Reignite Your Joy
Remember how good working out made you feel rather than how it made you look
by Roy S. Johnson
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"I need to be back to my routine."
That was one of my friends. His
father had died a few months before,
and he was still dealing with the residual
e. ects of the depression and grief that
followed. Among the casualties: his
workout regimen, and, of course, his gut.
He'd gained more than 20 pounds and
was now depressed about it, as well. "I
was working out three or four days a
week," he said. "But I just can't seem to
get to the gym. I need some motivation."
Loss is debilitating. Even the small
defeats can cause you to stagger after
a Manny Pacquiao jab. The big ones
(the loss of a job, the death of a loved
one, the end of a relationship) can
send you deep, so deep nothing else
matters. Not eating right. Not getting
plenty of sleep. And certainly not going
to the gym or doing whatever you did
to stay fit.
Even worse, you lose it a lot faster
than it took you to get ..it. One day
you're preening in the mirror, checking
out your emerging six-pack and your
bulging guns, and the next (or so it
seems), your pants are screaming
for mercy and your arms move like a
child's swing.
Loss can not only kick your ass
but also can make it fat.
I told my friend not to think about his
routine. Trying to jump right back to
where he left o. was like pushing the
gas from 0 to 100 before the engine
has warmed. Not good for the car. Not
good for him. Instead, just think about
going to the gym once. And rather than
jump right back into the workout you
once did (risking injury and perhaps
feeling even worse because your body
isn't able to do what you did before)
do just enough to get your sweat on
and remind the muscles what it was like
to get pumped.
Do enough to feel good, then retain
that feeling. Remember how good
working out made you feel rather than
how it made you look.
Sure, a lot of us work out for vanity—
to look good at the beach or in a
T-shirt at the bar. But we also work out
because we like the way it makes us
feel. Invigorated. Gratified. Strong.
Happy. Confident. Ready.
Those feelings will send you back
to the gym one time, a second time,
and then a third. Pretty soon, I told my
friend, going to the gym will be like
brushing your teeth.
And it'll be far from routine. It'll be vital
to your lifestyle, vital to your joy.
Life will knock you down, probably
more than once. But how long you stay
down is up to you.
Onward,
Roy S. Johnson
Men's Fitness
Editor In Chief
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