Get Strong Series Rest: Day 7

Devotion

Titus 3:5 

He saved us, not because of works are done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes we feel we must do something to earn God’s favor or the other perspective. We don’t have to take any action will wait on God. But we live as active participants in our story, and God is the director. 

On our own, there is nothing we can do. Salvation is a gift but in collaboration with God. Walking alongside Him in anything we do is a new way to live. Stop striving to achieve on your own and take your request to God.

Meditation:

Lord, only you renew my Spirit

Let’s reflect:

1. On this 7 day. Did you check off boxes, or are you continue going to the Lord to help you change?
2. Has devoting to the Father changed your perspective?
3. We often pick and choose the things we like and skip the challenges. Are you committed to the program, or are you picking and choosing? 
4. Why havent you fully committed? What may happen if you do?

Prayer:

Father God,

I pray for a renewal of my Spirit. Help me to focus on honoring my temple. Not to look good but to steward the one body you gave me. Help me to do the things that are uncomfortable consistently. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Recovery

Rest and recovery are gifts from God.  It gives our body a day to reset from the stressors of day-to-day life.  And God created rest.  God participated in rest and encouraged His people to rest in Him.  The world discourages rest and encourages us to go, and if we can’t, we either muster what energy we have, fake it with caffeine, or are considered failures for not keeping pace.  Rest is where growth happens, and God is the Creator is about growth.  To get strong spiritually, physically, and mentally, you must rest in Him.

Jesus even set an example of what it looks like to rest.

The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. Then,because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” – Mark 6:30-31

Shabbat or Sabbath, is a day set aside for rest and worship. I was raised honoring the Sabbath, Friday sundown to Saturday sundown.  My family would have Bible Study, play games, and rest.  We didn’t have work, and the only labor we did was heating up whatever dinner my Mom made ahead of time.  (It usually was lasagna…lol) I no longer am a member of the Seventh Day Adventist Church, but it is second nature for me to rest on Saturdays. Rarely do I make plans on that day.  I rest. I move my body which would have been frowned upon growing up, but I feel better when I move.  Often it’s in a Bible and Bootcamps Worship and Workout; I record my On-Demand videos LIVE, and you can attend for FREE! Or catch them On-Demand at the FaithFueled Life App.

Why is recovery important?

I have found that your recovery is probably the most important part of your strength training plan.  How you recover and how often is a rhythm you must find for yourself. Daily I try to add recovery to my life, whether 10 minutes or 60 minutes.  I give myself time daily to breathe, meditate on God’s Word, foam roll, and stretch. Recovery has become so important in my wellness that I will share with you all the ways I enjoy recovery using my favorite tools and resources. Something that you can do every day is breathe, meditate, and stretch. It’s great to help with stress-coping skills, cognitive behavior, and mood enhancer.  Your body is often in a constant state of stress in your sympathetic nervous system.   Recovery encourages breathing, slowness, and intentionality in movement and allows your entire body to be put into a state of rest and digestion known as your parasympathetic nervous system.

How to Recover

There are so many ways, and exploring and adding several tools to your recovery is best. Foam Rolling, Stretching, and Breath prayers can all be done at home. I will be sharing in detail different methods for recovery. I have shared my recovery experiences, and I try to integrate all of these within each quarter of my year. Some daily, weekly, and monthly.  This is what I have currently tried and shared over the years and the tools I use:

• cupping
• tensa massager
• percussion instruments
• foam roll
• mobile foam roller
• Integrative Medicine therapy
• chiropractor
• massage
• cryotherapy
• infrared therapy
• Scraping

How you recover should correlate with how you move. Recovery is light-intensity movement that helps the blood circulate and remove waste to allow the body to repair, replenish and heal.  Long-endurance runners recover differently than tennis players. Another thing about recovery is hard to prescribe because it depends on the person’s age, movement type, nutrition, and stress level.  The one thing that is unanimous is that we all need recovery.  I feel that recovery has so many options that it cant be covered in one blog post.  I will be sharing another series on the importance of recovery soon.

Get some sleep

I feel like the adage fitness is 80% Nutrition 20% exercise they don’t equate the importance of sleep.  Restful sleep for 6-8 hours will help you get stronger.  It is just as important as your nutrition.  I feel that to get strong, it’s

30% Rest

30%Nutrition

30% Mental or Behavioral and

10% Movement.

The movement part is also the least amount of your day, but it is where people often put the focus. To be strong, you need to get physical rest from getting sleep and mentally resting in the Lord, and everything else will fall into place.

Nourish Better

Eating living food is the best way to help your body recover.  Working hard and then eating food that will cause inflammation is counterproductive to your goals and honoring your temple.  Eating food that will perish easily will help you stay thrive longer.  Keep that in mind when you’re considering your meal post-workout.  Food also can be healing: Check out my post on 100 Healing Foods, and I also have some Pre and post-workout meal tips here.  Taking care of our body is intentional; when we do it out of reverence for our Lord and worship, it changes our perspective.  Your body is worth taking care of; Jesus thought so, and so should you. If you haven’t no shame. You can start right now!

More Resources

Some blog posts that I have shared on recovery are:

• What does foam rolling do?
• Breaking up with Busyness
•  The Importance of the Warm-Up and Cooldown
• Integrative Medicine Therapy

In the FaithFueled Life App, recovery is factored into your monthly calendar created for you each month. I offer strength training programs, workout calendars, daily devotions, meditations, prayers, and reflection. Delivered to you through the FaithFueled Life to help guide you on the journey to honor your temple.

Thank you so much for joining me these last seven days. I hope you have more information on how and why to train strength.  Please comment below anything you wish I had covered or your seven-day experience.

Today’s Workout

Workout of the Day

What should a 7 days Strength Training Program look like?

How can I train on my own to get strong?

Following a progressive workout plan for 6-8 weeks is ideal for gaining strength and seeing change. It’s often boring, but celebrating the strength gains and working on your form are motivators to be consistent in the gym.  No matter what program you follow, consistency is key. If you’re looking for someone to guide you on how to safely strength train, explore what God has to say about honoring your temple, and get stronger, join us at the FaithFueledlife community. Your first 2 weeks are FREE!