Merlin Egalite
Years ago, sports changed the course of my life, for the better.
I invite you to read my previous article (The Obsessions Orchard) to understand better what happened.
But anyway, here is the TL;DR: I was obsessed with becoming a fighter pilot and thus trained very hard for it. I did sports studies and passed the pilot's license exams to fly alone at 16. But then I realized I was too tall to become a fighter pilot, which would never change. Well, to be fair, I was too short (about 5mm too short).
However terrible this experience was, having done sports regularly for years had brought me self-confidence and protected me at the time. It pushed me to find another path: the path of entrepreneurship.
Since then, I have kept that habit, bringing me much more than just self-confidence: better quality of life, happiness, etc.
I wrote this piece because I’m convinced that everybody could benefit from sports like I did.
So, let’s first start with how sports can help your body's health.
Look around you, in your friend or family circles; who has no pain in the back, cervicals, or something else? Recall all your family members with tendonitis and back injuries or, even worse, dying from a cardiovascular disease. Most of those problems occur because of their working conditions, they’re only doing one type of movement again and again while never reinforcing and working over muscles of the same part of the limb. Or they sit for hours in front of a screen with the neck at a 90-degree angle with their back.
Most problems come from years or even decades of not taking care of one’s body.
The best way to prevent those injuries is to strengthen the back and one’s overall physical condition. There’s no magic formula. Physiotherapy, massage, or a doctor won’t do miracles unless the source of the problem is directly tackled.
Overall, doing sports can have the following good effects on your body (among others):
Increase cardiovascular capacity and endurance (e.g., climbing stairs without exhaustion).
Increase strength and flexibility (e.g., lifting loads without hurting yourself).
Increase agility, coordination, and accuracy (e.g., moving with more confidence).
Overall, it will allow you to live longer and in better conditions.
But remember Juvenal’s phrase: “mens sana in corpore sano”. Your body is only one part of the equation, and your mind is as important for your well-being.
Many factors can cause mental diseases. A sedentary lifestyle and a lack of physical activity, especially, play a massive role. Isolation due to COVID-19, social media, and external pressures are also huge factors.
Unfortunately, the consequences are disastrous at a societal scale as we witness a drastic increase in mental diseases among youngsters.
Although doctors can prescribe drugs or go to a psychologist, sports is a widely overlooked but effective solution to damper mental diseases. It’s surprising, as It’s one of the best and cheapest ways of proactively fighting mental diseases and improving overall health. In some cases, it could even have the same benefits as taking drugs to fight depression, but for free!
in view of the unsatisfactory mitigation of disease burden and limited long-term effectiveness of the available treatments for depressive disorders, physical exercise and sport deserve far greater consideration and may become a viable measure in the prevention and treatment of depression
From the same sources, sports also have the following powers:
Help regulate sleep.
Allow empty one’s mind and unplug; it's a great way to let off steam.
Releases dopamine and makes you happy.
An improved perception of overall physical health may boost confidence. This is what happened to me!
Plus, sports help improve your brain’s health and capacity: memory, creativity and learning capacity, brain plasticity, increased concentration, and attention. I’ll stop here, but in short, you become better at any cognitive tasks by doing sports.
In a world filled with digital interactions (social networks, remote working), humans are becoming increasingly isolated. Sports can be the place where you meet people IRL during your day.
Even individual sports (e.g., running) can become very social if you join a club. For instance, when I was doing athletics, I specialized in sprinting (100m), which is basically one of the archetypes of an individual sport. You run for yourself against everyone else.
But I was in a club, training with friends every day. We supported each other at each competition, and there were also relay races. The team spirit was very strong. There was even a competition called “Inter Club” where the goal was to mark the most points as a club. It’s not the individual performance that counts but the global performance of the whole club, from youngsters to veterans!
Sports can help build relationships with others which is important for mental stability. And we can agree that exchanging smiles, and having fun with others, always feels good.
You may already know all those benefits but not doing sports yet.
The reasons why are numerous. Enter the blockers.
The reasons why one person wouldn't do sports can be (of course, it does not apply to disabled or sick people who might have no choice):
It sounds super futile to do some sports and something only “primitive” people would do.
It sounds like a pain-only task.
It sounds like a pure waste of time; “Why would I spend a painful 1 hour when I could just rest or work more??”
It sounds super expensive.
The motivation is just not there.
