Why You Should Work Out — 3 Ways Physical Exercise Improves Your Lifestyle
The parallel between grinding in the GYM and grinding in life.
So, we’ve all been through zero productivity phases in our lives; hours of browsing through Instagram and Netflix, becoming a potato couch, feeling depressed, and don’t know why. Yeah, it’s calm and relaxing… however, something feels off about it.
For the last couple of weeks, in my free time, I have been wasting time on the phone, drinking alcohol, etc. It felt good, but at the same time, I felt guilty. Before I knew it, thoughts about life decisions run through my head or a feeling that I should get another job.
One day, I got a notification from some video about a 45-minute David Goggins workout. I said to myself: “I might as well try something new today. There are worse ways to waste time”.
And so far did I not realize that I was completely wrong about worse ways to waste time. Long story short, the full-body workout crushed me, it tore my body apart, but I was feeling good! I craved even more of it and now have been training like him for the past two months!
Working out potentially improved my daily mood and self-esteem. So not only did I minimize social media consumption, but I also started working and improving on my hobbies and activities. That led me to an insight: We need to expend energy — whether it’s a creative endeavor, a personal project, entrepreneurship, physical training, an adventure, or whatever you put your mind to.
The same effort I give for a workout is potentially the same intensity I should give to my goals. This feeling of working out over time hits a nerve that can’t be hit otherwise. You will wonder if you can do the things you want to do in life, for a better future for your kids, and your grandkids.
This topic is about the juxtaposition between regular day-to-day physical training and your projects, dreams, and vocations. How can doing deadlift squats be equal to working on your personal goals?
What doing training sessions and working on my own personal goals have taught me are three key principles:
- Discipline
- Action
- Mentality
Discipline
If I were to give you one million dollars if you work out one hour a day, every day, for three months, would you do it?
Yeah, of course! Doing it for money would be no problem at all for most people. I don’t feel like doing it — but hey, there’s a reward for it! you’ll get one million dollars! So these excuses would weigh less in importance, correct?
Now, that’s super different from some regular motivational dude that tells you to work out because it’s good for you (yeah, I’m one too, but I have good reasons) because, why? Why bother suggesting that? I don’t have the energy, nor the time, nor the commitment, I’m too busy yadda yadda. We have that reaction because there is no reward; at least one that is not immediate.
A workout session will prompt you to be very lean, very muscular by the end of the workout, BUT it's a four-hour-long workout. Most people would go for it because it’s short-term, that’s the keyword there.
You won’t grow muscles overnight, you got to do it through repetitive sessions. The process takes time, but when you convince yourself to go through an intense hour-long cardio session even though you don’t feel like it; it’s not about suffering, you tap into discipline. Think about it; it’s a one-hour workout session — one hour out of 24 in a day, you’ll get through it, and when you do, you’ll feel invincible.
Discipline is the key to daily work; only by constant doing can you become better, and grow stronger.
Action
You can spend hours planning and think about something, but it’s not the same as actually doing it. Now, it has been wired into us by our parents, peers, and acquaintances that we should take the path of least resistance and indulge in some other activity. When it comes to your dreams and your goals, some people say that if you believe them, you will achieve them.
I can’t deny that there’s no value there; the human brain can, in fact, be very powerful, but the missing component for thinking is that it is not tangible. What’s important is work; action, actually doing instead of thinking. Get out of your head and into the fight.
It might suck, you might feel like you don’t want to continue. Get over those thoughts, grab them by the neck and throw them away! You know you have the stuff to do, so get it done without complaining.
Mentality
After the last 15 reps in the Bench press, you step off having gone through the rough chest and tricep workout. Your body feels as if it’s about to crumble, but your mind is like “I’m the hardest human being someone will try to kill!”
Going to a training session can be compared to war; you will make an effort, sacrifice something, and struggle through it. You are going into a fight and come out the other side with your body in bad shape, sore, weak, and numb.
It’s the same as life —to struggle is undeniable, it’s something we all share no matter where you are from. What’s most important is that you go through the hard times with your fists clenched with furious courage and unstoppable resilience.
Get out of your bed or couch and don’t take mediocrity or laziness for an answer. After all, your body is a temple — don’t waste your time hanging around. Your new mindset would be like “how far can I go” how much effort can you endure?
You get something out of your mind and life through intense physical training or relentlessly working to make your dreams come true. When your struggle is over, the relaxation would be really earned; your efforts do pay off in times of rest and recreation. It is important to do things that make you proud of yourself.
Conclusion
When your body starts getting stiff and immobile, you might want to get in greater touch with your capacity for movement.
Getting the blood pumping through your veins will make you feel alive and leave you feeling a desire to do better.
What I learned through physical exercise and constant work can only be understood by doing it, so go there and keep practicing that endeavor of yours, or hit the weights.
