Christian bodybuilding

[Ben Collyer]

Hi all, for the last 2 months I have been going to the gym after a breakup, it helps me distract myself and feel positive. A brother in christ asked me why I lift weights and I said

"because I want to be attractive to girls"

he said thats a bad motivation as i am promoting envy, strife and pride.

I then went into a deep depression because I was torn between the fact that what he said is true, but also the fact that lifting weight genuinely does improve my mental health. interestingly, running and general fitness work does not make me feel happy.

it is exclusively the practice increasing muscle mass that makes me feel happy.

Please pray and help me discern if this is a problem. and what I should do from here

thanks

 

[timewerx]

What your friend said isn't universally true. I don't envy bulky men.

What you said isn't universally true too. There are many women who actually prefer slim men (is one reason I don't envy bulky men! )

If you think body building is a good distraction, you can continue doing it.

 

[Godlovesmetwo]

"because I want to be attractive to girls"

More to the point, do most girls really like a bodybuilder physique in a guy?

 

[CoolDude68]

There's nothing wrong with sculpting the temple God gave you, especially if it helps your stress levels. Just remember, always keep God first and humble yourself no matter how attractive the body is. Your body belongs to Him. The right woman for you is not one who adores your body, but adores you as a person so be careful with that. Good luck.

 

[Godlovesmetwo]

he said thats a bad motivation as i am promoting envy, strife and pride.

I think keep doing bodybuilding if you enjoy it. Don't do it to impress anyone , male or female. I think as you are young it is understandable to go through these superficial phases wanting to look good. Just remember one day, you may realise there are more important things in life. I don't judge you because I was the same at your age.

 

[Godlovesmetwo]

Work on your personality, your strength of character, your leadership potential. These are more important qualities to develop for the future.

 

[Godlovesmetwo]

btw, I don't think I've ever heard of "Christian Bodybuilding".
Sounds like a contradiction to be honest.

 

[Sarah G van G]

I think you should keep at it. You are already struggling (basing this on previous posts) with giving up things that you enjoy. Plus you have the breakup still hanging over you. I would hate to see you give up on your walk with Christ because you get fed up of all the sacrifices. If God wants you to stop or cut back you will get an injury (at least, that is what happens to me, I can't speak for God). Lifting heavy things is good for mental and physical health. It's clean living (if you avoid the roids) so why not enjoy the ability God has given you? Don't put it before God of course, it's a hobby.

 

[JacksBratt]

Hi all, for the last 2 months I have been going to the gym after a breakup, it helps me distract myself and feel positive. A brother in christ asked me why I lift weights and I said

"because I want to be attractive to girls"

he said thats a bad motivation as i am promoting envy, strife and pride.

I then went into a deep depression because I was torn between the fact that what he said is true, but also the fact that lifting weight genuinely does improve my mental health. interestingly, running and general fitness work does not make me feel happy.

it is exclusively the practice increasing muscle mass that makes me feel happy.

Please pray and help me discern if this is a problem. and what I should do from here

thanks

Firstly, body building could be for vanity. I was a scawny little guy at 16 and hit the weights to put on some weight and not be so self conscious.

I have worked out, off and on due to life events and time constraints for 40 odd years.

I am very healthy, have a resting heart rate of 52. But, I do not look like some freak of nature. That is just not what happens to a normal human body. Male or female.

In order to get the kind of physic that is blatantly noticeable..... you would have to take steroids.

A healthy male, or female, using resistance training without performance enhancing drugs, will only become more healthy, sleep better, handle stress better and generally become more proportionately like a male or female body should be. You will have a healthier heart and boosted immune system.

A female will not become more manly.... unless she takes testosterone therapy.


A male will not grow massive arms, legs and chest with veins like garden hoses.

If becoming a Arnold Schwarzenegger was as easy as going to the gym three times a week.... there would be thousands of high school boys turning into Arnolds.

Building muscle mass is really hard work. You may put on 10 lbs in your first year... but after that the mass is slow to come.

I highly recommend a regular workout program with resistance training and cardio, combined with a healthy diet and sleep schedule.

Not only will you be healthier, handle stress better, be sick less and for shorter periods of time but you will probably live longer, be more able to play with your kids and do things most parents slowly cannot do anymore. Work will be easier and you will have more energy for the things you do after work.

