It's been a while since my last post. The main reason is simply that work has been very, very consuming lately—but I am back now, with a solid, consistent routine at last (more details in the coming weeks).
In fact, I know that I'll always get back to athleticism and fitness—this is a deep passion of mine that I can't really imagine living without.
Does that mean I am a 'gym rat', a millennial with body dysmorphia, or perhaps just an obsessive person?
Well, I probably am obsessive. But the other two reasons? I don't think so.
I think that the reason I always find a way back into fitness, a way back into a world where physical aptitude is a goal, is an appreciation of what life has to offer, rather than an attitude that fitness is just a means to an end.
Let me emphasise this with a question: Do you eat to live, or live to eat? I am definitely the latter. Perhaps this just comes across as gluttony, but I don't view it that way. The pleasures of eating well are an incredible attribute of what is possible to experience in our short human lives, so why would we simply 'eat to survive'—if we are lucky enough to not have that as a daily concern? To me, that seems like a waste.
In much the same way, I do not train so that I can simply 'look good', or because it is trendy, or because 'I should' for my health and longevity (though these are certainly valid reasons).
I train because I love how it feels. I love to challenge myself, to see how far I can push myself and what my body is capable of doing. I train because I recognise that my time here is temporary, and I will never get these years back. I will never be as young as I am today, and days will come when I will reminisce about what my body was able to achieve.
Of course, I am also training so that as I grow older, I will be as fit and mobile as I can, for as long as possible—but that is not what's responsible for my 'addiction' to training. That belongs to the fact that I do not train merely to live (well), but rather, I live to train.
To conclude, I can finally give my thoughts on how everyone can maintain consistent training, in the long run.
All you need to do is make fitness into something that you absolutely love. It needs to stop being a 'chore', something you do to lose weight, get healthy, or look good. There are many, many different types of training, and if you haven't found one that appeals to you most, keep looking.
Currently, I am personally enthralled by strength training. For many people, calisthenics and skill-based training are most exciting. For others, it is bodybuilding or crossfit.
Whatever it is for you (and it may change over time), I encourage you to nurture this feeling. If it's too hard to enjoy it in the beginning, take it down a notch—lower the weights, do shorter sessions.
Slowly, over the years, it will grow on you until you become addicted to the feeling of training.
Once that occurs, you never really have to worry about long-term consistency.
You will eventually go back to training, even when life knocks you down and pushes you around for weeks or months at a time. Then, these pauses become only minor setbacks and can even be taken as opportunities to reflect on your recent style of training and plan your next phase effectively.
TL;DR: Make sure you enjoy the process of training! If you don't enjoy it, you will not learn to love it. If you don't love it, you will not want to do it when (inevitably) motivation is low and life becomes challenging!
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