Exercise.
From early morning jogs in frigid air to clanking iron machines in a packed building – exercise can take on many appearances. To some the idea of facing the mental and physical challenge is exhilarating, but to others the idea of consuming their personal time to willingly “feel the burn” turns them away.
Perhaps you are the second person and I get it. Back in high school the only real workouts I got were during baseball practice while in trouble, so I was conditioned to think “physical activity=punishment.”
Many people need a lot of convincing before they take on building a consistent workout habit.
We do not jump on board with anything such as a program, a book, counseling, or any hobby until we know two things: What are the benefits? And does it work?
I hope to answer the first question thoroughly for you. Working out consistently over the last 4 years has provided multiple benefits that stretch far beyond just the external appearance aspect. I believe these benefits also pour into our walk with God as well. Perhaps the second question can be adequately answered for you as well since all the benefits I am about to list I have personally experienced during my time working out.
If you know the name of this blog, you may be able to guess that I am an advocate for building up your discipline.
Oftentimes, discipline consists of doing the hard things you do not want to do.
I had noticed a barrier in my mind when I first began lifting weights. It is hard to work out in a way that makes noticeable change. Consistency is hard, especially when you know there are easier, more rewarding (at least in the moment) activities that you could be doing.
This is a barrier that must be pushed through for you to become consistent with exercise which allows you to experience physical results and the other benefits I am going to present. This can lead to the idea, “The hard tasks provide more fulfilling joy over time.” This is the conclusion I came to through building an exercise habit. It is easier to recognize this truth when you see the visible physical change you create through consistency and hard work.
Now, you can recognize this barrier in areas beyond working out, even in your walk with God. If you do not know why I emphasize the importance of having discipline in your faith, you can find a post that explains this here.
This is accomplished through the first benefit as well as in another direct way. Are you having trouble praying? Recognize that barrier, acknowledge the benefits, and then take action!
One practical step I took to make spending time with God daily easy is something called habit stacking (I got this term from James Clear’s Atomic Habits book a while after implementing this myself). Habit stacking, roughly defined, is when you take a behavior you already do often and place it before the habit you have been resisting. This works best if it is a habit that you thoroughly enjoy doing.
I want to be honest, in the beginning the idea of rounded shoulders and a skinny waist was way more motivational to me than increasing the time I have with God. You can use that drive to build your commitment to spending time with Him!
So, I implemented habit stacking like this, I wake up and immediately pour my coffee (enjoyable habit done at 5 in the morning), then I sit down with my coffee to an open Bible and journal (resistant habit), after reading I begin sipping on a pre-workout (enjoyable habit…I love caffeine), while drinking this and waiting for the effects to kick in I will pray (resistant habit). After all of that, I work out.
This can be done in other ways such as beginning to read alongside a nutritious meal or after a hot shower and brushing your teeth. I personally find it easier to stack a habit I find rewarding after the hard task because it also becomes a sort of reward for you.
This benefit depends on multiple choices you make throughout the day.
However, recently I stopped working out for an extended period and found myself in need of a good nap once every day. These naps usually left me groggy and since they usually happened after work, my rest at night was impacted.
Shortly after beginning a new program of exercise, I found myself able to wake up at 5 AM and could go until 10 or 11 PM still feeling energized. I would still go to sleep at 9:30 when my schedule allowed it. The awesome thing is, that I still had energy late at night it did not impact my ability to sleep. Falling asleep became easier as well!
For the Christian, this will allow you to serve in a variety of ways, from being an active presence in your kid’s life if you are a father to being able to keep up with long walks on the mission field.
No doubt extra energy plays a huge role in mental clarity, but I believe it goes deeper than that.
I could attempt to go into the science on deep restorative sleep or the impact that exercise has on the brain, but instead I will keep the evidence anecdotal.
You see, I have had an issue with focus. When I was in high school, I scored high on the ADD/ADHD test my doctor gave me. It seemed that I would be doomed to take pills to keep me functioning properly, but I found years later that there are many other ways to increase focus. One of those ways is by building an exercise habit.
Before, I was a kid that spent many hours playing video games. I wasted time on my phone. Also, I was often eating high amounts of sugar, staying indoors, and simply not moving. There is a huge difference in my ability to focus for extended amounts of time now that I prioritize health over entertainment (luckily, I enjoy the pursuit as well).
Exercise forces you to move and takes up the time you would normally use on several mindless activities that produce rewards without any effort. In my experience, both factors have a profound effect on how our brain functions in both our focus and the depths of our thoughts.
For the Christian, this can help with prayer and Bible study. You will no longer have to say, “God, I just cannot focus today.”
