Gym or no gym

A place to discuss health and fitness, healthy diets. A fit body makes for a fit mind.
daviddanska
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Joined: Fri May 09, 2014 7:38 pm

Gym or no gym

Post by daviddanska »

As I have progressed in my studies I have begun more and more to understand all the distractions and ego that is at the modern day gym. In reaction to this understanding I stopped going to the gym, but now I have started to gain weight and my diet is worsening as well. :thinking: Should I go back to the gym? If so is the gym not just a way to boost ones ego and become attached to the body? This is a big dilemma for me. :shrug:
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cooran
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Location: Queensland, Australia

Re: Gym or no gym

Post by cooran »

Hello David,

Just use a gym to increase your fitness and health. That is perfectly acceptable. It is not about image or showing off.

With metta,
Chris
---The trouble is that you think you have time---
---Worry is the Interest, paid in advance, on a debt you may never owe---
---It's not what happens to you in life that is important ~ it's what you do with it ---
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Mkoll
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Location: USA

Re: Gym or no gym

Post by Mkoll »

Hi David,

You could also work out without going to the gym such as by walking around your town or exercising at your home.
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma sambuddhassa
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khlawng
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Joined: Thu Dec 09, 2010 2:28 pm

Re: Gym or no gym

Post by khlawng »

Here is a quote from a talk given by Thanissaro Bhikku on Using meditation to deal with Pain, Illness and Death,
Many people complain that the hardest part of living with a disease like AIDS or cancer is the feeling that they have lost control over their bodies, but once you gain more control over you mind, you begin to see that the control you thought you had over you body was illusory in the first place. The body has never entered into an agreement with you that it would do as you liked. You simply moved in, forced it to eat, walk, talk, etc., and then thought you were in charge. But even then it kept on doing as it liked — getting hungry, urinating, defecating, passing wind, falling down, getting injured, getting sick, growing old. When you reflect on the people who think they have the most control over their bodies, like bodybuilders, they're really the most enslaved, having to eat enough each day to keep ten Somalians alive, having to push and pull on metal bars for hours, expending all their energy on exercises that don't go anywhere at all. If they don't, their pumped-up bodies will deflate in no time flat.
It doesn't specifically answer your question but it does give you an idea why we do the things we do to our body.
Hope that helps.
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ihrjordan
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Re: Gym or no gym

Post by ihrjordan »

Walking meditation and a decent diet is really all most people need
"Ko imaṃ pathaviṃ vicessati, yamalokañca imaṃ sadevakaṃ.
ko dhammapadaṃ sudesitaṃ, kusalo pupphamiva pacessati"
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TheNoBSBuddhist
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Location: Loch Lomond, via the High AND Low road....

Re: Gym or no gym

Post by TheNoBSBuddhist »

Do you look after your Mind?
Do you 'train' it in Meditation, to calm the thoughts and discipline its function?
Do you see improvement with repeated effort?

Why then, neglect the body, which houses your mind?
neglect has brought about a problem; you perceive a deterioration in the body's condition, and it is not a pleasant perception.

So, just as you look after and nurture your Mind with sound nourishment (The Dhamma) and exercise (Meditation) so you are obliged to treat the body - its storing mechanism - in the same way.
Do not neglect what matters; but do not elevate it to a higher importance than your Mind.

That is after all, why our brains are on top..... :sage:
:namaste:

You will not be punished FOR your 'emotions'; you will be punished BY your 'emotions'.



Image

Pay attention, simplify, and (Meditation instruction in a nutshell) "Mind - the Gap."
‘Absit invidia verbo’ - may ill-will be absent from the word. And mindful of that, if I don't respond, this may be why....
walkart
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Joined: Fri Dec 27, 2013 6:13 pm

Re: Gym or no gym

Post by walkart »

Hello,
Train your legs, it's more confortable and less painfull when your legs have developped muscles.
kilanta
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Joined: Thu Apr 18, 2013 4:27 pm
Location: Finland

Re: Gym or no gym

Post by kilanta »

daviddanska wrote:[...] is the gym not just a way to boost ones ego and become attached to the body? This is a big dilemma for me
Going to a gym is what you make out of it. Observe what your feelings towards not going are. Skip a session or two and see what feelings arise in the mind. Whatever feelings occur after you haven't gone to a gym when you usually do should show some hints about how attached you are and to what.

