I’m a big fan of going to the gym and working out. I have personally experienced the physical, spiritual, and emotional value of pushing my body hard and am convinced that everyone can benefit from working out.

While you will certainly benefit physically from getting into the gym, I am persuaded that this is not the only area of your life that will be enhanced. Earlier this week I was reading an article in which the writer NAILED IT on this subject so I have to share…

Consistent practice with a focus on self-improvement is the key to mastery of any skill. Strength training [i.e. going to the gym] brings that idea home like nothing else.

Imagine if an expert sat behind you as you typed up a paper, and after every paragraph gave you feedback about what was good and what was bad. Initially it might drive you crazy, but because she had expertise in the subject, the feedback would ultimately make you more confident in what you were writing about.

Nowhere else in life do we get such constant, clear feedback as at the gym, and this goes a long way towards building confidence and boosting self esteem. It’s very empowering to see yourself succeed at something challenging as a result of your hard work, and I believe that all those positives can be traced back to the fact that strength is easy to measure.

Read the entire article here.

What happens in the gym is a small picture of what happens in life. In the gym you encounter resistance. In the gym you experience pain and want to quit. In the gym you experience frustration when you fail to make a lift. In the gym you experience joy as you move heavy weight and set personal records. In the gym you experience much of what you experience in life (disappointment, pain, joy, excitement, etc.).

In the gym, as in life, you set a goal and then you must work at it… work at it… and work at it. You can see and feel progress… or lack of it. As you mature and grow stronger you begin to develop new levels of confidence… confidence that will walk out the door of the gym with you when you leave!

As a trainer and a regular in the gym I see that when people experience “wins” in the gym it often transitions to “wins” in their lives! It’s amazing how the feelings of confidence in one arena of your life can seep over into the other areas of your life!

So… beyond the obvious physical benefit of going to the gym, I suggest that there is mental, emotional, and even spiritual value found in getting into the gym and pushing heavy weights around!

What do you think? Have you found that working out increases your confidence in other areas of your life?

By the way… all you exercise people… don’t forget this verse:

Lazy people want much but get little, but those who work hard will prosper and be satisfied. (Proverbs 13:4 NLT)