What is your why?

What is your why?

And what the heck does that even mean?

I love asking people this question- particularly when discussing fitness, but it also applies to food choices.  I know, sounds super philosophical, but really- what is your why?

Why do you go to the gym? Why do you want to be better or stronger or faster or PR your “Fran” time?  (never again for me😊) 

I’ll start with my own personal example.  I prioritize fitness in my life because I want to be able to bike, raft, ski and spend all the time outside with my doggies without slowing down.  I want to be healthy and continue to do these things for as long as I can.  For more reasons than I can even begin to name, fitness is a huge component to overall health and that is WHY I incorporate it into my daily routine.  So, that being said, does PRing my Fran time or my snatch really help me get closer to those goals?  Over the years, I have learned that the answer to that question is absolutely NOT… there is actually a good chance that I am getting further from my personal “why” when I do those things! 

Now, some of you are reading this and saying, “I just want to, I enjoy it and I like to challenge myself”, and that’s fine- but just take some time to think about your answer.  And on that note, make sure you aren’t comparing yourself to other people to gauge your results.  This is one of the main reasons I love and hate Crossfit at the same time.  I LOVE seeing people so motivated and passionate about their fitness and the whiteboard is what does it for many folks.  On the other hand, I HATE the fact that we can’t look away from the whiteboard and are constantly comparing ourselves to others.  For me, personally, that is NOT what I want my fitness to be about. 

Take a step back and check your ego at the door- I know you have all heard that, but really don’t let your ego control you.  Go in and do the best that YOU can do that day.  Do it for YOU, not the whiteboard. 

There are no wrong answers to this question.  You could be a professional athlete, a triathlete, a marathon runner, etc. and those are all great “why’s”, but for most of us, it is maybe not so glamorous.  I encourage you all to take a few minutes and ask yourself this question and take a long hard look at your answer.  I then encourage you to try to match your fitness routine with your “why” and don’t get caught up in all of the other non-sense. Get out of your own head, stop comparing yourself to others, and do what YOU can do each day. 

This concept also applies to our eating habits.  I remember when someone first asked me, “Why do you avoid all of the foods you do?”.  I felt like I was stumbling all over the place without being able to directly answer the question…and what I really wanted to say was, “Because I don’t want to put garbage in my body all the time”.

At the time, I did not feel like that was a good enough answer, but to this day, it remains my “why”.  I eat the way I do because I believe if I put crap in, I’m going to get crap in return.  I really don’t have huge aspirations to live an extraordinarily long life and be active until I am 101… but I do want to be able to enjoy the life I have to it’s fullest.  Eating the wrong foods for me makes me feel horrible- I literally hurt the next day, and it’s just not worth feeling that way all of the time.  Don’t get me wrong, I won’t give up my pizza nights, but I just have to limit them. 

After reading this, I hope you can all take a minute and think about your own personal “why”.  It doesn’t matter what the answer is and it doesn’t have to be glamorous.  If you want to eat ice cream every night because you love ice cream and that is that…it doesn’t make you wrong, but I also might argue that your health is not a top priority to you.  So, what is your why?