We're well aware of the many benefits of exercise which include better health, improved sports performance and stress reducer. And now we can add one more the list. And that's that exercise helps give purpose to our lives. A recent study from Harvard University observed over 14 thousand adults over 50 years for a four year period. What they found was that those that exercised more had: more purpose to their livesmore meaningful livesmore happinessmore years i.e. longevity How much and how frequently the subjects exercised was correlated to feelings of purpose. And those with purpose was associated with doing more exercise. This makes me wonder if this a 'chicken & egg' type of scenario? Does exercise lead to purpose? Or does having purpose in your life cause you to want to exercise? When exercise is lacking from our lives we have a decreased sense of purpose later in life. And with less purpose we are less likely to engage in physical activity. So what we do we mean we speak of purpose? I remember hearing this described as belonging to something bigger or greater than ourselves. Maybe this is being a part of a church community, going on mission trips to under-developed countries or volunteering for a charity. What we may forfeit in terms of reward in these types of situations is replaced by a sense of purpose. And when we have a stronger purpose in life we: live longerhave less heart diseaseare better protected against Alzheimer'shave better pain management Maybe you are not in a health crisis and are able to manage a healthy weight. But you sometimes wonder what you are supposed to do with your life and how to figure this out? The solution may be to get back into an active lifestyle to realize your purpose...

What motivates you to train? You know on the days when it's cold and maybe even rainy outside? Of course it's still dark outside. Your bed could not be more comfortable. Yet for some strange reason you defy what is easy. You pull back the covers to be shocked with the cold of early morning. You throw one leg over the side of the bed and stub your pinkie toe on the edge of the bed frame. Then you shock yourself further with the brightness of the bathroom lights which are one or two degrees brighter than looking directly at the sun. You feel dizzy, Your head may be pounding. The last thing you are thinking about is putting food in your mouth and venturing out into the cold. Yet you do so anyways. Have you been there? I'll bet you have. Anyone who has trained long enough has. Every athlete has. Anyone who is serious about their goals has. What is is that motivates these people? Well for most people it's the avoidance of pain. Sometimes this might be an actual physical pain. Pain from an accident, a disease or some other cause. And these people know how bad the pain can get. And how this pain can affect their lives. And prevent them from doing things they enjoy. And that missing out on these things will bring them sadness. [caption id="attachment_4676" align="aligncenter" width="300"] According to Aristotle, the masses are wise.  But pain doesn't always have to be physical, Some people are alone, depressed and not feeling the best about themselves. They would like to have more confidence, to have a better physique and to be noticed by someone else. And so for them the option of living in pain or getting out of a warm, cozy bed in the...