Lift to Love, Love to Lift

Whether you are half of a couple, single, or somewhere in-between this Valentine’s season, self-love is important.

Self-love comes in many forms, and though the psychological aspects are outside of my scope of practice, I can speak on the physical. 

A fitness routine is self-love. Setting aside 30 minutes a day to move your one-of-a-kind body is an act that makes you stronger and more resilient in countless ways. It provides the strength for the new mom to be able to hold their little one for hours at a time with less fatigue. It allows the teacher to stand in front of the classroom without back pain or sore feet. The desk jockey at a corporate job builds a strong back to prevent those shoulders from reverting back to the days of the Neanderthal. The EMT/firefighter isn’t limited in saving someone in an accident. The college student with wanderlust can hike the Inca Trail with ease on their study abroad program, and the retiree can climb up the stairs of a bucket list monument on their travels. 

When you wrap your hands around the iron barbell, you are living up to your promise to be strong. You are giving your body (the only one you get in this lifetime) the best defenses against illness and disease, an easier recovery from an injury, and adding life to your years. When you lift those heavy plates off the floor, you are lifting up your spirits and mental health. You raise your standards, increase happy hormones, and stimulate your mind to handle the real heavy stuff.

You run to your heart’s content; you run toward the people you love, run away from danger, and run because your heart is still beating. You dance around the living room like no one is watching, dance onstage for the whole world to see, and dance together in a crowded banquet hall and feel like the only two people in the room. 

You ride on two wheels with your own power out of love for the environment, or to soak in the sea air on the boardwalk. You switch gears and take on hilly roads as part of a triathlon. And when riding solo is as easy as riding a bike, you rent a tandem bicycle with your newlywed spouse on your honeymoon. A few short years later, your kid pedals for the first time.

There are countless other ways that movement is an act of self-love, and I can write an entire novel about the benefits. When you are healthy and can take care of yourself, you have more to give when you do want to share a life with that special someone, platonically or romantically. Just like how the instruction card on a plane says to put the oxygen mask on yourself first before assisting others in your row, you must be healthy for yourself.

Working out is not about trying to look good enough for a partner; it’s about empowering yourself, and the exuding confidence might surprise you when you attract a fellow runner like yourself. Lift to love yourself, and eventually you may love to lift.