PSYCHOLOGY
To Get Fit You Must Not Try To
Leverage your unique fitness type
Like many, I too have spent my fair share of effort trying to get fit. I have tried a lot of alternatives: bodyweight exercises, running at the local park, hitting the gym, buying at-home equipment. You name it.
Like many, I started with a lot of determination, trying to be fit both for health and the looks. But, you know how it goes, the determination quickly evaporated, and I was left with a very expensive coat hanger at the back of the bedroom.
After many similar results, what gradually dawned on me was that I could not get fit if I tried to.
It just doesn’t work that way. Fitness, even for extremely fit people, comes as a by-product of something we really, truly like doing.
It so happens that a “lucky” few truly like activities that are directly related to getting fit, so that the causal direction appears reversed. And since they create the fitness videos and guides, and also design the fitness equipment and run the gyms, the causal direction is mixed up for all of us as well.
Our unique fitness type
There are a lot of activities we can find truly enjoyable and also contribute meaningfully to our fitness. The problem is not to think up possibilities, but to first release from our mind any culturally-ingrained fitness desires. And only then to pick our activity of choice.
This means we have to remain open to exactly what type of fitness we will end up with. If you desire to get a six-pack, you will not get it from playing tennis. But you will get nicely fit in a functional, highly usable way both for your everyday well-being and to enhance your enjoyment of your activity even more.
And consider this: the type of fitness you get from doing an activity you truly like is the one that is truly yours for the taking.
The sooner we realise this and release expectations of other fitness types, the sooner we will get up, start enjoying ourselves, and start developing the unique fitness each of us can access.
As an example, I would like to propose a not so well-known activity that I truly enjoy and has worked wonders for me. I think a lot of you may like it as well.
The joys and freedom of long-distance cycling
In the dim light of dawn, as the wheels hum over the pavement, I break free into a forested pathway. The breeze, imbued with the earthy scent of the woods and the tangy nip of a hidden stream, envelops me. I lean into a corner, tires gripping the road with a satisfyingly tactile assurance, and as I arc through, the curtain of trees parts — unveiling the infinite expanse of the sea below.
All these are the joys of long-distance cycling.
Long-distance cycling isn’t your average jaunt to the grocery store or a casual loop around the neighbourhood park. It is about laying down serious miles — think 50, 75, even 100 — across secluded countrysides and quaint coastal villages.
Fitness has to come as a by-product of something you really, truly like.
Fitness? Sure, it comes. But it’s almost an afterthought, a bonus that sneaks up on you. Your focus isn’t on reps, heart rate zones, or calories burned. Instead, you’re enjoying the wind-in-your-hair on descents that feel like flying, as you become one with the world around you.
But long-distance cycling is not easy. Actually, it is sufficiently hard to not be a go-to option, even if you would really enjoy it. Luckily, there is a solution.
Making what we like more accessible
I don’t know about you, but me, I am not very fit. I mean, I am ok, but I’m not 50-miles-cycling, 3000ft-elevation-gain kind of fit. Most people aren’t, despite what the internet and media may be leading us to believe. So, if the joys and freedom of long-distance cycling appeal to us, we have to be realistic.
Enter e-bikes. Modern iterations are not e-scooters; they’re sophisticated hybrids that amplify our own pedaling power, meaning we have to put in the effort if we want to get back any assistance from the bike. This assistance exclusively comes as a percentage of power boost over our own effort.
So, e-bikes offer two key advantages for normally fit people:
- they help you to handle steep inclines with dignity
- they allow you to cover long distances at a reasonable time
This combination makes them exactly what we need to hit the road with confidence that we can make it through no matter what.
And here’s the kicker: contemporary e-bike technology has evolved to the point where, when the motor’s off, it’s truly off. That means no added resistance, no dragging friction. You’re as free to pedal unassisted as you would be on a traditional bike.
Conclusions
Fitness is about discovering an activity so compelling that the fitness aspect is relegated to a welcome side benefit. The fitness type we get out of such an activity is the one that is ours for the taking, and only culturally-ingrained desires block us from accessing it.
For me, this activity is long-distance cycling — an adventure that opens up new worlds both external and internal, offering a sense of freedom and connection to the landscape.
Yet, even a passion like this has its challenges, namely the physical demands of covering great distances, especially in hilly terrains. Enter the e-bike — a technological marvel that amplifies human effort, making the once-daunting realms of long-distance cycling accessible and thoroughly enjoyable.
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