appearance?

As a culture, we are deeply
invested in appearance.

Modern Western culture
emphasizes perfection and youth

and stigmatizes individuals
who don't meet certain ideals.

We feel the pressure.

We risk our good health every day
to look a certain way.

The relationship between exercise
and appearance is murky,

but the deeper health benefits are there:
prevention of brain and heart disease,

improvement of bone and joint health,
increased muscle strength.

So back to my question.

If you knew that you might not lose
weight, you might even gain weight,

but you would improve the functional
health of your body,

would you still go to the gym today?

Back in grad school,
I developed a technology

that measures how people perceive
their body weight, size, and shape.

Our work at that time
found that more often than not,

and even across diverse
cultural backgrounds,

we are unhappy with the way
our bodies look.

So much so that a term was coined
to describe this effect.

"Normative discontent."

Basically, we've normalized
being unhappy with our appearance.

We struggle with the way we look

and health behaviors -

eating, exercise, drinking water -
are marketed to us

for the sole purpose of helping us
look the way we think we should.

But there is a huge disconnect here.

The disconnect between health,
performance, and appearance.

As a scientist, I've spent
nearly two decades studying

how we can optimize
our bodies and performance

and thrive psychologically

or be happy at the same time.

Let's take a moment and think
about this in a slightly different way.

Take architecture.

In the late 19th century, shifts in
economics, technology, and design

made it necessary to create
new architecture styles.

If a style and shape of a building

were not going to be chosen
from past models,

something had to determine its form
or what the building would look like.

The late Louis Sullivan said -

architect -

"Form ever follows function."

This was a profound shift
in thinking at the time

because what he's saying
is that function comes first

and form comes second.

This concept is not hard to see
in our world today.

Houses in South Louisiana
are built up off the ground

to protect them from flood waters.

The Pentagon has intentional design
that supports its function.

It needed to hold 40,000 people,

have 10,000 spaces to park cars,

four million square feet of office space,

and not be higher than four stories.

So if we look at how and why
we design our buildings today,

it's easy to conclude
that function comes first.

But why is it so hard to apply
the same logic to our bodies?

Today, I'd like to offer
a shift in perspective

on our bodies for us to consider.

Function over form.

Not unlike the architecture example,
form ever follows function,

means prioritizing performance
and purpose over appearance.

However,

every day,

in many different moments,
in many different situations,

we ask ourselves:

how does my body look?

Framing it up as an object to be judged.

What if we shifted this self-reflection

and we asked ourselves:

how does my body work?

If we look at those
in our population and take cues

from those who are expected
to be high performers,

like US army soldiers and athletes,

we would be focused on just that.

Performance. How does my body work?

Soldiers engage in readiness training,

which is designed to prepare them
for their mission, optimize performance,

and prevent injury.

In recent times, military training
also includes resilience,

the ability to bounce back
from challenging circumstances,

mental and physical.

If soldiers on a mission, or athletes
performing in a high-stakes competition

get distracted by form,

it can have serious
and life-threatening consequences.

For example, female athletes,
who are focused on appearance goals,

such as being worried about
being judged in tight-fitting uniforms

often engage in unhealthy behaviors
to achieve those appearance goals.

This can result in weak bones,
severe injury,

and problems with fertility.

And these are problems
that affect life for the long term.

So it's through the study of these
high-performance populations

we realized that a focus on performance
and function and resilience

is not just for the elite.

So as civilians,

not soldiers, not athletes,

are we thinking about optimizing
our bodies for the long haul?

Are we thinking about something else?

I was a competitive gymnast for 10 years.

Quite a while ago now.

And after a spine injury, I left the sport

and struggled to really figure out
what my health habits should be.

Eating, exercise, stress reduction.

It was overwhelming.

And after a shoulder repair
and a left ankle reconstruction,

all I could think about
was getting back into shape.

I thought this was healthy.

But at the time the correlation
between my habits and my body function

never occurred to me, because

doesn't body size determine health?

