By Jennifer Pinto –
The New Year came a little over three weeks ago. Technically, we have crossed the 22 days it should have taken us to make a good habit. But it’s ok. There’s never a better time to start than NOW!
Many thoughts may be running through our minds – how do I start? Should I go to a gym? What if I cannot access a gym? What is the best exercise for me? Who will teach me?
Let us look at these doubts and dispel them and get started. There is not pressure in life to conform to a size 0 or whatever other ideal we may have. Keep in mind that EXERCISE is about FITNESS, not looks.
A few tips that I can share with you are:
- Start wherever you are. Start with baby steps. Begin your weight loss with something as simple as walking. Make sure you wear the right shoes and start walking a minimum of 30min a day. Start slow and build up speed as the days pass. Walking is the easiest, most cost effective way of starting your fitness journey.
- Some of you may not want to do it alone. Find a partner who will walk with you. That way, you don’t even realise that you’re working out. Sometimes, chatting with a person and walking can help you not worry about the time it takes.
- You can opt for videos to do at home if you feel too conscious about yourself and your body. But this requires a lot of commitment and consistency. I find that being in a group exercise class motivates me more than working out alone. But some of us may prefer to go it alone for a while before we are ready to step out.
- If you do decide to start in a group fitness class, then don’t even bother worrying about what other people think of you. Most of the time everyone there is most worried and bothered about themselves getting fit, to have time to worry about you! So don’t think twice, get in, workout and see the results. The way I see it is – if people are going to judge you, they’ll judge you anyway, whether you’re chubby or slim. So just GO for it!
- Most importantly, find out what form of exercise works for you. That will depend on your interests, your location, accessibility to equipment, company and other factors. For e.g., if you live in a religious community, you may not be able to go to the gym. Walking or jogging may be your best bet. Do it. Gather a group of fellow sisters and walk. You may be in a seminary and have access to playing football or basketball with your fellow seminarians. Do it.
- Some complain that so much time is spent while exercising and that the mind is not occupied. Why not tune in to God and to prayer? This perspective that whatever we do, we can dedicate it to the glory of God (Col 3:23). And that is the heart of integrating spirituality with work or activity. Brother Lawrence was a humble cook who experienced life in the kingdom of God to its fullest by learning to commune with God everyday, in fact, every hour of the day – even during his ordinary work. In short, he learned the art of living in the presence of God throughout the day. He once said, “I am doing now what I will do for all eternity. I am blessing God, praising Him, adoring him, and loving Him with all my heart.” You and I know, we cannot pray 24 hours a day; but we can prayerfully offer up all (even boring) activity to God to give it a transformative value. Some find they can pray the rosary while exercising. This makes even better use of your time – it’s body, mind and spirit at one go!
Ultimately what I am trying to say is being fit doesn’t require gadgets and gizmos. It isn’t rocket science. It can become engaging. Besides, exercising has immense physical benefits. Wondering if it’s really true? Let me list a few simple benefits.
- It lowers your risk of dying young. If that isn’t motivation, I don’t know what is. If you can stave off heart problems, cancer, diabetes, blood pressure, depression and other lifestyle illnesses, take the option.
- It improves the quality of your sleep. Good for insomniacs for sure.
- It speeds up your healing process. Joint pains, osteoarthritis, asthma are just some of the illnesses that pretty much vanish with simple, consistent exercising.
- It ups your HAPPINESS quotient. If you meet a super happy person, ask them what makes them tick. They’ll have a list but exercise will invariably figure on that list.
Bottom line is – exercise is a sort of miracle drug for any illness you can name. Over a period of time, I have read hundreds of articles, research papers on the net that talk about the innumerable benefits of exercise. You can find these articles and read them for yourself and believe. There are websites dedicated to keep you committed to exercise. They give you daily/weekly updates on what you should and should not be doing. There are apps on phones these days that help you track your fitness journey.
So what is stopping you? Let 2022 be the year that sees you a fitter person, no matter where you come from, where you are and where you plan to be! Wishing you all the best in your fitness journey!
Jennifer Pinto is a freelance corporate trainer, trained counsellor & Zumba® Fitness Instructor. She can be contacted at [email protected]