purpose -> fun -> fitness -> purpose

It's undeniable - exercise is uncomfortable. And very, very good for you.

bodybuilding =  inverse mooning ?

Physical activity tremendously benefits our mental health. It's the only way to steer clear of one modern self destructive road, the wide road that leads to disuse atrophy and heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and on and on. Exercise helps you do things, real things, not just run 26 miles or flip tractor tires or stand on a stage in front of strangers looking un-pretty in a speedo.

I apologize if bodybuilding is your thing. I just never was a fan of, "Hey look at me standing here." My bad.

The less healthy you are, the less opportunity you have to experience this world, to play and work and serve others. Research shows that those who are active and fit don't live much longer than those who are not, but the quality of life is radically different (as are health care expenditures).

So why do people choose not to be active? [It is a choice for the far majority of us.]

While physical activity reminds people that they are hurting and out of shape, sitting on the couch or computer chair doesn't. And even children have learned that exercise is boring and painful. And who wants to do that?

Young or old, it needs to be fun. Note that I didn't say easy or pain free. The best type of exercise is absolutely what you find fun. And one of the best ways to make it fun is to set specific, performance based goals and train toward them with purpose.

Feeling good about how you look in jeans and being able to eat human sized portions of normal food without getting flabby and being able to roll and tumble with your children are meaningful goals. But they're not performance based goals that make hard training fun.

Justin over at Synergy Fitness recently posted on of those e-card things.

One of the greatest things in life is when you realize that 

your body just achieved what it couldn't have done two weeks ago.

True That! The pushing, striving, achieving, that, THAT REALLY IS FUN.

Maybe you want to dunk a basketball. Or walk a 5 k race in less than one hour. Or cycle a century or be able to pull twice your body weight right off the dead ground. Whatever the goal, you cannot afford to haphazardly drone through the motions. Forty five minutes of elliptical trainer here, a set of bicep curls there, a set of machine lateral shoulder raises if you feel like it...how boring and miserable!

Just like anything else in life, you have to do more than just show up.

For those of you interested in looks (And who's not?), please remember that form follows function. You cannot mold your body into the appearance of a cut, resilient warrior by doing random cardio and the seated ab twist machine. Aim at fit, you you'll get "hot" thrown in. Aim at "hot," and you'll get neither.

Train with purpose. You won't always feel like it. But choose to, and then go make it count. Plan, work, achieve, plan again. Have fun!

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Purpose looks like...

Cort, training for strength-endurance (and continued awesomeness) as he prepares for the Spartan Race. This was the finisher, a little somethin' we like to call "30 ROCK" done between bouts of Farmers Walks with 170 pounds:

30 Rock = ~55 lb rock for 30 reps: 10 over heard presses, 5 step-ups each leg, 10 "goblet" squats

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