"Get Fit!"

No offense to anyone who has used this phrase or any variation of it before. You obviously had good intentions. I'm sure I may have even said it on occasion, in bouts of exercise-induced enthusiasm.

But, I decided today that I really don't like it.

Obviously, if you know me, or if you've read my blog in the past, you know that I'm a big proponent for leading a healthy lifestyle. Even if I am sort of inconsistent and I don't always make the world's healthiest choices, health has come to be an important value for me over the last year or so. So why would I oppose the sentiment "Get Fit!" ?

Well, to be honest, it just seems a little bossy. Of course I want to get fit, but telling someone else to just doesn't seem right. It's kind of like saying "Get Educated!" "Get Regular Check-ups!" or "Get Happy!" Just by telling someone to change their life in a pithy little way, you're not going to change their mind about the importance of the thing you're proposing.

When it comes to fitness, at least in my experience, every choice is a very personal one. If I wake up on a Sunday morning and choose to squeeze in a workout class that day, it's because, on that particular day, I feel that going to a workout class is a good choice for me. Maybe the following day, I look at myself in the mirror and think Okay I'm looking fiiiiiine today. And I'm feeling...lazy. Then I'm not going to go to the gym, obviously! If someone literally said "Get fit!" to me on that day, I would probably give them the Chloe face ^

...because whether or not I want to get fit is completely up to me. I've been overweight before. And I'm sure people have looked at me and thought I should probably go "Get fit." But "fit" for you is not the same as "fit" for me, and my "fit" isn't the same as my grandma's "fit" or my best friend's "fit". Little victories are victories. And just because you may look at someone and think they're not fit...looks can be deceiving.
< I can't do that.

Just remember, statements like "Get fit" can be awesome for self-motivation. But, before you pass on these sentiments to someone else, think about the impact your words might have.

For all you know, that person is already hella fit. Or they simply don't want to be.

Health is a personal choice. Make your choices, and use those to set an example for the rest of the world. Be the best you can be, and the world will look at you and think "Damn. I need to get fit." ;)

- Ellen