4 Easy Ways to make getting back into exercise a spiritual practice instead of a punishment for the body
The gym is a sneaky church
People start going to the gym because they want to improve their bodies.
But the real secret that keeps people consistent at the gym week after week, month after month, year after year is the mental gains. I believe it’s a level deeper than this. People continue to show up when they don’t want to and put their bodies and minds through intense suffering for the spiritual gains
It’s a difficult concept to articulate but I’ll spell it out in a language that makes sense to both the seasoned gym goer and the person who thinks thy gym is place just for physical punishment using the body.
Why is exercise spiritual at its core?
If the gym is a place of spiritual gains, how come no one ever talks about it in those words?
I’m a PhD in history and taught philosophy in university, so it might sound strange coming from me but it’s true: you don’t need to articulate something to feel it and live it truthfully. When you show up on days you’d rather stay home, when you push through the final set you didn’t think you could muster, you are training your spirit whether you know it consciously or not. It relates to your WILLPOWER.
The spirit is the part of you that stands firm despite all the ‘objective’ reasons you should fold.
This is what fitness addicts get addicted to. It’s partly mental but it’s mostly spiritual.
I know this because every time I present this language to people who are consistent gym goers or people who used to exercise but now don’t their eyes light up: “I’ve never heard it that way but YOU’RE SO RIGHT”
Mind, Body, and Spirit Combined
The modern world conceals our true nature as embodied beings.
We focus TOO much on the objective measurements so we fall prey to thinking exercise only exists for the body. The only things that are real are the things than can be measured and thus predicted. But this betrays the fact that we cannot separate our mind, bodies, and spirits.
Take a minute and try and describe each independently from each other…nice trying but it’s not as easy as you thought.
Moving from ‘Theory to Practice’
For someone who needs a deep reason to reengage with their bodies in the form of consistent exercise this might sound nice, but HOW DO YOU DO IT?
Theory is great but without practice it’s useless. Ultimately, what you need to realize is that you first need to overcome the problem affecting your spirit before you will EVER find that desired consistency to move your body. What is that problem?
How do I show up when I don’t want to?
How do I push past the excuses that keep my stagnant.
Afterall it’s not a lack of information. You know the weight needs to come off. You know the body is becoming weaker and more fragile. You know you need to MOVE, but you still don’t.
So here are 4 ways to tap into that spiritual vein that you need to access first before even focusing on what the body does when you move it intensely.
Way 1: Ritualize
Spiritual practice relies on the constant use of ritual; doing the same thing in the same way over and over again.
Think of a prayer service and the careful order in which things proceed. Start thinking of exercise in this fashion. Begin to view the gym, your run, a walk, as a ritual that feeds your spirit.
Here are some ideas on how you can start ritualizing exercise:
Wear the same type of clothes
Listen to the same type of music
Go at the same time of day
Work with the same community
Do anything that makes a consistent pattern of behaviour and this will help you overcome those excuses.
Way 2: Beautify
Spiritual practice demands beauty; the universal appreciation of harmony, balance, and proportion.
The way the body moves creates beauty in motion so find ways to move that you love and inspire you to push harder.
Go outside into nature and let that natural surrounding and the heavy breath that comes from intensity fill your spirit.
Embrace any element that infuses romance into the equation of why you exercise and what you do to move.
If motion becomes a source of beauty in your life you’ll never lack the will to start on the days you feel it’s the last thing you want to do.
Way 3: Challenge
Spiritual practice demands growth; the ability to transcend and reach towards new limits once unimaginable.
This is where you can begin to focus on your body a little bit. It’s the feeling of conquering that your spirit desires when you hit the weights or embark on a long cardio journey. That last mile, that last rep, that little bit more weight, the ability to go just a little bit faster, the desire to PUSH THROUGH THE PAIN will teach your spirit how to be strong.
The important part is to calibrate the challenge to your experience and level and not worry about what other people are doing, they aren’t you and your spirit has it’s own demands.
Way 4: Celebrate
Spiritual practice demands celebration; the ability to pause and reflect on growth and hitting milestones that you can share with the community.
This is where public performance, or competition comes into play. Sign up for a race, join a rec league, become a member of a team, and then share the struggle and triumph with a group of like minded and experienced individuals. Just as religion has public and private practice, make sure you feed your spirit by demonstrating in public just what it can do.
The best part is the energy you’ll receive from playing in public will further motivate you to lean into the all these spiritual elements.
Takeaways
I haven’t told you anything new about exercise, I’ve just explained it a way that allows you to access the deep nature and meaning of moving your body intently and intensely.
What I explained is where you should AIM your focus when you try to get back into physical exercise after years away or having never done it in your life.
If you aim at the body you’ll find limited success and fall back on the same old excuses.
If you AIM your focus at the spirit you’ll align your actions with the nature of exercise and be able to find consistent success.
So forget about the measurements and focus on the ritual, beauty, challenge, and celebration of exercise and you’ll soon discover the true meaning of moving your body. The physical and mental health gains you’re after will invariably follow a strong spirit being fed what it truly desires in motion.
If you’d like to know more about how to use this mindset to finally get back into the gym or to start for the first time let’s talk about how we can make exercise a personal spiritual journey for you.