Can not exercising be a sin?

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Angel7

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Say your not overweight, but your not Fit either.
Is it a sin to not work out?
If you don’t need to lose weight.
 
sloth is a sin, whether you are guilty of that or not would depend on more than just you not engaging in some form of deliberate physical exercise for health reasons.
 
Are you sitting there glued to the computer/tv and not moving? If the only excersize you get is jumping to conclusions and you literally do nothing else, than while I don’t know if it’s sinful, it’s certianly not a good idea!
 
We are instructed to treat our body as a temple.

Exercise is like necessary upkeep on the temple.
 
Advocatus_Fidei said:
sloth is a sin, whether you are guilty of that or not would depend on more than just you not engaging in some form of deliberate physical exercise for health reasons.
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The Capital sin of sloth refers to spiritual sloth - acedia, not physical sloth.
[2094](javascript:openWindow(‘cr/2094.htm’)😉 One can sin against God’s love in various ways:
. . .
  • *acedia *or spiritual sloth goes so far as to refuse the joy that comes from God and to be repelled by divine goodness. . . .
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Catechism of the Catholic Church.

I haven’t found any discussion of physical sloth as a sin, though at some point it must be sinful to waste time when one could be working for good.
 
Joe_Kelley said:
The Capital sin of sloth refers to spiritual sloth - acedia, not physical sloth.
Catechism of the Catholic Church.

I haven’t found any discussion of physical sloth as a sin, though at some point it must be sinful to waste time when one could be working for good.
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I think spiritual sloth (acedia) can lead to the physical kind.

I’d like to put a different spin on this than the usual “sin” debate.

When one exercises, one feels sooo much better in the long run that one wonders why one took so long to catch on.

I was diagnosed with a hereditary medical condition about 5 years ago. At that point in time I was winded going around the block on my bike, impotent, and feeling generally lousy and tired all the time.

After the condition’s treatments were successfully completed and went into maintenance mode, in 2006 (from about once a week to once per quarter), I started exercising more. At the start, walking. Then getting on my bike and doing 20 mile rides. In 2007, I was up to being able to do 40 mile rides and surviving. In 2008 I got my custom road bike out of storage (I had been riding a clunky hybrid), and did 1000 miles on it that summer. Last summer, I did 1800 miles. This summer, I am up to 1000+ miles already on the season, and earlier this afternoon I completed my first century (100 miles in a day) in 34 years. I sure am tired and I feel right now like I could empty every nook and cranny in my fridge, I’m so hungry even after a big dinner.

Among other things, I am no longer impotent (that cleared up as soon as I started exercising again), I’ve not lost a whole lot of weight, but that’s because I converted fat into denser muscle, and I feel great. Yeah, sure I have some aches and pains after a long ride, but overall, I have to pinch myself to realize that at age 52, I can ride centuries when at age 45 I could barely make around the block on my bike. And the best, I sprinted the last 10 miles home and a guy about 20 years younger than me drafted me and had trouble keeping up 😃

My wife is a family doctor and is a firm believer in exercise as a means to increase both physical and mental well-being. I am direct proof of that.

So please consider exercise. Never mind the issue of sin. It’s a health issue and you can only benefit from it.

And certainly if you do have spiritual acedia, getting out and exercising can clear the mind and help that as well.
 
There are lots of things a person may do that would be very good. They are, however, not in any way commanded by God, so it is up to each person’s prudential judgment whether or not to do them.

Exercise is one of those very good things. It’s highly recommended, but not commanded.

Betsy
 
I suppose it could only be a sin if your life directly depended on it… and even then I’m not sure.

Regular exercise is of great benefit to the good functioning of the body and the mind (and as already alluded to the body id the temple of the Holy Spirit). I exercise every day and do gym or training every second day. This allows me to work at a rather mentally and physically demanding job at the age of 60. It also reversed a lot of joint and back problems I was having eight years ago. So, yes exercise has great benefits to our bodies and it’s only a pity if we don’t make it part of our lifestyle, but not to do so isn’t a sin that’s mentioned by our Church or the Scriptures (but we were given a brain to use).
 
OraLabora said:
My wife is a family doctor and is a firm believer in exercise as a means to increase both physical and mental well-being. I am direct proof of that.

So please consider exercise. Never mind the issue of sin. It’s a health issue and you can only benefit from it.

And certainly if you do have spiritual acedia, getting out and exercising can clear the mind and help that as well.
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**
CONGRATULATIONS!!!** 👍

Hey! :mad:

How come your dear doctor-wife let you get flabby (and impotent) to begin with? :eek:

I gotta get back to some PE, myself… I have a cardio-appointment later this month, and cardio-doc is gonna split my spleen if I appear out of shape… 😦 I’m a little afraid of unzipping that red zipper down the front of my chest…
 
I talk to people about this every day, as I work in Disease Management.
Exercise is highly encouraged by health providers, but many people are working 2 jobs to support their families, or dealing with physical problems that just don’t allow for many kinds of exercise, such as amputations, or spinal cord injuries, or severe respiratory illnesses (COPD). I would hate to think such people think they are sinning by not exercising. When you have several small children and little relief, it’s super hard to find a way to exercise.
Most people do the best they can, and many people live sacrificial lives for others. While I encourage everyone to get as much exercise as they can manage, I would never fault anyone for having other priorities such as caring for their children or other relatives.
 