What we eat is one of the choices I was referencing while talking about having more energy. Exercise seems to also impact the way you eat.
This can happen in two ways.
After exercising you may think, “since I burned more calories, I can eat more bad food.” This is obviously not the response you want, so I want to tell you right off the bat, this approach will not work. I tried this and still put on pounds.
The second response will alter your whole diet, “since I just went through a painful workout, I do not want to minimize its effects by eating bad food.” Food will no longer be about taste (though you can find ways to eat healthy food you enjoy eating) instead it will be about nutrients that lead to recovery and results.
If exercise does not give you energy this surely will.
I am not saying you can never eat pizza or cake on your birthday or donuts (my weakness), but through adopting a lifestyle around healthy living you will find a healthy relationship with foods and cast out gluttony.
I began working out when I was invited to lift by the guy that started discipling me.
If you struggle to find ways to connect with people, this is one way to consistently be around other believers whose main concern in life is to glorify God.
If you are tired of going places where you must spend money working out alongside somebody else can be a better way to hang out.
Even if you cannot meet to lift weights or run you can keep connected with others by starting a challenge or competition with a group of people or just one individual.
An exercise habit requires a good amount of time and requires consistency week by week and day by day.
This makes beginning a program the perfect opportunity to invite somebody else to join you!
Not only can exercise encourage fellowship, but it can make different relationships in your life better.
This can be a good way to start a friendship with somebody who needs to be discipled or even somebody who does not know God at all. If you are married, your spouse could join you.
No matter who it is, there is something about improving yourself alongside somebody else that is special.
Technological advances give us many beneficial advantages that really can help us in life.
However, the use of technology without boundaries and management can destroy people’s lives and mental health.
How can a person combat this? By filling their time with other activities away from it.
Again, exercise does take time out of the day (though this does not have to be multiple hours of your day). Music can be great to listen to during this time but removing screen time can do wonders to the rest of your life.
Exercise is one activity that gives rewards with patience and perseverance – experiencing this makes the instant reward cycle dull and less attractive.
If the idea about exercise consuming your time keeps you from committing, I want to challenge you to look at your phone’s screen time – how many hours do you spend on your phone doing nothing of value?
School, work, family, time with God, exercise, meal preparation… so many necessary activities that take up time and energy.
Balancing all of these requires a regimented and disciplined lifestyle that is encouraged in most lifting programs.
Working out builds up the mental toughness that branches out into balancing the rest of life. Adding this to your life forces you to ask the question, “how can I maximize my time?”
Personally, I have discovered my most productive time of day is in the early morning. I would never have figured this out if I had never started working out before class.
This led me to prioritize spending time with God in the morning where my mind is the most clear and focused.
This benefit is one that also comes with a warning.
Being proud of the accomplishments you experience through consistent hard work causes you to carry yourself and represent yourself in a new way.
Exercise builds your self-confidence which can also allow you to be bolder in conversation and achieve more of your goals. There is a huge social benefit for possessing self-confidence.
This is good, but it is important to note Paul says, “For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned” (Romans 12:3 ESV), although this is picked from a passage with a much larger topic this still gives us an important lesson that applies here.
Self-confidence should not be so high to become arrogance and it should not be so low to lead you to hate and diminish your value.
This can be balanced out by placing your confidence in God and His grace that leads you to do anything good.
If you get anything at all out of this article I hope this is it,
“Self-help” for a Christian is not a replacement for God’s work, but He may use our obedience as tools to sanctify us.
Exercise can carry benefits outside of the physical. It is a journey that reaches deeper into our mindset and attitude.
We honor God with the body we are given by taking care of it and disciplining it to fight cravings, urges, and instant gratification.
Do you want to better the relationships in your life?
Are you just needing more energy?
Are you seeking to disciple somebody?
Can you use exercise to bring God glory?
Can you intentionally remind yourself of where our true confidence lies?
Will you commit to learning how to maximize your time so that no other activity takes precedence over your time with the Lord?
If you answered yes to those questions, then finding a workout program may be something to commit to. If your desires to be fit seems more motivating than seeking God than you can use that to intentionally springboard yourself into also building a quiet time habit (this will also extend further than that time you set aside).
Discipline yourself in these areas and let God transform you. It all starts with a solid commitment.
Joshua is a current resident of Oklahoma, an Oklahoma Baptist University graduate, a husband, a father, and most importantly a follower of Christ who is interested in passing on what he has learned through consistent reading and hearing of the Scriptures and prayer.
As of right now, you can only reach out to me in the comment sections of posts and my email, shown on the right. If you have questions, definitely send me an email! My wife and I will reply back and may make a post with your answer.