Why Exercise?

We live in an era of chaos, never before in the history of humans have people had so much going on or been so busy. We are consumed by the want to achieve more, own more and be more. Yet, in all the time, energy, and money given to the pursuit of these endeavors, the vehicle that can ultimately get you there often gets neglected. That´s right; you—the physical you—your body.

Why do I, having worked in the fitness industry for more than a year now, continue to feel impelled to preach the gospel of exercise to so many non-believers? Or maybe, it´s not lack of belief, just "non-practicing". Either way my mission in life continues to be crystal clear—like a, chlorine loaded pool first thing in the morning before you jump in to do laps—is to get people, maybe even you, to exercise on a regular basis.

It would be easy to rhyme off all of the health benefits associated with regular exercise as a motivation to want to work out, but the reality is, this doesn´t seem to be enough fuel to light a fire under any ones ´gluteus maximus´. Unless of course they are faced with a serious health problem, which unfortunately is often the reason people find the drive. We are all motivated in different ways and by different things. The key is to find a reason that will make you want to continue to challenge your body and stay active for a life time.

For me it´s simple—I exercise to be strong. I´m not referring to physical strength either, all though that is an obvious by product; it is definitely the mental aspect. When we begin to see the things our body is capable of doing it increases our self belief, which in turn pushes our brain to convince our body we can do even more. It is a positive spiral effect. The way we think and feel about our self on the inside is the way we project ourselves on to the world. If you feel strong and confident, others see you as strong and confident. Personally I believe I´m capable of achieving anything I set my mind to; and this strength of character is a result of how hard I´ve trained my body.

Does this mean that since I´m such an exercise keener I love to work out? I wouldn´t go that far. When I am actually going through the motions of a work out I´m not saying to my self "this is wonderful, I hope it never ends". Like Nike says; I´m just doing it! I equate it to brushing ones teeth. I brush my teeth because my mouth feels terrible if I don´t—plus I don´t want my teeth to rot and fall out! It becomes so engrained into habitual practices that you can´t imagine not doing it.

I believe, you owe it to yourself and you owe it to the people who are most important to you. I want to be able to enjoy life to its fullest with my loved ones. I can´t do this if I´m not healthy and fit. I want to be a positive roll model for my kids one day, and more importantly just be there for them as they grow up to have kids of their own. We continue to become smarter with each passing generation yet with the development of our brains comes the "de-evolution" of our bodies. All other creatures on the planet pass on the strongest and fittest genes—we pass on unhealthy, out of shape, overweight, couch potato DNA. Things have got to change.

Ultimately, whatever it is that will motivate someone has to come from within, and only they know what that will be. It can´t come from me saying "you should go exercise" or a picture of some pretty person on a magazine cover promising you´ll look like them in six weeks. To quote a line from one of my favorite movies (the Matrix): "I can only show you the door; you´re the one who has to walk through it".

It was partly with this in mind that I helped create Fabs Cyberfitness. We are what´s on the other side of the door.

www.fabscyberfitness.com