I Work Out So People Like Me More

Every day, my alarm goes off at 7:14 a.m. and I force myself to crawl out of bed, throw on my sneakers, fill up my water bottle, and walk to the gym. There aren’t many days I wake up wide awake and think, “Yes! I get to go to the gym!” Instead I’m complaining to myself knowing I am about to run, lift, and work on my abs while I could still be sleeping.

I work out anyway because I want people to like me.

“If people truly like you, they won’t care what you look like.” I get this reaction every time I tell people why I force myself to the gym each day. It isn’t because of my looks that I do it regularly though. Yes, having toned muscles and a flat stomach are perks of exercising, but that isn’t why I make myself go. If someone doesn’t like me because of my body, then I don’t want someone so shallow in my life anyway.

I work out because it makes me a happier person.

How can lifting a few dumbbells and running for a few minutes on the treadmill make me a happier person? It takes all my negative thoughts away. They always say “getting to the gym is the hardest part,” and I agree 110%. Once I step on the treadmill, crank my music up all the way, and start running, I immediately forget about all the problems I had been stirring on the night before, and I direct all my focus into the run. After I finish running, I feel so rejuvenated and accomplished, and I can’t help but smile as I step off the treadmill and see how much faster I ran than the day before. As I transition from running to lifting, I think about all the things that have been hurting me lately. I remind myself of that test I failed, or that boy that broke me, or the rumor that was spread about me. As I lift the weights, I release all the anger I have for everything I can’t seem to get over. After I’m done ridding myself of the hate, I always feel so much more forgiving. I finish every work out by doing abs. While I do my crunches, sit ups, and planks, I tell myself that today will be better than yesterday. I tell myself not to let the same hurt back in my heart that I just lifted out, and I always allow myself time to thank God for giving me the abilities to cope with my stress through physical exercise.

If I didn’t work out, I wouldn’t be nearly as optimistic and happy.

Going to the gym every morning allows me to start my days positively. Before I started working out regularly, I was constantly upset about the same thing for weeks. I started losing friends and no one invited me to hang out with them, because everyone knew I would just be a downer the whole time. Exercise became my outlet and it helped me reconnect with people I had lost when I wasn’t always the most cheerful.

So yes, I work out so people like me more.

I work out so people like me, but for the first time, I can honestly say that I am one of those people that like me, too.