At the beginning of this summer, Tony pulled out our bikes. He dusted them off, pumped up the tires, and loaded them on the back of our car. Then, for a few weekends in a row, we hit some of our local trails. It had been a few years since we had been biking, and I’d forgotten how much fun it can be.
Each ride, we went for a longer distance than we had before. We found a trail nearby that is mostly paved and shaded, which became our favorite. Tony and I were having a great time and I thought biking would be one of my main modes of exercise for the season.
Then, I hurt my knee.
On our last ride, we had gone about sixteen miles and still had four and a half to go. We had stopped to grab a snack and some water. But when I got back on my bike and started riding again, pain shot through my knee.
I got off my bike, and tried to stretch it out. But the pain was still there. Thankfully, it wasn’t so bad that I couldn’t ride at all—it just wasn’t good. We slowly rode our way back to the car. And when we got there, I realized my knee was making a clicking sound whenever I bent it.
A few days later, I went to the doctor. My knee cap had gotten off track. The doctor said I needed to strengthen the muscles above my knee to hold it back in place. So rather than biking, for the past few weeks, I have been doing daily knee exercises.
I’ve had a love hate relationship with exercise for as long as I can remember.
I don’t know about you, but I’ve had a love hate relationship with exercise for as long as I can remember. Partly because situations like my knee, have happened before. Just when I feel like I am gaining momentum, something blows my fitness plans out of the water. It is so frustrating. Especially because I’ve had a lot of other things to overcome when it comes to working out.
Culturally, in our country, exercise has become a prominent element in achieving the “ideal body.” It has been set up on this pedestal making it feel unapproachable to many of us. Just say the words “work out” and we picture a bunch of models in skintight lycra.
For this reason, for a long time, I believed a number of lies when it comes to exercise. Ones that kept me from even trying to get in shape. Today, I want to share some of those lies with you, as it’s possible, you’ve ingested them too. Let’s expose them for what they are, and no longer allow them to keep us from our healthiest, best selves.
Exercise is about losing weight.
Sure, it may be a proven fact that exercise is a part of the equation for losing weight. But it does so much more for us than burn calories. It boosts our moods and energy, it strengthens our bodies, and helps ward of disease. Yet so many of us only hop on a treadmill because we feel ashamed about our bodies. When shame isn’t powerful enough to keep us there. We need to see that exercise is a gift, not a punishment for our pant’s size.
Exercise only looks one way.
So many of us get caught up thinking getting in shape looks like running, going to the gym, or killing ourselves doing a Beach Body program, after not working out for months. But there are so many ways to work out. There is biking, yoga, Zumba or dance class, walking, joining a community sports team (volleyball, basketball, etc.)—and so much more. The point is to move our bodies—we just need to find the ways that works for us both in this season, and in our current schedule.
Exercise is not for us.
If you’re like me and my knee situation, you too have hit your fair share of walls when it comes to getting in shape. When I was a kid and my asthma was really bad, I told myself exercise wasn’t an option for me. But all of these are lies. Though we can pick the exercises that most suit us, it doesn’t mean they will be easy for us right out of the gate. Anything worth doing is hard to some degree. We just need to choose to push through.
For the past few weeks, I’ve felt so discouraged about my knee. But you know what? It doesn’t hurt that badly—except when I exercise. I could just give up, only I won’t. I would miss out on how good my body feels when I exercise, and the possibility of getting back on my bike before the season ends.
What lies have you believed about exercise and fitness?
Where are they still holding you back from being your healthiest self?
Are you in the midst of making a decision? Contemplating a life change? If so, you may be interested in my FREE Making Changes Checklist that I give to all my email friends. Want your free copy? subscribe here.
