When people talk about their main priorities when striving to get in shape, what takes center stage? Undoubtedly, exercise and nutrition will be seen as the featured cast, and understandably so. However, there is one essential character missing from this story: rest. Indeed, rest has been underestimated.
“REST SHOULD NOT BE SEEN AS OUR ENEMY IN A RACE AGAINST TIME, BUT RATHER, AS A CHERISHED COMPANION THAT HELPS US TO FULLY REDEEM THE TIME THAT WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN.”
Mindsets of hustle and YOLO have been touted in many circles, especially within the pop culture fitness industry. Yes, there is significant importance to be found in our endeavors and efforts, in times of purposeful action and in redeeming the time we have been given (Ephesians 5:15-17). Yet, the mindsets are of different capacities with those of us living out our faiths. We know that unbridled, purposeless hustle will do no good. After all, which is logically better? To sprint with full effort in the wrong direction, or to wait patiently as you come to understand the right direction to go. The one going full speed without discernment is going to end up playing catch up with the one who waited patiently. As for YOLO, while the mantra seems to be aiming at getting people to take full advantage of their time, it leads to a vaporous perspective that everyone ought to take ill-timed risks and abandon sound judgment. Therefore, not only are the mindsets of hustle and YOLO misleading, they take away from a proper understanding and cherishing of rest.
God established both work and rest for us, and He, being the One who designed us, knows how we operate best. He separated the day from the night, appointed both times of sowing and times of harvest, and instituted a day of rest (Genesis 1:3-5, and Genesis 1:14, and Genesis 2:1-3). All of these pillars stand as a sturdy foundation for our rest, and the joy that we can take in it. In rests from certain activities, in seasons of rest, and in the rest found in sleep at the end of each day, we can trust that we will not be missing out. After all, there is no such thing as wasted time in light of eternity; it is impossible to exhaust something that cannot run out.
Rest, specifically sleep, is something that has been deemed essential in the right amounts (7-9 hours per night for adults) for all different types of fields of study, not the least of which is exercise and performance. For instance, when people are trying to gain muscle, they have to ensure proper rest between sets of resistance training so that they can optimize volume (exercise). Also, they will need to take in a sufficient amount of protein and calories in order to fuel muscle-protein synthesis (nutrition). Furthermore, they have to ensure proper rest throughout the day and sleep at night in order to make sure that their body can adequately repair its own muscle tissues that were broken down within the day’s activities (rest). As such an instance shows, three pillars truly have to be in unity when it comes to getting in the best shape and optimizing health: exercise, nutrition , and rest. Prioritizing these three aspects no matter what endeavor you are on will not only lead to feeling better physically, but mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Accordingly, rest should not be seen as our enemy in a race against time, but rather, as a cherished companion that helps us to fully redeem the time that we have been given.
