One of the many miraculous aspects of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius is that he wrote them at a time in history when the thought of “exercising” for the benefit of one’s health had hardly crept into human consciousness and yet the parallels between doing “exercise” for one’s spiritual health and one’s physical health are stunning. 

The parallels begin with the excuses of why not to exercise.  Now I don’t consider myself an athlete by any stretch of the imagination.  I make time to work out.  I swim. I run. I use the convoluted weight contraptions at the YMCA.  As opposed to an athlete, exercising is not a part of my genetic make up. I have to make myself do it.  I have to actively fight all those excuses not to work out (“I just want to sleep.” “It’s too cold outside.” “I don’t have time.”  “I ate too much.” “My feet hurt.” “The water is so cold—okay so the pool is heated, still they expect you take a shower before you get in and it’s a cold walk from the locker room to the pool with wet hair.” See, I told you I know all the excuses to not work out.)  In the same way, I am no saint.  Daily prayer is not a part of my genetic make up either, so I have to intentionally make myself do it.  All those same excuses of not having time or just wanting to sleep or not being good at it, stand in my way.

Somehow, 400 years ago, St. Ignatius understood the laziness of the human spirit at times and yet he knew a way to deal with those excuses even better than Nike.

A good friend of mine explained to me that research shows that changing behaviors before changing attitudes is more likely to yield success  —hence, Nike beseeches us to ‘just do it.’  Even if you want to sleep longer, even if you are cold, or don’t think you have time, or the sky is looking that slightly darker shade of blue, just do it.  Don’t let the excuses hold you back. Your attitude can still be ‘I have better things to do,’ or ‘This is going to be boring’ or ‘This is a waste of time.’  Exercise anyway.  Work out anyway. Pray anyway.

Why? Because 21+ straight days of any activity will make it a habit.  Because the realized benefits will eventually outweigh the old excuses.  Because nothing in our spiritual life ever changes without some sort of intentional action.

But here’s where Ignatius one ups Nike’s insistence to Just Do It.  ‘Just doing it’ can turn into an end in itself.  And, yes, physically, any exercise is better than none at all.  But unless that exercise is a step to a larger vision of overall health, supported by not eating the double delicious brownie fudge sundae every night, the exercise will, at best, maintain us where we are rather than falling further behind.  Spiritually, ‘Just Do It’ alone can lead one into the trap of “shoulds,” praying just for the sake of checking the box or saying we did it. Prayer being the end in itself.  I know a lot of people who go to Mass purely for that reason.  Ignatius insists we need to pray every day, take time to examine God’s presence in our lives and actions every day, not for the sake of checking a box, but as a crucial step, perhaps the crucial step, to realizing our deepest vision and desire:  to be closer to God.

The reason “just do it” works is because Nike and most people who work out regularly know there is a hidden secret:  endorphins.  I just do it, get on the dang treadmill, and after a little while, something kicks in inside that tells my body subconsciously and consciously that the movement feels good, is good.  In the same way, Ignatius knew that if I just get to prayer, not for the sake of checking the box, but with that sincere desire to get closer to God, there is a hidden secret there too: God’s grace.  If I get myself there, even on the days my mind wanders or I can’t find a passage that speaks to me, even when my examen is more repetition than actually finding where God was in my day, something still kicks in and I know the effort itself was good.  And it’s that knowing after the fact that the exercise was good for me that keeps me coming back for more.

And just like different exercise regimens work better for some people than others, what works for some people in prayer won’t work for others. But there are a few things that are consistent across all exercise, physical and spiritual.

1)      Preparation:  In physical exercise, I can’t just wear anything, start moving, and expect a good work out.  I need to get my running shoes and MP3 and stretch a little first, and have a general idea of how long I’m running for and what way I’ll go.  In spiritual exercise, I need to set the environment, plan what readings I want to use, and set a time. 

2)      Breathing:  In physical exercise, sustaining a higher heart rate yields the best results.  In prayer, sustaining a lower heart rate yields the best results.  In both cases, your heart rate will be regulated by your breathing.  Focus on the breathing and the body follows.

3)      Evaluation:  At the end of my run or swim, and even during the middle of it, I know if everything is in sync.  I note which patterns of strokes work best or which route was too challenging.  Ignatius directs us to evaluate our prayer time as well and, while not giving up too quick on a place that may seem empty (perhaps that is the exact kink you need to work out), make adjustments accordingly (time, place, posture, environment, etc.)  And, most importantly, note the value of the experience. Note the gentle lift of the spirit.  Note that when the time is done, it was good.

4)      Expectations:  As with physical exercise, we can’t begin by running a marathon.  We gradually build up to a new way of being.  Prayer too requires a bit of re-training.  Start with just a few minutes of dedicated time.  My spiritual director also reminds me, “Don’t be hard on yourself. Just be aware of yourself.”  Know there will be good days and bad days, but the commitment to the vision to getting closer to God is what it’s all about.

5)      Exercise is not competition:  Some people do exercise to prepare for competition and perhaps there is a parallel to the competition being the challenges in daily life.  But the exercise, the daily prayer itself, is not a competition.  That I do for myself. Not to be seen. Not to be judged.  Just to be healthier.

6)      The hidden bond: My husband’s other lover is his bicycle.  Every time we are driving and he sees a biker he has to point him out and cheer him on.  When I’m running on my path, fellow runners always acknowledge each other. Maybe just a nod or even eye contact, but we connect.  It’s not competition, but it’s a mutual unspoken understanding of both the joys and the challenges of the exercise. There’s a bit of inspiration that we aren’t out there totally alone.  And though I pray alone, there is a connection I have to others who do so as well, a knowing of that experience of grace.  Often it’s ineffable and doesn’t need to be verbalized anyway.  But it is felt as surely as the sweat running down my face.

The Spiritual Exercises offered by Ignatius don’t require a monthly membership fee.  No special equipment or attire is necessary.  But they give me a way of being; A way of being healthier.  A way of “working out” my faith, knowing that there truly is no time when I will ever not need to exercise as long as I’m on this earth.   Trust the vision, change behaviors, attitudes will follow. So with now being the moment I have the most control over, I might as well just do it…with grace.

Photo: “Running Like Hell“by ctanstfl from Flickr (Used under Creative Commons license)

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