So a few years ago,

I found out that I have a condition
that makes me more prone to injury.

So after I cracked a rib and had
a complete right foot reconstruction

and then was told I needed a neck fusion,

I was thrust in this period where
all of my time and energy

was spent trying to regain the ability
to use my body parts

and strengthen others
to prevent further loss of function.

This was a defining moment.

Because when we are focused
on regaining function

from an injury or from surgery

or fighting to survive an illness

it shifts our perspective.

And it makes function our primary focus

and form our secondary focus.

It forces us into this headspace.

So why is it so hard to get there
when our lives are on the line?

Given the explosion
of social media and technology,

we all have access to overwhelming
amounts of health information

in a constant stream.

Yet with all of this information
at our fingertips,

we're at a crisis point.

Because the truth is, we no longer know
what healthy behavior really is.

"Health behavior" is often
not really healthy behavior.

It's appearance-driven behavior
disguised as health behavior.

And given our cultural climate,

it's become really difficult
to tell the difference.

Health behavior:

behavior to attain, maintain,
or regain good health,

mental and physical
and prevent illness.

So given this definition,

if we are only exercising the body parts
that we want to look a certain way,

aren't we cheating
ourselves out of so much?

Strength training, for example,
can prevent injury down the road.

Drinking water for hydration,
sleeping for recovery,

practicing mindfulness
and meditation for stress reduction.

Or the boundless science

that suggests nutrition
as fuel and medicine for the body

versus a simple calorie count.

Maintaining good health and function
is complex and individualized.

The fact is our bodies don't all respond
the same way to healthy behavior.

For example, there is
great data that shows

that our bodies don't all respond
the same way to exercise.

So because of this, our appearance goals
and our function goals

often aren't even compatible.

So guess what.

Healthy body function
doesn't look the same on everyone.

And if we take athletes
at the top of their performance game,

we see significant diversity in body type.

Now, this was a radical thought.

Because it's our default setting to make
assumptions about people's health habits

and their body function
based on appearance.

You simply cannot judge
function by appearance.

And if you can't judge function by form,
it'd seem that we are way off the mark

as using appearance
as some metric for health

despite what we've been
conditioned to believe.

Think about that for a second.

Culture says it's how we look.

What if we said it's how we feel

and we can do with our body?

Why should we care about this?

Because as fate would have it,

science says that it is a good thing
to focus on function.

When we focus on function,
we're more likely to engage

in actual healthy behaviors,
such as balanced exercise,

eating fruits and vegetables,
wearing sunscreen,

not smoking, going to check-ups.

But even more powerful than that
is our intention.

Because when we're focused on form,

as our main focus,

it can sabotage our health behavior.

For example,

when we're only focused on what
exercise can do to change our appearance,

we get less satisfaction
out of the exercise

and we are more likely to give up.

So this focus on function
I've been talking about;

it's a deeper appreciation.

It's a respect.

It's a respect for our bodies

that includes attending
to its functional needs

even if it doesn't meet the appearance
ideal you have in mind for it.

As an athlete, as a scientist developing
programs for soldiers and athletes,

treating eating disorder
patients in the hospital,

and guiding bariatric surgery patients
along their weight-loss journeys,

I've learned that we all work through
these functional needs,

whether in elite performance
or in daily life.

Ask yourself:

what does your body do for you?

It does more than you realize.

Take time to appreciate the things
about your body that work.

Be proactive and deliberate
about how you want your body to work.

Every moment is an opportunity to start
where we are and optimize our function.

Start with your intention.

Science also says that when we cultivate
an environment of appreciation and respect

for diverse bodies and we encourage
each other to engage in healthy behaviors,

not based on appearance goals,

we all do better.

So drop the body-bullying.

It's not our judgement to make.

We must convince our younger generation
that a healthy body is an ideal body.

And that just because something
is a standard does not make it ideal.

Architecture needed to
embrace a shift in perspective.

And so do we.

Thank you.

(Applause)