Are you procrastinating your workout, cozying up in your comfort zone a little too much? We all love the warm embrace of familiarity, but let me tell you a secret- it might be holding you back from reaching your true potential. In this blog, we’ll explore how neglecting exercise and dwelling in our comfort zone can have a negative impact on our mindset, hamper our mental growth, and prevent us from reaching our best potential. But worry not! We will also uncover how physical exercise can actually provide a transformative boost which can propel us towards reaching new heights.

Are you putting off your workouts?

Picture this: you are wearing your favourite comfy pyjamas, snuggled up on your bed surrounded by your favourite snacks, and binge-watching your favourite series. In the back of your mind, that nagging voice, none of us likes, says, “Break a sweat, will you?” Uninvited guest alert! The thought of even getting up from the bed seems like a sin, let alone exercising. We’ve all been there. It’s tempting to put off exercise, especially when you are all comfy and happy in that soft blanket. However, as good as it is to take some rest, giving in to the temptation of putting off exercise regularly can have serious consequences.

How does exercising uplift your state of mind?

Exercising. What is the first thought that comes into your mind when I say “exercising”? For me, it is a muscular guy, lifting really really heavy weights. While this is true to a certain extent, exercising is never just about sculpting our physical bodies. Engaging in physical activity has a profound impact on our mental well-being too. Challenging our bodies leads to the release of endorphins. Endorphins, or as we like to call it, the magical chemical, is responsible for that bliss and content you feel after workouts. Why do we call endorphins magical chemicals? Well, endorphins are mood-lifters, stress-busters, and energy-boosters, all rolled into one. It’s like a mouth-watering wrap, that makes you satisfied.

But it doesn’t stop there! Regular exercise is a catalyst, the enhancing type, for cognitive function, memory, and focus. It’s like a mental workout that sharpens our intellect. To unlock the gateway to mental growth, and to elevate our overall mindset, we need to break out of our comfort zones and embrace physical exertion.

 How can physical exercise benefit people and help them reach their best potential?

Some while back, we heard from a teenage girl about her journey of the past 3 to 4 years. It was heart-touching yet heartbreaking at the same time. This girl told us how her life had transformed, all because she had discovered the magic of physical exercise. In 2019, this girl felt out of place. She didn’t know where she belonged. Her life seemed like a mess, for herself. It hurt because she was lost, not physically, but mentally. Perhaps it was because she didn’t fit into what the world expected of her, or it was because she didn’t know what she wanted in her life. She did have friends, but maybe none of them were mature enough to realize what friendship actually meant. On top of that, being a teenager didn’t help at all, nor did 8^th grade. She said that she used to get up, and when she saw herself in the mirror, all she saw was a fat, ugly, and useless girl looking back at her. She didn’t know why, but every time someone took her name, she presumed they were body shaming her, or calling her ugly. She said, “The fact that I was never openly bullied by others made me feel that my feelings were invalid. But my mind bullied me. I bullied myself, and maybe that was what slowly killed me from the inside. I felt so useless. I felt that I actually had no purpose on Earth

As she was towards the end of her final exam of 8^th grade, the pandemic descended on us. The girl told us, “3 months into the pandemic, my mom dragged me out of my bed, frustrated with me lazing around. She pulled me out into the living room and made me do 100 jumping jacks in my pyjamas.” “While doing the jumping jacks, it felt like I was going to die. I was working out after a really long period of time and it just seemed impossible to even do 20. I was out of breath by the 50^th jumping jack. Dead by the 100^th one.” The girl continued to say that after the jumping jacks, she felt so good. All that despair, all that negativity that was in her mind, all disappeared. And even more, that was just the beginning for this teenager who dreamed of being confident in her own skin.

“Today,” the girl said, “Today, in 2023, I feel so much better in whatever clothes I wear. I can walk around in crop tops without being afraid of being body shamed. I can wear whatever I want and I feel so good in it. Maybe that one time my mom dragged me out of my bed and helped me push my limits, that one push was all I needed. When I started my 11^th grade, in another school, I was a completely new person. My mindset had changed, my positivity was contagious, and everyone started befriending me. I no longer felt that people were body shaming me behind my back, and I met a group of friends that I wouldn’t trade the world for.”

Pushing our limits doesn’t always seem like a fun task. It is uncomfortable. It irks me too. But that one push every day, that one push can accelerate your pace to achieve your goal. So do it. Get up from that bed, eat that healthy food, grab those weights, put in those earphones, go for a run, do those push ups, because if you don’t, you will be nowhere near where you want to be.

Break free from those chains of your comfort zone and embrace physical exercise. Unleash that lion within you and smash that workout! Unleash a cascade of benefits that extend beyond the time of your workout, and let them seep into your life and help you reach your best potential! Get ready for those mindset shifts, and the crumbling barriers, and get ready to embark on that journey that awaits you. The journey of self-discovery and personal growth.

Start small, take baby steps, and gradually increase the intensity Celebrate every milestone and pat your back for the progress you made. You might have heard this quote a lot, but remember, “Rome was not built in a day.”