During March I’ve been trying to lose some excess weight that I gained in January and February (results of the oreos, gatorade, and other goodies in my Christmas barrel)! I’m getting there with the weight loss (need to lose four or five more pounds) but was feeling good about myself.
Until I remembered the hills of Robinhood Road at my parents home……
Last week I wrote an devotional about my original weight loss in 1999, and how it developed a love for running (you can read the post here). That post brought back fond memories of many runs on that old road, but it also convicted me since I haven’t run on Vincentian roads for YEARS!
There are some reasons for this
- There are a LOT more hills here
- The heat makes training difficult
- And one of my running is sure to attract attention, as well as some laughter 🙂
- The real reason why is I’ve confused being skinny with being healthy
Trust me there is a difference!
Something I’ve noticed while emphasizing weight loss (being skinny) is my weight did go down. However I continued struggling with lack of energy, mental focus, and strength.
On Fridays I sometimes play games like football with children in the community because its a form of ministry, and gives me a good workout. A few weeks ago I found myself sitting on the sidelines instead of interacting with them because my body had NO ENERGY.
That’s when I realized being skinny was not enough….
I had to be healthy.
And to be healthy I had to start training again!
To be honest I’ve known for a long time that training and exercise should be a daily habit. But I kept putting it off because it was going to hurt! This is especially true for the core-exercises (stretching exercises) that would go along with the running itself. But more painful than the exercise is the shame involved.
None of us like to do something challenging, it makes us look foolish or incredibly weak at the beginning. So it’s easier to be skinny and “look healthy” than to struggle my way up a hill that shouldn’t give trouble at all.
So why embrace fitness in the first place?
Because I need to be stronger.
I am not looking forward to the pain (and REALLY not looking forward to the laughter) but with the Lords help I’ll put on my running shoes again. Because success comes as I meet the physical demands of ministry as well as the spiritual.
Johnhwilburn.org 