What Are You Exercising For?

99% of us should be exercising as prehabilitation (preventing injury, might be a made up word) or rehabilitation (recovery from injury). At this point in my life I am not interested in exercising just for the sake of getting better at exercising and in reality almost all of us should not be. Exercising should about making us feel better, look better, and make life easier which will allow us to experience more. It should aid our fun activities, hiking, biking, skiing, and more. This does not mean you cannot enjoy exercise but it shouldn’t be your everything.

Exercise is predictable in the manner the you have complete control over every movement you are doing. You still have to mentally focus and control the movements, yes you can move/exercise poorly, but it should not be where we are getting hurt. Sport and outdoor activities are not always predictable, you might crash your mountain bike, you might roll your ankle playing soccer, if we are going to get hurt (not that I would ever wish this on anyone) it should be during the unpredictability of sport and fun. With that said if you are just getting into exercise or even have been for years you might get small tweaks or pulls here or there, part of that is putting your body through new movement other times it could be taking on more than your body is ready for.

When exercise is turned into a sport, which their are multiple places you can compete, powerlifting, weightlifting, CrossFit, just to name a few, then injuries are going to occur. These people are pushing their bodies to the max and with that comes risk. To many this risk is worth the competition but remember they are no longer exercising for health. Some of these athletes could be doing more harm to their body than good, which is not different than any other high level athlete or sport. I am not knocking anyone that this describes, I have “competed” in weightlifting and fitness competitions in the past and loved it. But for the majority of us we should be exercising to improve our health.

Remember your why, why am I exercising, what is my purpose and remember it might not be the same as the person next to you. Focus on you and your goals, everyone is different, everyone has their own journey, and the best way to continue your why. We all progress at different rates but the people who we look up to and we view as healthy and fit have been consistent for a long time. To some of us 3 months is a long time, 6 months or year seem near impossible, fitness and health never stops, it should be for life. Find something that you enjoy, that motivates you, find people that push you to be a better version of yourself, and focus on being consistent. If you haven’t already started making steps to starting your journey, start today. It can be adding walks to your day, finding a free exercise video online that you enjoy, working out with friend, just start doing a little more and get started now, you will not regret it.

Looking for guidance or for a positive place to start or continue your fitness journey. At Defiance West we offer one on one personal training and group classes that are appropriate for all fitness levels. Contact us today to get started at cory@defiancegym.com

...Next week look for our article on exercise burnout and ways to overcome it.