Good Reasons to Get Fit

When you do something, the reasons why you’re doing it matter. If you decide to go to grad school, or if you decide to get married, or if you decide to leave your current job for something else, or if you make friends with someone, the reasons matter. This is no less true of a persons’ reasons to get fit.

When grad school gets expensive, if your marriage goes through a rough patch, when you face serious hurdles at that new job, when you have a conflict with that friend, sometimes the only thing that sustains you through it all is your why.

If you have a substantive reason why you want to do something, and if you still buy into that reason, it can help you keep pushing forward toward your goals when things get tough. If your motivation is tied to your deepest values and highest aspirations, it can carry you in those seasons when quitting seems attractive.

This same thinking can apply to getting fit. What is your “Why?”, and does your development plan for fitness have one?

Are there bad reasons get fit?

It may be interesting to explore for yourself if there are bad reasons for getting fit. There may not be bad reasons for getting fit, as such, but there may be superficial reasons that may not help you in the long run.

So, the issue isn’t that some reasons are bad; it’s just that while they can get you to start your fitness journey, they may not get you all the way there, especially when it gets hard. The thing is, your fitness journey will get hard, and that’s why those reasons are inadequate.

People are motivated by intrinsic and extrinsic motivations. Extrinsic motivations are those that typically come from outside of ourselves, and that are tied to getting us something else that we want further down the road.

Intrinsic motivations flow primarily from within us, and they are tied to what we enjoy doing for its own sake. These motivations aren’t necessarily easy to distinguish, as you can enjoy doing something for its own sake while also looking forward to some benefits down the line.

Some motivations which may not carry you all the way can include the following:

• The desire to complete an event (like a marathon).
• Fitting into particular items of clothing.
• Desiring to feel more comfortable in your own body.
• Desiring to be more attractive.
• Wanting to lose weight.

Now, it must be noted that these aren’t bad motivations, by any means. The issue is that when you hit a roadblock such as an injury, or if you meet your goal, or if you plateau, or when it stops feeling like fun, these motivations may not give you the gas you need to keep driving forward. If fitness isn’t something for a season, but a lifelong habit, you need deeper motivations to help you keep going.

For instance, losing weight isn’t a bad goal, but tying your fitness to the scale can be hazardous. Your body is composed of, among other things, muscle and fat; while you’re getting fitter, you might lose fat while gaining muscle.

The scale can’t tell the difference between the two, but you can be easily disheartened when you see the numbers remain static or increase. Conversely, losing weight lets you off the hook when there may not be a reason to celebrate. Using a single metric, especially weight, for fitness isn’t a good idea, and it won’t keep you motivated in the long run.

Good, or sustainable reasons to get fit.

To arrive at a sustainable mix of intrinsic and extrinsic motivations that can carry you past setbacks, you need to focus on goals that are meaningful to you and can sustain you in difficult times. If you can find things that are rewarding to you in themselves, and that align with your deeper sense of purpose, that will sustain you over the long term.

While aesthetics is important in its own way, some other, more sustainable reasons to get fit include the following:

• Feeling stronger and appreciating the process of getting stronger.
• Training to be and remain functional for a long time. This includes exercising so that you can perform tasks like picking up your groceries comfortably, to be able to play with your children or grandkids and to enable you to be mobile and able to function independently for as long as possible.
• Training to prevent injury.
• Training to manage your stress and anxiety.

These reasons for getting fit derive from motivations rooted in deep values, in things that matter to you immensely. They may not be flashy or easily discernable from the outside, but the point is that they drive you to keep going. You can find other motivations that work for you, and that will keep you going even when things get tough.

Crafting your fitness development plan.

When you’re developing and implementing your fitness personal development plan, you must find the right combination of goals that will motivate you to dig deep and keep going. Some motivations, while looking good at the moment, may not be able to sustain you when you get injured or face some other setback.

Additionally, if your goals are tied to specific milestones, you need to consider what happens after, and if you’ll still have reasons to continue.

Sometimes, it can take the help of a stranger to understand what drives you and to get to the bottom of your motivations for doing things. Perhaps talking with a Christian life coach can help you clarify the motivations that can keep you going on your fitness journey.