- I just had to use the cat!!!

Like my cats, however, I rarely find the time (or have the urge) to regularly exercise. I know better, but just do not find exercise an easy habit to acquire. What do you do for exercise, and how do you stay focused and dedicated to doing it? How can this affect our spiritual life, or our physical life? I'd love to hear your answers!! I'm hoping they will inspire me to go exercise!!

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Sarah Moss
*Prayer Changes Things!*

You will never find the time to exercise. The only way you will ever do it is to make the time, treating it as a high priority on which your life and health depends, as it actually does.

I enjoy walking outdoors, but I was always much too busy, so whenever I got started walking daily, I would eventually start skipping it in order to get other things done, and end up not walking at all again.

I was very careful to eat according to inspired counsels, because my health was important to me, but it was not enough. There are 8 laws of health, and religiously observing one of them while seriously neglecting several others will not save your health. The stress of overcommitment and overwork finally destroyed my immune system, permanently.

God is good, and He used my illness to teach me some very important things, about my own personality, about taking care of myself, and about Himself. When He had taught me all He needed to through my illness, He told me it was time to be anointed, at which time He healed me about 75% and told me that full healing will come as I put into practise what He taught me about taking care of myself.

And that means walking, outdoors, in the fresh air and sunshine, every day, no matter how much else needs to be done. It is one of my very highest priorities, above nearly everything else. And it must remain so for the rest of my life. And it's working - the more time I spend in outdoor exercise, the better I feel.

So, does that help give you a little incentive to make exercise a higher priority in your life? Don't wait until your health is gone before you determine to obey God's health laws. I only have a few productive hours in each day, partly due to the time I spend walking, and partly because I still have to deal with this illness and its limitations, but if I cut short my walking in order to get more done inside the house, I end up too sick to get anything done at all. It is well worth it to make time to take care of yourself, as you will have much more time for other things in the long run than you will if you end up too sick to do anything.

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The Lord is the strength of my life and my portion forever.

[This message has been edited by Cathy Sears (edited February 01, 2001).]

Sarah, that is a problem we all face in life. How many people say to you I just don't have time to exercise - I know I should!

A few years ago I determined to loose some excess weight, and I started my own walking programn. The children were still at school, so I had to go our early in the morning. That started a habit of a lifetime.
Yes, and I lost the weight, but better still, I discovered a new and better lifestyle - walking. so for years I walked around the river that winds throughout our lovely city.

Then 12 months ago, my back had completely packed up from dealing with a stressful situation. I couldn't walk anywhere. It was terrible, so I prayed to the Lord, told Him I wasn't going to spend the rest of my life in an armchair - I had too much living to do!
For 3 weeks I prayed, asking Him to heal me. Finally I heard Him say, heal yourself!
How Lord, I can't even walk!
Go to the hills,Zita..........total madness, I replied, I can't walk down the street without a walking stick, how can I climb hills?
Two weeks later I was praying again, I got the same message - go to the hills. This time I knew it was from God, and that He meant it.
So I went, with my walking stick to the hills.My dogs pulled me up on their leads. One soon learnt to slack his lead and let his mate do all the work!
After 2 weeks I found the walkingstick was more of a hinderance than a help, so I just used the dog, till a few days later I could climb unaided, and I have never looked back unless I am unable to go for a week, then I soon notice the diference.

Because I go out at 6am,I have an hour in the prayer room 1st, I take a small daily reading book and a New Testiment in my backpack, find a rock to sit on, and spend some time in the outdoors in praise ,worship and prayer.
I have found this to be my lifesaver.
It only happens if I make it happen.

Choosing a goal and sticking to it, changes everything - Scott reed.

Combining exercise with Prayer walking, or worship in some form is the best part of my day.

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Be Still My soul
Zita

Exercise is overrated, the only thing it does is postpone the inevitable. Like the guy told his wife when he got to heaven, "If I knew it was this good, I wouldn't have postponed it by living so healthy"

Sit back, read a good book, enjoy the kids or grandkids, and don't worry about the exercise, it just takes away from the things of life you enjoy. Would you rather have quality or quantity?

I sure hope the folks here know that the "Dr" stands for Doctor of Jurisprudence and not medical doctor!

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Even so come, Lord Jesus
Linda

They do now, Linda!