I forget the chapter and verse(hey, I’m Catholic 🙂 ) but somewhere in that Bible thingy it says not to work out too much either.
 
white_sheep said:
I forget the chapter and verse(hey, I’m Catholic 🙂 ) but somewhere in that Bible thingy it says not to work out too much either.
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Scripture in fact commands us to exercise, to the point of muscle failure:

Philippians 2:12b-13 "…**work out **your salvation with fear and trembling…

😃
 
I am VERY lazy.

Physicaly I am extremely Lazy.
And I have become Spiritually Lazy as well.

I’m embarresed to say just how phyiscaly lazy I am.
but when it comes to prayer. I find it hard to start. Prayer is hard to begin, but It is easier after you start.

I have some issues with Scrupulousity. So whenever I went to the Prayer Intentions, section of this forum. Whenever I read a sad story, I felt like praying for them.
Now, I am not that active in prayer. There are days, (and there have been MANY of them) where the only time I prayed, was before going to bed.

I do what I HAVE to do.

But I have trouble doing things I SHOULD do.

Ofcourse, if The Church said that not running a mile a day was a sin. I would get moving! 😃 ( I hope this wasn’t disrespectful to The Church in any way! )
 
…as a lifelong bodybuilder I say its a sin and rather asking for it as well…ie bad health,hyper tension etc! The body is the temple of the soul and must be respected. We,as Catholic Christians must be symbols for all the world to see. as a senior myself,I run a fitness program (with no salary) at a local senior center. I have over 100 seniors who come in at various times and ask for advice on how to get back into shape …relieve their back etc pains etc etc…I do the best I can !!! I also speak to youth groups when invited and also advise them to use exercise instead of drugs for relief of tension and other daily problems. Is it a sin,well its not smart to let ones body go…when one suffers from body pain one has a tendency to forget other folks and just become a self- pitying whiner…set up a program for yourself and go for it…go to a gym for advice,purchase some free wts and make a home gym…if you wish I can always send a simple workout…three times a week I perform a full workout,totalling some 750 reps with exercises covering the completer body…the other days I just do a limited one…this I have done for 50 years,my pulse rate is 54 beats a min…etc etc…Charles Atlas influnenced me years ago…no pain no gain…Pas
 
Viki63 said:
I talk to people about this every day, as I work in Disease Management.
Exercise is highly encouraged by health providers, but many people are working 2 jobs to support their families, or dealing with physical problems that just don’t allow for many kinds of exercise, such as amputations, or spinal cord injuries, or severe respiratory illnesses (COPD). I would hate to think such people think they are sinning by not exercising. When you have several small children and little relief, it’s super hard to find a way to exercise.
Most people do the best they can, and many people live sacrificial lives for others. While I encourage everyone to get as much exercise as they can manage, I would never fault anyone for having other priorities such as caring for their children or other relatives.
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When I was young I was a weight trainer and aerobics instructor. I could never understand the middle-aged women that said they didn’t have “time” to exercise.

Now that I’m in my mid-40’s and married with three children, I completely understand what they meant. Women (especially mothers) always put themselves last. If you are rearing your children (and unfortunately working outside the home as well) you are doing God’s work.

I do, however, feel that I don’t treat my body as a Holy temple mostly because of what I choose to eat (earthly pleasure vs to sustain life) – and THAT I definitely need work on.

In joy,
 
Angel7 said:
I am VERY lazy.

Physicaly I am extremely Lazy.
And I have become Spiritually Lazy as well.
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You do realize that even becoming physically fit and exercising 3-6 times per week will not guarantee the overcoming of spiritual laziness (acedia), right? I think this is an important point to make. Some people are very fit, but they have made of their bodies an idol, which is no better (and in fact, may be worse) than not exercising at all, because of pride and vanity.

It seems like you are positing a causal relationship between physical exercise and spiritual health. I just want to point out that you shouldn’t expect your spiritual life to take off just because you start exercising 3 times per week. Could it help? Sure, maybe. But the causal relationship isn’t always as direct as what you paint it to be.
 
…As a man who sired seven children (all college grads) and a grandad of 11,I am a role model for those who simply wont be brainwashed into doing nothing! Name calling is old hat…the human body is the temple of the soul and when a Catholic ,who also has worked two jobs…(as a retired Catholic HS teacher and a daddy of seven I always had to do just that) the secular world hates folks like me for I am defeating them at every turn. a regular planned exercise program develops self-discipline and that alone will help to defeat desire for drugs and fast foods. This always happens,someone endorses a common sense approach to body exercise and right away that person is attacked for frankly silly and un-realistic reasons. As a fitness trainer at a local senior center so many come to me and they feel they have made a mistake by not listening to the Charles Atlas of the times…Even the great Teddy Roosevelt called for a sound mind in a sound body…he overcame a very sickly childhood,bad eyes,being shot in near the heart,losing his young wife and mother the same day,thrown 40feet from a carriage by a runaway trolley,blinded in one eye at a training session ,yet he did more in the fields of pure food and drugs,boy scouts,conservation then all of the other presidents combined…oops,time for a workout at the ole gym…I will sneak in the back so that my body worship is not noticed…
 
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