The Pastoral Training Crisis: The Body, Pt. 2
Five Ideas for Cultivating a Sustainable, Realistic Exercise Rhythm
In my previous post, I wrote about a pastor’s physical health as an underdeveloped area of pastoral training. I shared my story of not exercising and then developing a rhythm of regular exercise, followed by seven reasons (that don’t have to do with body image) why I exercise regularly.
For this post, I will now focus on five ideas on how to cultivate a sustainable and realistic exercise rhythm.1
But before that, I need to address this: I am thirty-three years old, in good health, I don’t have kids, and I’m in a financial position to afford a gym membership (not a fancy one, but a membership nonetheless). Though I share these thoughts with the conviction that they are applicable and helpful for anyone, I do recognize that the season and circumstances of one’s life may require creativity, contextualization, and lots of grace. Nevertheless, these five ideas worked for me. I hope that they may be helpful to you too. They are not all the ingredients required for developing a habit and lifestyle of exercise. But they are essential for laying the foundation for forming a consistent exercise rhythm.
1. Delight over Drudgery
What is a physical activity you enjoy doing? Maybe this is walking, hiking, or pickleball. Instead of going from zero activity to doing burpees and squats in the gym, find where you already have “motivation momentum” and include it in your rhythm. If you are relationally motivated, find a friend to include. Exercise is far more enjoyable when it is engaged in community.
Begin where you are, not where you think you “should be.” And leverage your motivation momentum to move you toward a rhythm of consistent physical activity.
Will there be days when going to the gym feels more like drudgery than delight? Of course. I experience this often. But delight helped me establish the habit of exercising consistently. The delight-based motivation momentum provided a boost that rhythm and habit could later sustain (and prevail over drudgery, for that matter).
2. Realistic over Idealistic
Chris Hemsworth is not a realistic aspiration for me at the gym. Comparing myself to LeBron James, a genetic lottery winner with a career and resources focused on peak physical performance, is counterproductive. But Eugene Peterson, who ran regularly while he pastored, is a better inspiration.2 Who are people who emulate a healthy lifestyle and are more aspirationally realistic? In a world where actors, artists, and athletes are elevated as the standard for physical appearance, we must be cognizant of who we look up to as inspiration for cultivating a healthy lifestyle. Unrealistic models may inspire us to get to the gym a few times, but they eventually lead to motivation deflation and defeat. But realistic examples, people who live a healthy lifestyle but do not have the same resources of time, money, and genes that many celebrities possess, do not cause us to feel defeated. Instead, they provide a picture of what is possible.
3. Consistency over Intensity
We’ve all been there. We set a high goal and use all of our willpower to achieve it. Unfortunately, willpower is finite. Our good intentions and high-intensity fizzle out. We are right back to where we began. Maybe this is setting a goal to do 90 minutes in the gym daily while only eating kale. Or deciding to train for an Ironman when one has a demanding job and little kids at home. Those who do really intense physical feats receive attention and admiration. We elevate the likes of James Lawrence (AKA Iron Cowboy) and David Goggins. Consistency in the gym, however, with limited time due to work and family responsibilities, is not as exciting.
I applaud ambitious goals (as long as they are realistic). But I am a huge advocate for consistency over intensity. A long-term, sustainable lifestyle of consistent exercise is far better than a cycle of short-term intensity, burnout, and shame.
What does a consistent, sustainable, unassuming rhythm of exercise look like for you considering your present life situation?
4. Progress over Perfection
Comparison is a trap. If we feel like we don’t measure up, we feel defeated. If we compare ourselves to others favorably, we become prideful. When it comes to exercise we usually compare ourselves to the physically and aesthetically superior. This goes back to being mindful of who we look up to when it comes to health inspiration. We set a high bar, such as working out 90 minutes daily or looking like an Olympic swimmer. But when the bar is not met, we feel shame. And nothing deflates motivation for a healthy lifestyle like shame.
But what if we did not focus on an idealized vision of what we should be doing or look like? What if we focused on small wins, such as showing up at the gym? What if we focused on progress over perfection? We would look back at where we were a month ago (or a year ago) instead of looking at the people we wish we looked like or the exercise regimens we “should” do.
Prioritize progress over perfection. Do you feel better than you did before you began regularly exercising? Are you running a little bit faster or longer than when you began to run regularly?
Before we go to the final tip for cultivating a realistic and sustainable exercise lifestyle, let’s recall:
Delight over drudgery.
Realistic over idealistic.
Consistency over intensity.
Progress over perfection.
Keep these in mind as you create and cultivate a plan and rhythm for physical activity.
5. Working Out Starts Before Working Out
This week, I’ve adjusted my rhythm to exercise in the late afternoon after work. Normally, I get my workout done in the morning. When this is the case, I set out my workout clothes the night before. Why? Because when I wake up and put them on, I feel like an idiot if I decide to skip the gym. If I skip my workout, it means I must take off my workout clothes and put on normal clothes. This may seem trivial, but it is extra momentum toward the good decision of exercising.
The small decisions we make will set the momentum either for or against the healthy habit of exercise. Therefore, pre-deciding is essential to ensure the momentum is favorable.3 What does this look like? It looks like already deciding when I will wake up by setting my alarm. It looks like already deciding to work out by laying out my clothes beforehand. It looks like pre-deciding what I’m having for breakfast in the morning by laying everything out - the oatmeal, quinoa, peanut butter, and banana - the night before.
Working out starts with deciding to get to bed at a decent time because you are taking that workout class in the morning. The workout starts not when you get your running shoes on but in deciding to put the right fuel (food) in your body before the run.
In short, working out starts before working out.
What are the decisions prior to your workout you can make to set yourself up well with motivation, energy, and delight as you exercise?
A Final Word
As a final word of encouragement, we must keep in mind that cultivating and sustaining a lifestyle of health and fitness is a marathon. A sprint will quickly burn you out. If you have never run and immediately try running for an hour, you will injure yourself. Start where you are, progress from where you are, and aim for a better, healthier you.
Many of these ideas I have gleaned from Atomic Habits by James Clear, Desiring the Kingdom by James K.A. Smith, and inspiring YouTube personalities such as Rich Roll and Andrew Huberman.
Winn Collier, A Burning in My Bones: The Authorized Biography of Eugene H. Peterson, Translator of The Message (Colorado Springs, Colorado: WaterBrook, 2021), 141.
The idea of pre-deciding, even to the point of laying out your breakfast ingredients the night before, I learned from Craig Groeschel’s Leadership Podcast a while ago. Unfortunately, I do not remember which episode.