For example, you notice strong craving to arise when you skip a session. This hints that you might go to a gym just for enjoyable sensations during/after the workout or for looks. This is nothing to worry about, though. These cravings are then something to work with in future.

There are many conditions which might require you to work out too. Should you suffer from a seriously injured back, for example, do your workouts and keep yourself fit as instructed. That probably helps you more than just standing/observing the excruciating pain from slipped disks. If a medical professional has advised you to exercise, don't skip a session just because someone wrote here so.
Hector
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Re: Gym or no gym

Post by Hector »

daviddanska wrote:As I have progressed in my studies I have begun more and more to understand all the distractions and ego that is at the modern day gym. In reaction to this understanding I stopped going to the gym, but now I have started to gain weight and my diet is worsening as well. :thinking: Should I go back to the gym? If so is the gym not just a way to boost ones ego and become attached to the body? This is a big dilemma for me. :shrug:
Of course you should go back :)

Cultivate your mind and cultivate your body as well.

Sound mind in a sound body.

After a sound workout my mind is clearer.

:smile:
Digity
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Joined: Wed Mar 30, 2011 2:13 am

Re: Gym or no gym

Post by Digity »

I lift weights...at home. I have a gym in my basement. I struggled with the whole ego issue too. At the end of the day, if I wasn't working out I'd probably sitting on my butt doing something useless. Workout, but just make sure you have the right intentions. Do it for health reasons not so that you can impress people.
meindzai
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Joined: Thu Jan 15, 2009 8:10 pm

Re: Gym or no gym

Post by meindzai »

The Buddha walked a lot. A whole lot.

Image


That's just his travels, and who knows how much he went back and forth, and where else he went. He also went for alms every day.

He walked a lot.

Now think of how sedentary we are as a society.

Exercise is a very good idea.

-Dave K
marieashten82
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Joined: Wed Nov 19, 2014 1:51 pm

Re: Gym or no gym

Post by marieashten82 »

I go to the gym before but I started not to like it lately because I find it too boring and doing the stuff all over again. Watching exercise videos on Youtube helps me a lot in losing weight. There are so many good videos that help me to be motivated and some of the routines are very easy to follow and do.
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cooran
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Re: Gym or no gym

Post by cooran »

Try 10,000 steps per day..
I have a Fitbit step counter that is connected to an Internet site. This records what I do. I walk within a major shopping centre whose floors are .5 kilometre long, so going round it is a kilometre. It is cool in summer, warm in winter and dry in wet weather. As well, when I feel like a break, I can have tea/coffee or water - snacks even a meal. It is open at 6.00 am and closes at 9.00 pm. The early morning is good with Xmas approaching, as the shops don't open until at least 8.30 am. Need to resist temptation, as there are fast food outlets, but I've sorted that.
I write my daily total steps in a paper diary as well, as well as my weight for the day.

With metta,
Chris
---The trouble is that you think you have time---
---Worry is the Interest, paid in advance, on a debt you may never owe---
---It's not what happens to you in life that is important ~ it's what you do with it ---
denise
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Joined: Sun Sep 07, 2014 4:56 pm
Location: U.S.A.

Re: Gym or no gym

Post by denise »

mall walking is good...anyway if we don't work out or move the body....we won't have body or ego.... :bow:
sattva
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Joined: Thu May 07, 2009 10:07 pm

Re: Gym or no gym

Post by sattva »

From someone who has several chronic severe illnesses, anything you can do to keep the body healthy is a good thing. I do think certain exercise regimens lead themselves to a more mindfulness approach. Among these are running, mindful walking, tai chi, chi kung, and swimming. I would also do some strength training with weights because they have discovered how beneficial that can be for bones. Most people also know that although muscle weighs more than fat, it is more beneficial and increases metabolism.

Good luck!
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