With my last two posts having questioned some proverbs and contemporary mantras, a couple of you asked me what proverbs I think are valid. For a taste of some I’m thinking about for my next book Thirty Proverbs to Live By here is one of them. Listen to your body: It whispers Before it Shouts.
You might not believe this, but I’ve been the poster boy for my local gym! They used me in an advertising spurt, and I’m told 1 person even signed up. At 69, that’s a feat worth boasting about. True, it’s a gym that advertises itself as being for non gym people, and they assure you they have no mirrors, make no comparisons and pass no judgment. You get the picture. It’s not the kind of gym where denuded gorillas are striding around. It’s the sort where I can be the poster boy. It’s called “Listen to your body” or LTYB.
Though I am not convinced it’s the most marketable name (I’m sure that’s why only one person signed up), the sentiment strikes me as important. Why listen to your body? Because it whispers before it shouts. Catch it when it whispers, and you can probably make the necessary changes. Wait until it shouts – well you will be shouting along with it. Or as another proverb puts it “A stitch in time, saves nine.”
And there is a yet better way…
When it comes to your body, why not do a little predictive work? Get ahead of the game.
In my 40’s I had a nasty experience when after an unexpected coughing bout, I looked into my hanky and discovered there was a fair amount of blood. I don’t like the look of blood at the best of times, but I especially don’t like the look of my own blood. To be honest, I felt positively queasy (not the sort of response you’d expect from the gym’s poster boy). Naturally I had it investigated and was told that I had developed some nodules in my throat, and that they were the result of reflux. “And the reflux,” the specialist told me delicately, “is almost certainly the result of ‘that’”, he said, pointing to my belly. “I can put you on some medication for the reflux, and I will for now, but lose 10kg, and it will probably sort itself out.”
My body had spoken. The things I could get away with in my 20’s and 30’s I would not get away with in my 40’s. It wasn’t the news I wanted, but as another of my life proverbs says, “facts are friends”.
It’s one thing to be told to lose 10kg, another to do it. I opted for the slow and steady method – the old fashioned reduce calories, increase exercise way. Now I know there are a lot of fancier and more exotic diets out there, but the tried and trusted method worked for me. After all, I wrote a book called The Tortoise Usually Wins which argues that consistently travelling the right route, even if very slowly, gets you to the victory line. Monday to Friday I watched my calories, I eased up on the weekend, and made sure I got to the gym at least 3 times a week. It worked. I’ve had no more blood filled hankies.
It would have worked even better if I had reacted sooner, predicting the obvious outcome of letting myself go. But better late than never.
Some of you might feel a tad disappointed that this post is all about the body. I usually try to provide a bit of a spiritual diet each week – but this week, no Bible verses, nor any theological comment – just get yourself along to the gym. Hmmm. Be wary of dualism. All of life is for the glory of God, and that certainly includes the way we treat the body God has gifted us for a season. I’m so tempted to thrown in several Bible verses here, but I will hold my ground. And yes, this no Bible verse post about the body is absolutely for the glory of God.
Oh, and did I tell you – here I am at 69, the poster boy for my local gym. Here’s the proof (and ok, it was a few months back now – but I intend to keep milking it!): https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1BpPh8pacZ/?mibextid=wwXIfr
Nice chatting…
Photo by tommy picone: https://www.pexels.com/photo/close-up-of-hand-picking-chrome-dumbbell-38407810/
Please help extend the reach of this blog by reposting, forwarding and subscribing. You are free to reproduce material from the blog with acknowledgement of its source.