Your body is the Temple of the Holy Spirit....... What is wrong with keeping it healthy. And..........maybe.....not looking after the body God gave us could be considered a sin.

As long as you don't start neglecting other "higher priority" events to "get your workout in".

45 minutes a day, of solid training....... that's all you need.

 

[A_Thinker]

Hi all, for the last 2 months I have been going to the gym after a breakup, it helps me distract myself and feel positive. A brother in christ asked me why I lift weights and I said

"because I want to be attractive to girls"

he said thats a bad motivation as i am promoting envy, strife and pride.

I then went into a deep depression because I was torn between the fact that what he said is true, but also the fact that lifting weight genuinely does improve my mental health. interestingly, running and general fitness work does not make me feel happy.

it is exclusively the practice increasing muscle mass that makes me feel happy.

Please pray and help me discern if this is a problem. and what I should do from here

thanks

There is nothing wrong with wanting to develop yourself physically, ... as long as you balance that with the spiritual.

"Bodybuilding" is an avocation, ... a hobby, ... which happens to have the potential of improving your physique, ... which means that you're making your body MORE like God created it to be. In many ways, it is no different than exercising your mind, or investing a portion of your earnings, or learning a trade. It is simply developing yourself.

I don't see how someone can see "bodybuilding" as promoting jealousy, strife, or pride, any more than pursuing one's education, or starting your own business, or becoming involved in a particular hobby. If other persons become jealous of your progress, in any area of your life, ... that is really an issue for them.

Paul the Apostle speaks of disciplining one's body. I believe that I am a more able servant in my church, as a result of my attention to developing my health and strength.

Finally, development of one's physique is a long-term endeavor. It isn't a magic wand. You will have to discipline yourself to achieve results. And, of course, we don't want to overdo this particular passion, ... to the point where we partake of actions which are actually detrimental to our health.

As has been said, if this is helping you by giving you a needed focus (in addition to your spiritual pusuits), it is a good thing for you.

Exercising also produces endorphins which can elevate your mood.

Be blessed in your Godly pursuits ...

 

[-Luca]

It probably is a bad motivation but so what?

You have found something to cure your depression and keep your mind on the right path.

If we forsaked everything on Earth and in our lives for the sake of staying "pure", then we would all be damned.

 

[Monna]

btw, I don't think I've ever heard of "Christian Bodybuilding".

Maybe "Christian bodybuilding" is building up the body of Christ - i.e. the church!

One thing you can be assured of, Ben, is that physical activity is good for your mind. It doesn't have to be body building - going for a good brisk walk, we're told, does more for your brain than doing mind puzzles like playing chess of solving soduko.

There are other ways of helping overcome depression, keeping yourself distracted, and feeling good. So when you're not able to be weight-lifting in the gym you might try out some alternatives. One way that I find works, is doing things for others. I have always, no matter how down I feel, been able to find other people who are worse off than I am, and who appreciate a listening ear, a helping hand, a conversation over a cup of coffee in the park. Doing this takes my mind off myself (distraction), makes me realise how much I have to be grateful for (fights depression), and generally the gratitude I receive from the other person makes me feel good also. Plus, you may just make some new life-long friends!

All the best, Ben.

 

[CoolDude68]

When I was a teenager and in my early 20's I was into bodybuilding too. Although I never competed, I was close to that but my diet (very picky eater) always held me back in achieving that critical cut process. Plus, competing wasn't the desire for me. I did it because it made me feel good. I liked having a tight body and I can say the attention it brought also made me feel proud, and respected. Not so much in a vanity way, but more about respect for the countless hours and hard work I put in at the gym. Even back then I was rather a humble person and never flaunted my body.

I've never heard of "Christian Bodybuilding" though. I'm assuming it means working out in fellowship with others and listening to Christian genre of music? Do you pray before working out?

 

[Sketcher]

Hi all, for the last 2 months I have been going to the gym after a breakup, it helps me distract myself and feel positive. A brother in christ asked me why I lift weights and I said

"because I want to be attractive to girls"

he said thats a bad motivation as i am promoting envy, strife and pride.