Let’s take those points one by one:
When thinking about sports, one may think about 2 types of stereotypes: the superego bodybuilder and the football ultra supporter. It can also recall sad reminders about sports at university, where it was more animals.
To clarify: (1) rarely exists, (2) does not play sports; he watches sports on his sofa.
You don’t need to morph into a bodybuilder or shout in front of your TV during a match to “do sports.”
On my side, I play sports almost every day, but I barely watch a single match (except maybe during World Cups or Olympic Games).
Start slowly! Start slowly and increase the difficulty over time.
You don’t need to run a marathon to do sport.
Can’t run 2km? Start with a 1km run and slowly increase the distance. You can even walk if it’s too difficult. It might be hard, but remember that your brain will thank you with a sweet dopamine hit at the end. You’ll feel good about what you achieved.
You might also have some muscle soreness, which means you’re growing.
Moreover, there are a very large number of sports whose goal is not to destroy yourself. Take Tai Chi (hey, grandma), Yoga, Badminton, Volleyball, etc. You can do them with friends or in a club and meet people you don’t need to train like Usain Bolt to do sports. It can be something chill that at least makes you move a bit more than your current habits.
I hope you know all the benefits of sports by now. Do you still think it’s a waste of time? See it as an investment in yourself. Your future self will thank you.
If you think you don’t have enough time, it’s almost sure you can find 10 or 20min here and there to exercise a bit. You’ll find many YouTube videos of very short but effective sessions that greatly improve your health. So why not try doing this 1 or 2 times a week to start with?
It’s not.
Of course, it depends on your sport. If you want to pilot an F1, it won’t be cheap… But I mentioned the YouTube videos; the cost is close to 0. A sport like running requires a pair of baskets, and you can do it basically everywhere.
Joining a club (not mandatory) can cost less than 100€ or a few hundred euros per year, depending on the sport. Even if that amount sounds expensive, it must be considered and compared to the cost of living an unhealthy life.
A study conducted in the US revealed that people who start exercising in middle age save between $824 to $1,874 annually on healthcare after retirement.
Pay a bit now to save a lot more later.
Getting motivated might be the hardest part.
The most important thing to remember is what we said in (2): start slow. And try to find a sport you enjoy—playing tennis, running, swimming, whatever—but at least do something where you can have fun.
Then, increase the pace over time. Don’t disgust or burn yourself.
On my side, the sports I appreciate the most are CrossFit, Running, and Surfing:
CrossFit because it’s one of the most complete sports I know, and it’s very (very) good for your overall health. I cannot stress all of its benefits. It’s a sport I would definitely recommend to anyone of any age.
The cool things about it:
You don’t need to prepare a workout plan; you just come, and there’s a new workout every day, so you never enter a routine.
There’s a coach helping you to correct your positions and movements, which you don’t have in a classic gym. They help you push yourself but take care of you to avoid injuries.
You’re with a group. There’s an effervescence effect that is truly motivating and challenges you.
It’s a sort of course, so you don’t have your smartphone with you; you truly unplug and are 100% focused on your session, not notifications.
If you come at the same hour, you meet the same people. This helps build relationships.
The intensity can be adapted to anyone. In my CrossFit box, I see people around 60 years old coming every day (some are better than me by far).
I’m an early person, so I usually go there at 7 or 7:30 am, 4 to 5 times a week. I prefer in the morning since it’s easy not to have time thereafter because of my workload. There’s a powerful thing about doing it in the morning; once it’s done, it’s done. First, you avoid procrastination; second, whatever happens during the day, you can at least tell yourself you did something great, reducing stress. At 8 or 8:30, I’m out and can start the day in a good mood.
Of course, not everyone works the same as I do; some will prefer doing it in the evening to disconnect from work.
Running because you can do it anywhere, anytime and it’s basically free.
I usually run once or twice a week or more to prepare for something special. For instance, I did it 3 times a week, when I was preparing for my first half-marathon. I usually run with my girlfriend or with friends.
I especially enjoy it when I’m back in the countryside.
Surfing for nature and the fun you have. Also, you really unplug from the rest of the world. I’m based in Paris, so no need to tell you that the waves on the Seine are not the most exciting. But I try to do some remote work several times a year to enjoy surfing with some friends. It’s always refreshing and relaxing.
All of this helps me feel good and have a better balanced life, given my work and the stress that can come from building a company.
After reading this piece, I hope you’ll find a sport you enjoy and some motivation. If not, let me know why!
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