For more than 30 years, the fitness bandwagon has spent millions of dollars trying to convince us that the pursuit of slim, hard bodies is the key to happiness. This relentless message has persuaded many to become full-time fanatics, while the vast majority has fallen by the wayside, watching as the fitness bandwagon rolls by. Maybe you are one of the majority.
Do not feel guilty; it's not your fault if you don't exercise. It's not your fault if the thought of pumping iron, jumping to an aerobics instructor's bark, breathing hard and breaking a sweat makes you want to hide under your bed. Blame it on the fitness industry.
Much of the reason why you probably abhor exercise can be attributed to the way fitness has been packaged and sold. No matter what is said by the gym staff and personal trainers, the images, emphasis and messages speak louder than the latest politically correct spin. Whether perfection is real or imagined is another story. It's very rare to find someone who considered themselves to be without imperfections. Even cover models groan about their skinny legs or their puny wrists as if the earth's rotation depended on their having a different appearance. Why? The fitness bandwagon and the pursuit of perfection that results from it have been drummed to us with a thousand images, launching more obsessions.
Self-esteem is largely determined by how we feel about our looks. For instance, when people listen to a speaker in a platform, the visual accounts for 75 percent of what they recall. The majority pay attention to at least 30 percent of the words. People are a little strange that way. It's a bit disconcerting, yes, how the fitness industry could easily prey on people's natural tendency to focus on the image, and in turn, let image affect our feelings of self-worth.
Health and fitness have become abstracted, mystified and intellectualized. These days, most people rely on experts and scientists instead of their own common sense, to figure out how to be fit. Some people ask "How do I know if I'm working too hard?" as if they can't tell anymore when they are out of breath or when their muscles are tired. It's true that people believe that they need these answers so that they can exercise properly. If you have listened to tons of messages dumped into your email and your doorstep by the fitness industry, you will probably believe too. You shouldn't feel like a dweeb for relying on these fitness "experts" for answers that your body already knows. You have been brainwashed like so many others.
Here are a few examples of common questions to which you already know the answers:
How long should I walk? Ask yourself, "How long do I feel comfortable walking?"
Should I jump rope? Ask yourself, "How do I feel when I try it?"
Help yourself answer your own fitness questions by listening to your body. Reflective questioning helps to establish that you are best suited to determine how your body feels with movement.
