“There is a season (a time appointed) for everything and a time for every delight and event or purpose under heaven.” Ecclesiastes 3: 1 (AMP)
“If any of you lacks wisdom[to guide him through a decision or circumstance], he is to ask of [our benevolent] God, who gives to everyone generously and without rebuke or blame, and it will be given to him.” James 1:5 (AMP)
“A man’s mind plans his way [as he journeys through life], But the Lord directs his steps and establishes them.” Proverbs 16:9 (AMP)
When Your Body Starts Whispering
Friday is my strength training day. I look forward to it every week. However, over the past few weeks, especially the last three, I have been feeling really tired. My coach, who is also the owner of the gym, came over to me and said, “Hey, I missed you last week. I told her I missed being there, but I just didn’t have the energy to press on and come work out. My body was demanding that I rest. After three consecutive weeks of exhaustion, I was feeling pretty discouraged and perplexed, so I wanted to figure out what was going on. So, while I was there at the gym struggling through my safety squat sets, I had a note-to-self moment that stopped me in my tracks: “Maybe I don’t have to ‘level up’ or increase in everything I do.” I actually put that note in my phone’s notes app.
For someone like me, a Type A personality who has spent decades believing that doing more is always better and that progress means consistent escalation, it felt like a whisper of wisdom I needed to hear.
This past Friday was a perfect example. I planned to squat 125 pounds, but I just didn’t have the energy to do it. I managed to lift 115 pounds for three sets of five reps (These are not new weights for me). I benched my scheduled 92½ pounds, but for three sets of three instead of my usual three sets of five. My deadlifts? I was supposed to hit 195 pounds for three sets of three, but I could only muster two sets of three (again, not a new weight for me). And I didn’t even attempt to do my scheduled sets of lat pulls and leg extensions.
My body is trying to tell me something, and finally, thank God, I’m starting to listen.
Journal Question: What are some signals your body is sending you that you might be ignoring, or better yet, are not recognizing? Really, think about it. Where in your life are you pushing forward when wisdom might be asking you to pause?
The Type A Trap
The possible culprit for my tiredness? Well, I’m working on finding out. Sometimes when you need answers, you have to search for them. I realized that since early July, I’ve been walking the nature trail four days a week. I’ve been increasing my walking by ten minutes each week. Last week, I progressed to walking for an hour and thirty-five minutes, and I did it three days in a row. Add that to my less-than-ideal sleep (averaging about 6.5 to 7 hours each night) and my Type A brain that insists on doing a rotation of most of the major lifts (deadlift, squat, bench, or press) along with leg presses, lat pulls, etc., every Friday. No wonder I felt so worn out by the end of it all!
But this is where wisdom is showing up for me. Instead of just pushing through (my default setting), I’m finding myself asking different questions: Maybe instead of increasing my walk by ten minutes each week, I could maintain 45 or 50 minutes three to four days weekly? I could move my lifting day to Monday or Wednesday when my energy levels are better. Maybe I could spread out my walking—Monday and Tuesday, lift on Wednesday, then walk Friday and Saturday?
Now, let me be clear—with strength training, maintaining isn’t the goal. To build muscle, you need progressive overload, and increasing the weight you lift is an important part of achieving this. But maybe, just maybe, I don’t have to increase everything at once. Perhaps I need to be more strategic about how I progress without wearing myself out. That’s why I asked my coach to help me develop a rotating 4-week plan that allows for smart progression without the constant fatigue.
Journal Question: Where is your Type A personality getting the best of you? What might change if you approached that area with wisdom and grace instead of willpower? How might listening to your body ( or your intuition, or God’s voice) shift your approach?
Learning to Listen at 55
At 55 years old, I recognize that this stage of life demands a different kind of wisdom. The Type A drive that got me here, that has me deadlifting over 200 pounds and pursuing dreams I never thought I would, isn’t wrong. However, I can’t forget that my body, energy, and recovery aren’t the same as they were at 35 or even 45 years old. I need more time to recover now. This is a different season of my life.
And I must add that there’s something truly beautiful about working out at a gym where I see men and women in their seventies still lifting heavy weights. It’s inspiring, and it allows me to see what may be possible for me as I age. But watching them has also taught me something crucial: they’re not trying to lift the same weight they lifted at 40. They’re lifting what serves them now, in this season, with wisdom and consistency. That’s how I need to operate now, too.
Journal Question: Who in your life models wisdom for this season? What can you learn from people who are thriving (not just surviving) in their later years? What is a common thread or characteristic you recognize in all of them?
When God’s Wisdom Meets Our Drive
I have to keep relearning that at this season in my life, I must exercise wisdom and listen to my body. It’s non-negotiable! Wisdom over ego. That’s not giving up, that’s growing up. It’s a reminder that “growing up” is constant and happens at every stage of life. It’s also recognizing that sometimes the most faithful thing I can do is trust the process, even when the process says “hold steady” instead of “do more.”
Lord knows that my Type A personality often gets the best of me. I always strive to improve by accelerating progress and moving forward. But I know God’s wisdom is different (and better) than my driven instincts. His thoughts are not my thoughts, and His ways are not my ways. When I asked God for wisdom about my training, He gave it to me generously through my body’s signals, the Friday fatigue, and the guidance of my coach, who advised that walking three times a week might be more sustainable than longer walks four times a week. You’d think that was a no-brainer, right? But sometimes we might forget that we’re not as young as we used to be, and that means making adjustments. Guess what? That’s okay! Again, it’s not failure.
Now here’s the thing: what I’m sharing here doesn’t just apply to working out. How many of us are trapped in the “more is better” mentality in areas where our lives are actually asking for something different? How many of us need reminders to plateau, to maintain, to find our sustainable rhythm instead of constantly looking to do ‘more’?
Journal Question: Where do you need to give yourself permission to “plateau” or maintain rather than constantly increase? What would sustainable look like in that area of your life? Again, what would giving yourself grace look like?
The Gift of This Season
I’m so grateful that, at 55, I can recognize when my body is trying to tell me something. Listening is the wise thing, and I’m getting better at it—though it’s definitely still a work in progress. This ongoing discovery of learning to integrate who I’ve always been (driven, goal-oriented, ambitious) with who I’m becoming in this season (wise, listening, sustainable) is exactly what this faith journey is about.
My heart plans my course: ten more minutes of walking each week, three heavy lifts every Friday, with the load constantly increasing. But the Lord establishes my steps—and sometimes those steps include rest, adjustment, and the wisdom to stay where I am while I build strength for what’s next.
Sis, there’s a season for everything in our lives. A season for pushing forward and a season for holding steady. A season for doing more and a season for finding what’s sustainable. I’m learning to trust that this season, whatever it brings, is exactly where I need to be. I trust God and His promises. He orders my steps.
Final Reflection: What is this season of your life asking of you? How might God be inviting you to trust His steps, even when they look different from the course your heart planned?
