Scripture Reflection
“For in Him we live and move and have our being.” Acts 17:28
Regular 
physical exercise is one of the tools that will allow us to live the healthy life we envisioned for ourselves yesterday. The problem is that many of us can’t find the motivation to commit to exercise consistently.
In his book, ‘The 2-Degree Difference’ by John Trent, he stresses the significance of making small 2-degree changes in your life to make lasting impacting change.
It’s that same principle that we will be applying to our fitness goal. Read the guidelines below to help you create your exercise goal that you will be committing to for the next 21 days.
Guidelines for achieving your exercise goal
- Start small – We’ve been duped into thinking that exercise means spending one hour in the gym or on a treadmill. You may eventually get to that point where you want to exercise for that long, but for now start where you’re at. If you’re currently not exercising, start with something very small like marching on the spot 5x per day for one minute or 5 minutes 1x per day; you can set a step goal of as little as 1,000 steps per day or 10,000 based on your current activity level; set a walking goal, or if you have stairs in your home, you can set a goal to go up and down your stairs a certain number of times. We’ve also created a series of exercise videos you can check out.
- Focus on incorporating exercise into your everyday life – Only choose a goal you know you can accomplish without exceptions– such as walking for 5 minutes, dancing for one song, doing leg raises while talking on the phone, marching on the spot while washing the dishes, or doing 10 squats over the toilet seat! Get as creative as you can! Make it a game to look for opportunities to move throughout your day.
- Focus on fun – We quit exercise because the thought of exercising can be overwhelming or painful. Until we change the way we think about exercise, we will continue to put it in the negative category. Try something fun like dancing to one song per day; engage in some friendly competition with a buddy; enter a contest or a challenge (if that motivates you). Try tools like a Fitbit to track your steps.
- Ground your motivation in Christ – studies show that people who exercise because they ‘should’ or because they ‘need’ to lose weight are not able to maintain their motivation. Your desire to exercise should be intrinsic, meaning you should do it because you want to take care of your temple; you want to glorify God; you want to do something good for yourself. We will spend more time developing the habit as time goes on.
Guidelines for this 21-Day Exercise Challenge
For the next 21 days, our focus will be on developing the discipline of daily exercise/physical activity.
- Pray about a goal that you will commit to for 21 days consistently.
- Choose a goal that you know you can not fail in but will still stretch you and move you out of your comfort zone (choose something you are not currently doing).
- Share what you plan to do. It could be as little as 5 minutes of stretching. The point is consistency, discipline, and trust.
- I suggest you print out a calendar and track your 21 day workout program.
P.S. if you are tired of circling the same mountain over and over and want a Christ-centered approach to lasting weight loss without feeling guilty, deprived, or overwhelmed, be sure to sign up for our video course program right away at cathymorenzie.com