Christian Intuitive Exercise
The worldly view of exercise and fitness is heartbreaking. The purpose is lost, the methods misguided and often dangerous, and the result is brokenness. I type these words with absolute empathy for anyone caught in the enemy’s fitness trap. It used to be my cage as well.
There was a time when I earned my food with extra workouts, forced and manipulated my body into a size and shape it wasn’t created to be, and then punished it every time my micromanagement backfired. I believed the lie that I had to strive to build a body that looked a certain way in order to be healthy and be worthy of love and respect.
God has redeemed exercise and fitness in my life. I’ve rediscovered body movement and found that it is joyful and fun! I’ve learned that the goal of moving my body has nothing to do with pant sizes. I now know that my body size or fitness level does not have the power to determine my worthiness. My prayer is that this post will help you come to the same discoveries!
Christian Intuitive Exercise Principle One
Joyful Body Movement is Godliness Training
1 Timothy 4:8 tells us that physical training is secondary to godliness training. This holds true even when we are talking about moving our bodies. When you set out on your walk, head into the gym, or whatever your movement of choice is your first goal for the experience should be godliness training. I’ve created a Bible study on godliness training in my “Intuitive Eating with the Bible” study series. Be sure to grab the Bible study to dig in deeper!
Christian Intuitive Exercise Principle Two
Joyful Body Movement Feels Good
When you are joyfully moving your body, without forcing things under all the pressure to manipulate your body, you should feel great! You’ll notice things like:
- being able to handle stress better
- feeling more alert and energetic
- embodying an improved outlook on life
- feeling more empowered and determined
- sleeping deeper and waking up rested
Christian Intuitive Exercise Principle Three
Joyful Body Movement Makes You Able and Available
When we are participating in a combination of godliness and physical training, we are becoming more able and available to do whatever God is calling us to! Answering God’s call on our life does not require that we achieve a certain body size or fitness level. However, we do have a responsibility to be good stewards of the bodies we are given. When we approach our training with guidance from the Holy spirit and a heart focused on loving God and loving people, we will be led to truly take care of our bodies. Christian Intuitive Exercise is about wholeness.
Christian Intuitive Exercise Principle Four
Joyful Body Movement is not a work to earn acceptance, security, or significance.
As Christians we already have all of those things because of what Christ did on the cross. God loves us fully today and His love is never changing. You can not do anything to decrease or increase that love. If you find that you are striving after His love through physical fitness, I encourage you to repent, accept grace, and ask for the Holy Spirit’s guidance and strength to move forward.
In regards to earning acceptance, security, and significance with others, are you seeking to please men or God (see Galatians 1:10)? Also, if you have to manipulate your body shape and size, adhere to a set of food and exercise rules, or achieve a certain level of health in order to gain acceptance, security, and significance with your people, you may want to find new people!
Getting Started with Intuitive Exercise Tip: Make your daily life active
We often have a mental picture of what exercise looks like. We think that there is a right and wrong way to move our bodies: good, better, and best modes of exercise. I’m challenging you to pause and think on the idea that the best type of body movement you can do is the body movement that is practical and enjoyable for you!
Making your daily life active may look like walking, taking the stairs, doing yard work, playing with your kids, or doing a short yoga video on your lunch break. It will look so different for everyone. The key is to ask yourself what is doable and what you’d like to try or already know you enjoy.
Getting Started with Intuitive Exercise Tip: Make body Movement Joyful
Your active lifestyle has to include things you enjoy. If you don’t enjoy walking before work, don’t do it. That is when moving becomes a “have to” instead of a “get to”. When body movement is a “get to,” it is joyful and something we desire. Find what you like to do and then do it with a smile on your face and Lord on your heart.
For more help check out my Guide to Finding the right Exercise for YOUR body
Getting Started with Intuitive Exercise Tip: Make Body Movement a Priority
Recognizing all the benefits of body movement for your soul, spirit, and body leads to a commitment to doing it. We are more available and able to love God and love others when we are whole—well in spirit, mind, and body. Joyful body movement is a great avenue towards wholeness (Biblical health and wellness). This is true no matter your fitness level, disease state, or capability. Moving your body, however you can, to be as well as you can easily becomes a priority.
We can enforce our decision to make exercise a priority by:
- scheduling time for it in our day
- keeping walking shoes or a yoga mat in our office
- planning physical activities with our kids
- commiting to a regular group workout/physical activity
Getting Started with Intuitive Exercise Tip: Make Body Movement Comfortable
Have you ever tried to jog pushing the stroller and holding the dog’s leash while your old stretched out yoga pants inch their way off your hips, revealing the top of your bum to neighborhood? That is not fun girl, and it may be a sign that you need some new workout clothes! To make body movement more comfortable:
- Get clothes and shoes that you feel comfortable and confident in
- Move your body somewhere you like, somewhere that has a great view and/or great people
- Move your body in a way that feels comfortable for YOUR body. Learn modifications to adapt movements to best work for you.
Getting Started with Intuitive Exercise Tip: Include strength training, aerobic training, and stretching
Our bodies need these three activities. They each have a specific role in maintaining our physical health. They all work together to:
- Increase our bone health
- Increase our stress tolerance
- Maintaining a healthy blood pressure and cholesterol levels
- Reduce risk for chronic diseases
- Increase heart and lung strength
- Maintain our metabolism
- Maintain satiety cues and appetite regulation
- And so much more
Glorifying God with intuitive exercise means recognizing that physical training comes after godliness training, even in exercise. Joyful body movement is moving our bodies doing something we enjoy with a heart of worship. Moving our body is not something we have to do but rather something we get to do. It is an expression of thankfulness towards the Father, a tool we use to grow closer to Him, to grow in Him, to allow Him to fill us up so we are able and available to love on others. Be sure to grab my Intuitive Eating Bible study to develop a joyful body movement habit that glorifies God.