I then went into a deep depression because I was torn between the fact that what he said is true, but also the fact that lifting weight genuinely does improve my mental health. interestingly, running and general fitness work does not make me feel happy.

it is exclusively the practice increasing muscle mass that makes me feel happy.

Please pray and help me discern if this is a problem. and what I should do from here

thanks

The good:

It gives you goals and a hobby and something to work towards.

The bad:

It's not likely to do what you want it to do for you. Adding muscle, that will happen. But some of the most body-obsessed men out there are bodybuilders. Some of them even get silicone implants for their calves because they're still extremely self-conscious. For many, success is measured by how freakishly big they can get. And some are tempted to use steroids to help them get the results they wanted. That, and a joke among gym rats is that they started lifting to get more female attention, but the compliments they are getting are only from the other men.

Also:

You attracted at least one woman somewhat recently. What worked for you when you were attracting her?

My recommendation:

Lift, but have different goals in mind. Make your benchmarks fitness benchmarks that you can reach. Whatever your body looks like when you are healthy and able to do all that you want to be able to do, congratulate yourself on that, own it, and love it.

 

[faroukfarouk]

Hi all, for the last 2 months I have been going to the gym after a breakup, it helps me distract myself and feel positive. A brother in christ asked me why I lift weights and I said

"because I want to be attractive to girls"

he said thats a bad motivation as i am promoting envy, strife and pride.

I then went into a deep depression because I was torn between the fact that what he said is true, but also the fact that lifting weight genuinely does improve my mental health. interestingly, running and general fitness work does not make me feel happy.

it is exclusively the practice increasing muscle mass that makes me feel happy.

Please pray and help me discern if this is a problem. and what I should do from here

thanks

Fitness can be good, and bodybuilding is a form of fitness activity, certainly.

So how are you biceps coming along? I used to do more resistance exercises than I do now (I have heart trouble; and face limitations). So have you gotten any ink on your biceps?

 

[Thir7ySev3n]

Hi all, for the last 2 months I have been going to the gym after a breakup, it helps me distract myself and feel positive. A brother in christ asked me why I lift weights and I said

"because I want to be attractive to girls"

he said thats a bad motivation as i am promoting envy, strife and pride.

I then went into a deep depression because I was torn between the fact that what he said is true, but also the fact that lifting weight genuinely does improve my mental health. interestingly, running and general fitness work does not make me feel happy.

it is exclusively the practice increasing muscle mass that makes me feel happy.

Please pray and help me discern if this is a problem. and what I should do from here

thanks

I have been bodybuilding for 9 years and know that it can bring these problems with it. The pride issue is something you have to engage with, to submit to the realistic sense of yourself, recognizing that you are a highly limited and created being who has received every good gift from God (1 Corinthians 4:7). The other issues are not your problem and are for others to deal with if they become envious. You do not need to inhibit yourself for someone else's pride. Most people do not even recognize they are the ones who are being proud when they are offended because of some success of your own discipline. Whether you have intelligence, power, money, position or even good character, some people will become envious of you who have less, and it is not your task to do anything more than be humble and respectful to those with less. If they are still embittered with you, then they have to work on their own character.

That aside, and following from the point about being a created being, I also find there is a common aversion among Christians to the recognition of the muscular body as God's design for a man who is more disciplined and heavily laboured than another man. It is like such people forget that man is not self-created, and that every bit of his body's potential and developments in response to lifting are God's creative decree of his form and the mechanism by which he would alter it. It is God who created the body to respond to intense exercise in this way, and that increased muscle mass, vascularity and definition were the results. God did not have to shape muscles the way they are, make them grow the way they do, or even cause vascularity to become increasingly manifest superficially when a man consistently lifts heavy weights. But this is what He decreed for the male form. Thus, placing the body under intense labour is rewarded by God with a corresponding obvious glory, and is one a man can accept humbly as a manifestation of his discipline to be honoured by men and women, insofar as he recognizes that which is more valuable and that God intends all things for good and not evil, abuse of any kind, arrogance or the like.

Honour and glory are part of what God created man to crave, and while this should be chiefly found in Christ, there are also lesser glories God blessed man to enjoy and receive with thanksgiving when he exercises the discipline necessary to achieve them.

"The glory of young men is their strength..." (Proverbs 20:29)