Despite the fact that I have been involved in health and fitness of over two decades, I have some real problems with the mainstream fitness industry. One of my biggest problems is how predatory it is. It’s easy to sell things to people who feel inadequate or who feel as though they’re lacking something and too often health and fitness marketing inspires this attitude.
Self-Love Is Your Key
It should seem self-explanatory, and yet so many people start their health and fitness journey not from a place of self-love but a place of self-hate. When you’re constantly bombarded with messages of “do more”, “push harder”, “get leaner”, or “do this or die young” crap it’s hard to feel good about yourself.
The truth is, unless you’re a competitive athlete, and I would add that your livelihood depends on performing, you don’t need to eke out every ounce of performance from your body. In fact, doing so is often very unhealthy.
If you just want to be healthier and do more of the things you love, you don’t need to workout the way most of the fitness industry promotes. What’s worse, is that the industry makes you feel bad about not working out the way they suggest.
Instead, I offer some different advice. Love yourself first. You can still want to change and improve yourself even if you feel like you need to be healthier. Don’t motivate yourself by feeling like you’re overweight, or you’re not lean enough. Instead think of things you’d like to do and how being fitter will allow you to do them longer or more often.
It will be so much more satisfying when you can go on a ten-mile hike with your kids every weekend rather than looking in the mirror and wondering why you still don’t look like magazine cover model even though you’re killing yourself four times a week.
