The Transforming Power of Fitness

How would you define fitness? Is it having lean, chiseled muscles that grab the attention of passersby’s? Is it being able to keep up with your two year old toddler as he careens around the house day in and day out? A simple dictionary definition of the word leads us to the conclusion that fitness is the “capability of the body of distributing inhaled oxygen to muscle tissue during increased physical effort.” I want to challenge your view and definition of fitness as we together look at this aspect of life apart from the eyes of the celebrity tabloids, fad diets, and the pressure to look a certain way.

            Fitness is, in my opinion, about increasing your quality of life. While setting goals and reaching them are important steps on the road to wellness, they are not the bottom line; although the number on the scale might mean a lot, it cannot be the driving focus of becoming fit. At the same time, we cannot ignore the importance of living within a healthy weight range and the urge look and feel good about yourself. The beauty of merging these outlooks, however, is that these tangible elements of fitness come as a by-product when your focus is more on making your daily life better. Since most of us in North America do not lead significantly active lives, we need to make sure to incorporate physical movement into our days, but doing so from a more holistic, balanced point of view of fitness gives you not only the desired results but yields bigger life changes as well.

            With this perspective in mind then, it’s easier to approach an exercise program with more grace and patience for yourself. It takes intentional time, focus, strong will, and self-forgiveness to start to see change in your life. But as you keep the physical activity up, you will begin to see changes that affect more than your physical being - changes like increased energy throughout your day, a more stable mood, better cardiovascular health, and a greater desire for other aspects in your life to change for the better. It’s a snowball of positive changes! This is the great thing about setting up and sticking with a physical program: it cannot help but begin to transform the other areas of your life that lead to an overall increased quality of life. And this change can happen no matter your physical fitness level; anything from chairs and stairs to weights and body exercises can serve as ways to burn fat, gain muscle, and get fit. Sometimes all that’s needed is the know-how concerning exercise and some motivation to get on track for a healthy lifestyle!

            So the next time you eat one too many cupcakes or skip out on your run, don’t beat yourself up about it but rather encourage healthier choices from the stance of positive motivation, not negatively urging yourself to do better. The next time you think the familiar thought to yourself, “I really should start exercising,” seek out ways to do so that can be integrated into your lifestyle so that exercise becomes attainable and sustainable, fun and worthwhile. Then you will become fit, for fitness truly starts and ends with increasing your quality of life.

 Fitness is best when it becomes integrated into your lifestyle...

...which makes daily life activities with friends and family better...

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..so that you can enjoy the "finer" things in life guilt-free and to the fullest!