All over the net, people advise us to exercise. But many of us don't heed the advice. It is understandable. Sometimes negativity is too great, and we begin to feel, "Why should we? It's not like things are going to get any better." Well, that's not true. As I said before, it's impossible for there to be total darkness. There is always a light. Darkness and light need one another to survive. We begin to feel, sometimes, that improvement may not be the answer, as all hope is gone. And then we sink deeper into darkness and hopelessness. Yet when we hit rock bottom, really hit rock bottom, we snap out of our trances and say, "I really need to GET MYSELF TOGETHER!"
For All Those Who Think Exercise Is Too Physically Demanding:
Exercising Just Once
Whenever someone begins to think of exercise, he/she sees a long, long road of physical pain ahead of them. He/she begins to think, "Oh my God, I'm going to have to wear my body down, lift endless weights, run marathons on a treadmill, for what? To get a healthier body? To feel better? Is the only way to feel better is that I have to exercise and strain my muscles and feet to failure?" We shouldn't look at it like that! All we have to do, is exercise JUST ONCE, and right after that exercise, we'll already feel better. Forget about the 'long road'. Forget about the future. If you feel awful, just say, "You know what? I don't care about the long road ahead. I'm just going to exercise once today, and see what happens from there."
The thing about us humans, is that whenever we think of developing a healthy habit, we directly imagine the sacrifices we're going to make.
"Oh my God, I'm going to have to jog everyday."
"Oh my God, I'm going to have to go ALL the way to the Gym, and keep going there, in order to feel healthy."
This is not us being lazy. This is just our minds looking to far ahead, and then, before even starting, become uncommitted. I say, forget about being committed, and about all those imaginations. Just think about exercising just once. Just once. And then when we do it, your thoughts afterwards will immediately be different from before. We'll start to think, "Hey, that wasn't that bad. I already feel so much better." Hold on to that thought! Keep it with you for the next day, and then repeat the process. Don't think about LONG hours in the gym, or countless times running outside in the cold, just for the sake of having better health. Think of doing it just once, for the sake of feeling better in this current day.
The Days To Come:
When the next day comes, we'll say, I'm going to exercise again, just once. Never imagine or predict a future ahead. Usually whenever people want to start going to the gym, they don't even start! Why? Because they're afraid of being committed, to have to keep going again and again. That's the wrong mindset. Many of us feel very awful a lot of the time. Life sometimes gets darker, and we really want things to get better, but everything that makes us feel better needs so much work. Whenever it comes to doing healthy things to boost physical and mental health, just think of doing it once today, then once tomorrow, and so on. All you need are those instant, tiny results. Why? Because those little results will boost our minds, and change our outlook on life, even though it's just a little. And from there, we'll plan to exercise once more tomorrow. And so forth.
Exercise is a form of dynamic meditation. It is the best form of meditation, actually. It takes us out of our minds, even though for ten minutes a day. We NEED that. It doesn't really matter if you smoke or drink. It's okay to have vices while you exercise. You can't delete a habit and go to the next. You can ONLY replace habits. Don't say, "Oh my God, now I have to stop smoking to exercise." Don't worry about leaving any of such vices just yet. Those vices will NATURALLY leave you as you go deeper into exercise and eating healthy. You can't quit then find another method. You can only let the next habit slowly dissolve the previous one.
Start small. Begin with aerobic exercise. Aerobic exercise is my favorite. Run laps around your neighborhood for the first exercise. Do this for two weeks. And gradually, you'll develop into more sophisticated forms of exercise. Remember, all we have to worry about, is doing it just once, to just start. Keep that mindset. Don't wander off into imagining a future full of sweat and physical agony. This is for your physical, mental and spiritual health. Who cares about looking like the perfect person?!
If we are able to follow through with this for JUST 21 days, we'll transform our lives. I read in a book by Robin Sharma, that if you maintain doing something for just 21 days, it will develop into a long-term habit. And then you wouldn't need to put any mental effort into getting up and exercising. You would just do it instinctively!
Exercising Is Exorcising As Well:
There's a saying from this metal band I used to listen to, back when my days were pretty dark. It's Parkway Drive. The vocalist shouts, "The Devil dances in idle minds!" When we carry bodies that are used to inaction, our minds being to think rapidly. Yet when it thinks rapidly, it begins to wear down because of the mental strain of having so many thoughts. And thus, we develop idle, still minds. When we exercise, we are able to move our whole bodies, so that the thinking part of our minds won't be used for the time we're exercising. It's as though thoughts are no longer there, even if for ten minutes (of the exercise). In other words, when the body is inactive, the mind thinks too much then wears down and becomes still; And when the body is active, the mind becomes relaxed, and will have much more space for peaceful and joyful thoughts.
Take the first step!
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