I Worked Hard For This Body!

So, this week was back to the 5.45am wakeup call for the gym.

Really tough after such a nice two weeks of lying in, eating pretty much what I want, putting off the day when I’d have to work hard to lose it again.

The last year has seen me lose a fair bit of weight. The comments, I guess are nice – ‘oh you’re looking good’ or ‘I thought you were looking trim’. But as I’ve got back into some fitness, I’ve realised a subtle undertone to my responses of ‘thank you’ – ‘yes, I have worked hard for this’.

Early mornings.

Deadly spin classes.

Monotonous laps in the pool.

I’ve worked hard.

I deserve it…

The whole weight-loss fitness thing can have its religious overtones of course. I consult my healthy food ‘Bible’. I might ‘confess’ to my wife if I’ve contravened a ‘2’ day (yes the dreaded 5:2 diet). I try to ‘be good’ but don’t always succeed. I even dress the part in my Ron Burgundy sweatbands (that’s a joke btw). 

Why it’s harder than ever to stay fit

So why is it harder to keep fit nowadays? And why might that fuel my pride in my achievements? There’s probably several reasons, but here’s just two.

The first is our sedentary lifestyle. Technology has led to amazing advances in how we work, but has meant that to stay fit we have to put more effort in, often in our ‘spare time’. In years past, manual work and house work without white goods meant more natural fitness from our daily lives. If we ‘looked good’ then big deal, it’s just what we did; it often didn’t mean extra effort or planning.

A second factor is the rise of sugar and fat-laden foods that are so readily available. We’ve gone from consuming roughly 2 kilos of sugar a year at the end of the 1800s to roughly the same in a week (!). Cheaper and quick-to-prepare/order ready meals, ideal for our fast pace of life, add to the problem.

Performance-driven identity

What’s the problem here? Sure, when I am scoffing my face with these rather tasty Bojangles Christmas chocolates (I’ve got to finish them soon, right!?), I feel good – for a while. But then the guilt and self-loathing begins. And the comparisons – I’ll never be as fit as so and so. Unlike my brother, I’ll never be able to give up chocolate!

And when I’m winning in the gym? I feel good – for a while. And then I start comparing myself to others again. This time, my verdict is that I’m more disciplined, committed….better.

There is such a temptation to let my performance in fitness (but not only there, in so many other arenas too) dictate my identity. To determine who I can look down on to make me feel better…accepted…saved even.

Acceptance-driven identity

This is where the message of Christianity is such good news. We are accepted by God, not because of what we do, but what Jesus has done.

As Tim Keller famously said,

The gospel is the good news of gracious acceptance…Christians who trust in Christ for their acceptance with God, rather than in their own moral character, commitment, or performance, are simul iustus et peccator – simultaneously sinful yet accepted. We are more flawed and sinful than we ever dared believe, yet we are more loved and accepted than we ever dared hope at the same time.’

I don’t have to perform for anyone. My self-worth and identity isn’t dependent on how I look, or how hard I’ve worked, or if I’m fitter than someone else.

As Keller finishes his excellent little booklet ‘The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness’:

Like (the apostle) Paul, we can say, ‘I don’t care what you think. I don’t even care what I think. I only care about what the Lord thinks.’ And he has said, ‘Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus’, and, ‘You are my beloved child in whom I am well pleased’.

My hard work is a response to the ultimate work Jesus did for me in dying on the cross to free me from pride and find a stable identity, accepted in him. As a Christ-follower, when in the gym, and in life, I can let my acceptance drive my performance – not the other way around.