What does being fit mean to you?
The way I see it, fitness is a tool in life. It’s a piece of the puzzle. Being fit has different facets and there are different ways of getting there, but for every one of us, it’s important.
Being fit has an impact on everything that we do. It’s not just about looking lean and having a six-pack. It’s more than that. It’s about being the best version of yourself.
I took a dive into what I see the meaning of ‘being fit’ is, why it’s so important and how we can get more fit.
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO ‘BE FIT’?
The way I see it, in the most literal sense, being fit means that you’re equipped. Equipped for whatever’s ahead of you. If you’re physically fit, then you’re physically ready for what’s in front of you. The same goes for being mentally fit. You’re mentally prepared and equipped for what you have to do.
Fitness is not just for your body, it’s for your mind too. They go hand in hand. Being physically strong without mental strength won’t do you much good, and the same goes if you’re the opposite.
If you Google ‘being fit’, here’s the first thing you’ll see:
It’s about being able to best provide for your life.
This is what working out and exercising does. It improves your level of fitness, both physically and mentally. You’re both physically and mentally stronger and better equipped to live your best life. If your fitness training is not doing this, then I’d change things up.
Working out => improves your fitness abilities. Your improved fitness abilities => improves your life. It’s all part of the puzzle.
WHY BE FIT?
Slice of Pie Metaphor
I like to think of life as a pie chart, made up of everything that we do. I’ve worked to make fitness a significant slice in my life. I’ve taken on the opportunity to help make fitness a meaningful part of your pie chart too.
The amazing thing about fitness is how it impacts everything else you do in life. It improves the other pieces of your ‘pie of life’. Just by working out a couple of times a week, it can really make serious changes in you, both physically and mentally.
You know that great feeling you get after you finished a task? When you exercise you get that feeling all the time. These added daily/weekly accomplishments trickle into other things that you do. You had a good workout in the morning? You’re going to carry that positive energy into work. You had a great afternoon workout? You’ll feel great and confident for your night out with friends. The good energy from your workouts trickles into other things in life.
A Fit Body
As I broke down earlier, I think of fitness in two ways, a fit body (physically fit) and a fit mind (mentally fit). An idea I’ve heard Jason Phillips, the founder of Nutritional Coaching Institute say's is that fitness goals are comprised of three categories:
Performance
This being for your specific sport or task at hand. Your goal is to be the best at this.
Aesthetics
This is your appearance. Your main objective comes down to how you look. That is how you’ll base your success.
Longevity
AKA health. Your goal is to get yourself as healthy as possible.
These three categories make up physical fitness. If you’re a beginner in the fitness game, you’ll see progress in all 3 categories early on. If you’re starting to lift weights, in the beginning, you’ll see yourself getting stronger, looking better, and getting more healthy.
Improving in some or all of these categories makes up your physical fitness.
A Fit Mind
A fit mind is a bit harder to pinpoint. I mean, our minds are super complex, so it’s understandable that it’s hard to explain. To me, being mentally fit is a combination of being mentally strong, sharp but also flexible. Being firm in where you stand, being quick to act, but also willing to adapt and get better.
A fit mind is not just about intelligence. It’s more than that. It’s about APPLYING your intelligence. How do you use these smarts that you have?
Two-parts of being mentally fit that I see as most important are:
Discipline
Emotional Control
These two skills can make huge impacts on just about everything you do. Without discipline, exercise is nearly impossible to stay committed to so you actually reach your goals. The same goes for nutrition. Being disciplined is required.
Emotional control goes along with discipline, but I see it kind of preceding it. The ability to control your emotions allows for you to have discipline. The goal of emotional control isn’t to be emotionless, but to be fit enough to not let your emotions get the best of you that you get knocked off the path you’re on.
These skills play huge factors in your day to day life. Just like with being physically fit, being mentally fit creates confidence. Showing discipline and emotional control constantly creates so much confidence and good energy in you that it’ll make so many other things in your life great. This ties back into the slice of the pie metaphor from before. The goal is to make your life as a whole great.
HOW TO GET FIT
Getting Physically Fit
Now that we know what it means to be fit, and why it’s important to be fit. Let’s discuss how we get fit.
When we think of fit, for most of us the first thing we think about is exercise. That makes sense.
By exercising we’re making our bodies more equipped for whatever life is going to throw at us. If a tiger jumps out into your room, the more fit you are, the better off you’ll be against the tiger. It’s a bit of a weird example, but it makes sense.
Now, how you actually get fit really depends on you. There are basic principles that apply to just about everyone, but the more you get into the details of each person, the specifics vary. You might have specific health/injury issues that play a factor in exercise selection. You might also have preferences. You might like running, so you should do more of that to get more physically fit.
While I’m more focused on getting myself and my clients stronger, I’m aware that there are many different ways of getting fit. I’ve tried to become more open to this with my content and how I train clients. As I just wrote, it depends on the individual. Priority #1 is having you wanting to stick with the exercise and doing it consistently.
There are so many ways of getting physically fit nowadays. There are gyms, there are group classes, there are YouTube workouts, you can go running, go biking, go walking. There are so many ways of incorporating physical fitness into your routine.
Some exercises are “better” than others, but it depends on your goal.
Find what makes you happy, what you can stick with, and helps you reach your goals.
Getting Mentally Fit
I’m sure you know people who you’d describe as being mentally fit. They’re confident, powerful, and seem like they know what they’re doing. But how did they get like this? What special things did they do to become this type of person?
If I’d put it in one word, it would be ‘experience’. They’ve experienced things. They’ve experienced different challenges and opportunities that have built this mental fitness. They’ve done things that were uncomfortable or scary, but they became better because of it.
Trying new things is scary. Being different is scary. You’re out of your comfort zone. You can fail. It’s OK to fail. You learn things by failing. You get stronger from failing. There are so many great quotes about this topic, but here’s my favorite, by Nelson Mandela. “I never lose. I either win or I learn”.
This approach, to me, IS being mentally fit. It’s about the mindset and the ability to approach any situation knowing that it’s going to make you better, one way or another. This mindset unlocks so many possibilities.
So how do you get to this point? By trying things. New things. Different things. Scary things. I mean, what’s the worst that will happen? You’ll embarrass yourself, and you’ll get over it? You’ll hurt yourself? OK so you’ll rest up and get better. But imagine how you’ll feel if you accomplish whatever it is that you’re working towards. It’s a serious accomplishment and will seriously impact your person.
So now my challenge for you is to take action. You can decide what that action is, but take steps in becoming more fit, in whatever way you want.
I’m such a believer in how fitness and being fit will improve your life a whole.
It’s not just about being fit in the gym. It’s about being fit in life.
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