Exercise...why is it so important.

Two weeks ago I made a speech at a Toastmaster's event that I thought would be appropriate for my blog content being that it was very much in line with my one of my most important views on life. This view is that without a consistent focus and dedication to exercise, you are not living your life to its fullest potential.  Exercise is one of those things that, even though it seems like it is taking away from your life because of sacrifices you may have to make to be consistent, it is actually giving to you rather than taking away because of the numerous things it ADDS to your life.

IT ADDS CONFIDENCE
Several weeks ago I wrote about ways to gain confidence in yourself. While there are a number of different ways to do this, one of the most obvious ways is to make sure that everyday you look as good as possible.  We all have had that feeling of feeling extremely good and/or powerful when we are wearing that outfit that we know we absolutely look amazing in or when we have that fresh haircut or hairdo.  One of the ways in which we can increase this feeling is to exercise to have the physical body to look as good as possible in our clothes.  There are many clothing manufactures (i.e. Express, Gap, Zara) who don't make clothes that are in the triple X-size.  Therefore, if we desire to wear the most up to date fashion trends like Kanye or Kim Kardashian (Have they still not named their baby?  What's that about?), we would be encouraged to lose weight through exercise to do so.

IT ADDS ENERGY AND PEACE OF MIND
Many individuals main excuse about why they cannot exercise is that they do not have the energy to do so. They complain about how tired they often are when they get home from work and how there is NO WAY they can muster up the energy to make it to the gym and do anything. The ironic thing about exercise is that the more energy you actually expend to do it, the more energy you will actually have.  It seems backwards, but exercising actually increases your overall energy supply by making your body perform more efficiently and, therefore, have more energy for other things. Your body will work better throughout the course of the day and continue to recharge itself naturally, so you will not be as tired at the end of the day.  From the peace of mind standpoint, there are very few things that will allow you to work off stress the way exercise does. In life, there are so many things that are outside of our control that can affect what happens to us and if we don't have some outlet to release that psychological pressure that can build as a result of that, we can eventually blow a gasket.  Exercise allow you to physically have an outlet to release that potential stress and feel more calm as you begin or end each day.

IT ADDS TIME
Probably the most important aspect of exercise is the added time that it gives to our lives on this planet.  We are all born with so much time to spend here with our loved ones, and we owe it to them to do everything in our power to make sure that we extend that time for as long as possible.  Using a car as an analogy, your heart is like the engine of your body.  Just as a car's engine must consistently be kept up to date with the correct fluids and maintenance to make sure it functions properly, your heart has to be treated the same way with consistent exercise. This will help your body function more efficiently and have much fewer "breakdowns" or need for "replacements parts" down the road - something that I'm sure we will all appreciate as we get older.

Exercise.  While no one wants to get up when they hear that alarm clock go off at 5am or walk into the gym at 6pm in the afternoon when they already had a very long day, we have to. While these may seem like large sacrifices, you will be surprised how much actual net value you will get from this.  The extra confidence, energy, peace of mind, and time will more than pay you back in the end.  Not only will you appreciate this, but those who love you and want to be with you as long as possible will appreciate it even more.

Ken Middleton is an Account Executive at TEKsystems that specializes in IT staffing and services. He is a graduate of UNC-Pembroke and current MBA student at Scheller College of Business at Georgia Tech.

You can follow his daily quotes of inspiration and motivation on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIN

Please feel free to SHARE if you like.  Thanks!