For the Health of It
For years, everything I did in regards to my health was with one goal in mind: weight loss. I wanted to move the needle on the scale. What and when I ate was motivated by a desire for weight loss. Although I’m a cardio junkie and loved training for long distance races, I was always thinking about how that would impact my weight. In my mind, the longer duration equaled more calories burned. Burn calories; lose weight. I’m not saying that eating healthy foods and training for races is bad. The problem was my motivation. The pursuit of weight loss drove everything I did. Then, when weight loss wasn’t the result, I was disappointed. No, I was devastated. This led me to doing more or trying a new fad that I found on the pages of a magazine or on the internet.
When God set me free, I started learning how to do things for the health of it. It took some time, but I settled into knowing that body change could be a pleasant side effect of what I was doing instead of my top priority. Because the main goal had always been peace of mind and freedom from this self-inflicted expectation of being in a smaller body.
My Faith and Fitness Framework is a result of my journey to living fit and free. The great thing about the four pillars of the framework is that you get to determine how to apply the principles of each one to your particular age and stage of life. Since I’ve been doing this for over ten years, I know that staying free requires adjusting things throughout the years. There is no one-size-fits-all plan, but I can tell you that this approach can help anyone learn to live fit and free.
A key to living fit and free is to start doing things for the health of it instead of focusing on a number on the scale. Share on X
A mindset shift that is a necessary part of the process is to start doing things for the health of it. Shift away from weight loss and do things that help you feel better, mentally, physically, and spiritually. When health, feeling good, and gaining confidence becomes your goal, everything else falls into place.
Following are a few things I’m doing right now for the health of it and how they fit into my Faith and Fitness Framework. Although these are things that are working for me right now, you might find something that could be helpful for you, too.
Exercise Pillar
Weighted Vest – Recently, I learned some of the benefits of wearing a weighted vest and thought I’d give it a try. I bought this one about six weeks ago and have been wearing it 3-4 days a week for about thirty minutes a day. Right now, I’m just wearing it around the house when I’m doing chores like emptying the dishwasher and doing laundry. These actions require a lot of bending and moving around, so the weighted vest adds a little intensity to those activities. Wearing a weighted vest can help improve balance, posture, and bone density among many other things.
Walking – I’ve said it, I’ve even written about it – walking is not my favorite. But, I’m embracing it more and more. The benefits of walking are endless and are not only physical. A walk can help clear your mind. A walk with friends or family provides a way to connect with others. My guys and I have settled into a routine of going for a walk after dinner most evenings. It’s a nice time to be together and also aids in digestion.
Food Pillar
Increase protein to increase fullness and satisfaction to help reduce unnecessary snacking. I found myself snacking in the afternoon and started noticing that I couldn’t go more than two to three hours without something to eat. I realized that I needed to increase my breakfast and lunch protein. Now, I rarely have a snack between lunch and dinner.
Water Pillar
I don’t have a problem drinking plenty of water throughout the day. My problem was waking up about every two hours to go to the bathroom. I’ve learned that drinking the majority of my water earlier in the day has helped with frequent trips to the bathroom throughout the night.
Faith Pillar
I’ve been enjoying doing YouVersion Bible plans with my Faith and Fitness Support and Accountability Community. Each month, we have a faith and a fitness focus. Over the last few months, I’ve found a Bible plan that we can all do in the Bible app. This has been a great tool for not only growing our faith but also growing together in community.
Are you struggling with any of the pillars right now? Reach out to me. Let’s do some problem-solving together.
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