The fall season is underway! We thought, who better than our own Fitness and Nutrition Manager, Janelle Avery, to speak into ways to break through fitness and faith plateaus. We’re so excited to share her encouragement and wisdom in today’s post!
Who loves Black Friday shopping? Or Cyber Monday? I know I do, especially when I have money to spend!
In the good ole days, when Black Friday sales started about 1:00 a.m., it tended to make people jump out of bed a little earlier than normal and run to the stores faster than lightning, simply to get their desired item for a price they could afford.
Your local clothing shops or grocery stores make a general average in sales each week. However, if they have a special deal that attracts their consumers, the company’s weekly profits more than likely increase. Either the consumers are coming more often within the week, spending more money, or the deals are attracting new consumers. Sometimes clothing companies have major deals because they are changing styles to accommodate the season. All in all, when a company changes their normal rhythm of sales by creating deals or changing clothing styles from quarter to quarter, they break the plateau in their sales…they see benefits in their profit.
In a sense, the body works the same way.
Of course, everyone’s bodies are different and not one body functions in the same way. Generally speaking, if you are experiencing a plateau in your fitness progress, by changing one or two F.I.T.T. categories, you may be able to break free! Just like the clothing or grocery stores, you may find yourself in a redundant routine, working out daily, doing the same fitness program day in and day out. My challenge to you would be to adjust one or two of the below categories for a month and see if it helps.
Disclaimer, according to the 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, ACSM’s overall recommendation is for most adults to engage in at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise each week. Please consult with you provider to assure it is safe for you to workout.
F.I.T.T. Principles
1. Frequency—how often
This is how many days a week you work out. The number of days could either increase or decrease.
2. Intensity—how hard
Your workouts can either be easy, moderate, or vigorous. Can you have a nice conversation with someone? Are you a little out of breath but can still talk? Or…you wouldn’t dare start talking?
3. Time—how long
Time is the duration of each of your workouts. This could change from day to day. One day you could work out for 30 minutes, another day you can work out a whole hour, and on your busy days you can squeeze in 20 miinutes. The choice is up to you.
4. Type—what kind
There are a variety of exercise types. I typically change mine up every quarter or half a year because I get bored. Some options can be cardio machines, lifting weights, hiking, swimming, running outside, group fitness classes, boxing, rock climbing, interval training, etc.
Things to keep in mind:
• Schedule
• Enjoying the type of exercise
• Health levels
Now, switching gears…
As much as I love fitness and love to be creative with my workouts, I find it easy to relate my spiritual life to my physical fitness lifestyle. 1 Timothy 4:8 says, “physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits for this life and in the life to come.” Yes, it is very important to take good care of the one body God has blessed you with here in the present, but it is even more important to be all that God has called you to be. Our spiritual life is not about trying to do good in our own strength to earn God’s love, acceptance, and plans for our lives. However, it is about relying on what Jesus did on the cross and bringing glory to Him. And from that place, we live our lives to point others to Him.
In my personal journey with the Lord, I can always tell when I do not feel close to Jesus. Nine times out of ten, the common denominator is that I do not spend time with Him. I feel like He is far away from me. Or I feel too busy for Him… (When I am too busy for Jesus, I am off!)
With that being said,
I want to share my F.I.T.T. Principles that help my spiritual connection with Jesus.
1. Frequency—how often
Increase your number of days with Jesus. If you normally connect with Jesus on the weekends, try connecting during a weekday.
2. Intensity—how hard
Some days you can spend time expressing gratitude to Him. You may want to pray bolder prayers than normal. Other days you can ask God the hard questions. (Of course, seek counsel as needed). In worship, some days sing soft songs, and other days sing more upbeat songs, and maybe even dance, if your heart desires.
3. Time—how long
Increase the minutes or hours with Jesus from week to week. Some weekends you could plan to spend the whole morning near the lake, or spend an extra ten minutes in worship.
4. Type—what kind
There are plenty of ways or methods people connect and spend their time with Jesus. Below are some examples.
• Devotionals
• Bible Reading Plans (Check out Mercy Multiplied’s free plans on YouVersion: Understanding Our Authority in Christ and Getting God’s Perspective on Your Life)
• Prayer: sometimes it can be more focused for family members, countries, leaders, finances, dreams, businesses, etc.
• Journaling: S.O.A.P. Method, What Why and How, Doodle Praying, Coloring Pages, etc.
• Worship: slow songs, upbeat songs, dancing, painting with music
Have fun with this! As you care for your body physically, care for yourself spiritually. It goes hand in hand.
