When we fall in love with someone we fall in love with every aspect about them. We look forward to seeing them, we look forward to being in their company, and we look forward to spending our time with them.
It should be no different with exercise.
We all know what it feels like to do something we don’t really want to do. It makes time drag, it drains our energy, and it can make us downright grumpy. And that’s not a cool way to live – and it’s certainly not good for our health or our state of mind.
Unfortunately, exercise can be like this for many people. But this is something that needs to change. Pronto.
Exercise isn’t just about pumping iron, striding the pavements, or training insane at bootcamps and crossfit. Many people live, love and thrive upon these fitness modalities; but for others it’s worse than eating a dry weetbix.
For many these images do nothing for motivation levels. They don’t sell fitness any better than a noisy, American-ised, cheesy, and unrealistic infomercial about the newest fitness gadget.
The great news is is that we can all have a love affair with exercise – every one of us. We can all grow to love the feeling of our body moving in space, the way it was meant to. We can get to a place where we look forward to and crave our daily movement, and where we don’t resent spending our time doing it. There is always room to enhance our relationships with anyone and anything – and exercise is just another one of those.
If we want to make something – anything – a habit then it needs to be something that makes us happy and makes us feel good. Period. If we want to let fitness or exercise be something we WANT to do, then it needs to make us feel happy, liberated, powerful and be empowered.
There is an innumerable array of movement, physical activity and exercise options available to us. There is something to suit everybody, everywhere, at any time. So let’s choose wisely. And let’s be mindful of choosing wisely – not just choosing to do something because somebody said we should, but instead choosing to do something because it makes us feel good AND it makes us happy.
We’ve each been given the privilege of having unlimited access to so many remarkable wonders, so many undiscovered destinations, and so many healthful opportunities – possibly more than we dare to realise. And although exercise is not essential, movement is. So we must use these things – to explore, to adventure, and to dare. We needn’t always have the goal of necessarily challenging ourselves, but just willing ourselves to get out and just move, plain and simple, the way we used to – or at least the way our parents and grandparents used to.
Allowing our bodies to experience their innate need of regular, healthful, life-giving movement in all planes of motion, and in an assortment of differing environments is the very least we can offer it.
But, with every choice you make to move, be mindful of it being something that makes you happy, gifts you with greater energy, uplifts you, inspires you, builds you, and gives you the desire to do it time and time again.
Movement and exercise should be enjoyable, always. With such an abundance of movement opportunities available to us we’d be insane to repeat things that don’t bring us joy and fulfilment.
Embrace activities that put a smile on your dial and that turn your frown upside down.
Choose HAPPY movement and have a love affair with exercise.