For your information, DrD, some of us do exercise for quality of life rather than for quantity. Didn't you read what Zita and I have shared above? Do you think our quality of life is very good if we are suffering pain, fatigue, or serious illness? I do enjoy reading and several other sedentary pursuits, but I certainly did not enjoy feeling more dead than alive and too sick to do anything.

Besides that, Zita and I both enjoy our walks immensely. Even without the physical benefits, we would prefer to continue to walk. I took my granddaughter with me on a walk when she was staying with me one day, and she was fascinated with the plants she saw growing by the roadside. She loves to see the flowers in my garden too, and pick them and tear them apart. (And eat them - she is only a year old.)

And that is another very important point to consider when deciding to exercise. You should always choose something you enjoy. If you are a highly social person, it's best to join an aerobics class or get together with friends or neighbors. That in itself is an extra incentive for being faithful in exercise. The commitment will help prod you to do it even when you don't feel like it.

My husband's aunt thinks walking is boring, so she is leading a water aerobics group with ladies from her church. That isn't my "cup of tea," but it works for her.

Perhaps, DrD, if you were to get moving and get some real exercise, you would find that the enjoyment of other aspects of your life would actually be increased. You might find that you could handle stress like you used to, and have more energy for doing the things you enjoy most. You don't have to spend a lot of time, or even exercise every day to benefit from it.

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The Lord is the strength of my life and my portion forever.

DrD, I guess you posted your remarks 'tongue-in-cheek'!
Now, you know as well as I do, that it takes more than exercising of the eyes ( reading a good book) to stay healthy!
For me, I want the best of both worlds in this life, quality and quantity! And while I am out exercising,, clearing my brain out of all those words I have read, filling my lungs with wonderful seaside/country air, keeping my muscles flexible instead of in spasams, keeping my spine from acting up so that I am forced to sit in an armchair for weeks on end - reading...........bored out of my brain!
At lease I won't be hobling into heaven on a walking frame!
Anyone coming for a walk?

Be Still My Soul,
Zita

I guess I have to say that going for long walks in -20 or -30 (Celsius) weather just doesn't appeal much to me. Give me summer and I'll join you on those walks!! In the meantime, I'm still having trouble getting up the will power to go exercise. I keep saying I'm waiting for the pool to open in our apartment building, and they keep saying "this month" (since December!!). . . I guess its like eating a hated, but healthy food - I hate it but do it because it's good for me.

Pray for me that I will just get up and do it!! Personally, I'd much rather curl up with a good book - somedays I say my two ten minute walks a day are good enough, but I know they aren't......

One step at a time, right?!

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Sarah Moss
*Prayer Changes Things!*

Cathy - I wonder how much true exercise you obtain while walking with a one year old granddaughter. How much did your heart rate increase from the exercise? But then I guess you did take my advise and "exercised" by enjoying your grandkid.

Mrs. Sarah Moss - from the description of your lifestyle, why do you want to live healthier? You eat food you hate, you exercise in cold weather which you hate. Sounds like you are trying to live longer so you can do the things you dislike for an extended period. Have you really thought this thing through.

Linda Sutton - I am a Doctor of Jurisprudence. I assume that would make my opinion more valuable, since all MD's and OD's want to do is feed you more pills, which seems to be opposed to by most of the participants on this forum. Thank you.

Zita - How could anyone be bored by having extended periods of time to read?

Have any of you really seen a happy runner. I see the pain on their face and I drive by them in my airconditioned or heated car, depending on the season. I have never seen one that looks truly happy running down the road. Maybe if you really feel the need to exercise, you could buy a set of dumbbells (I'll resist any easy comments here) and sit in you most comfortable chair and lift and lower them occasionally. Or better yet, use them for bookends.

Have a great day.

Actually DrD, that walk with my granddaughter was probably a lot more exercise than I usually get on a walk. She wasn't a year old then, and she wasn't walking yet. I carried her the whole way! I tried carrying her on my shoulders for a short distance, but she was too young to understand how to sit still up there and kept shifting around as different things caught her attention, leaning one way and then another and constantly throwing me off balance. I only walked about half as far as usual and came home totally exhausted! But it was worth every bit of it!

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The Lord is the strength of my life and my portion forever.