How to Beat the Resistance: Find the Intrinsic Value
Gran Sasso National Park, Italy
If you sign up for my email newsletter, one of the two automated emails you'll receive is a simple question: "What is the biggest obstacle to getting outside?"
Now, you can answer this question with either what obstacle you struggle with the most, or what you perceive other people to claim is their biggest obstacle. And to those of you who have taken the time to email back—thank you, thank you so much!
I have received some very insightful responses to this question that have put a different spin on some common themes. One of the most recurrent themes is the idea of "not having enough time," which I have already analyzed here and here.
But a recent email cast this common theme in a new light. Lisa wrote:
"I think the biggest obstacle for most Americans getting themselves active outside is their perception of what 'outside' is.
Typically thought of as an 'activity' to accomplish. One more task to get done in an already overloaded life.
People raised in a man-made, urban society, insulated from the natural rhythm of nature's cycles, has robbed them of the intrinsic appreciation of the gifts of being outdoors."
"One More Task to Get Done in an Already Overloaded Life"
Honestly, I can so sympathize with this feeling. While I'll readily admit that my life probably isn't nearly as overloaded as many peoples', I still struggle with feelings of overwhelm, stress, anxiety, and feeling drained and empty.
In the midst of this state of overwhelm, I will often hear of a healthy habit that would seemingly improve my life and possibly combat that feeling of overwhelm... but when it comes time to actually prioritize that practice and carve out time for it, it feels oh-so-difficult. The question isn't whether or not there's enough time for the practice in my day—there is. There unquestionably is. Saying that there's not enough time is a cop-out, but the feeling of overwhelm, the feeling of dread of adding one more task, is real, and it's tough to combat.
While I no longer struggle with the practice of being outside and active every single day, I'm currently struggling to add another healthy habit to my life: mindfulness practiced via meditation and breathwork. Even though I know, I know, that it's good for me, overcoming the initial hurdle to simply carve out a few minutes to sit down and do the practice is the hardest part. It's not the practice that's hard—it's the sitting down to do the thing that gets me every time.
Similarly, when it comes to Outside 365, it's usually not the actual physical activity that's hard, it's getting out the door to start the walk or the ride that's the difficult part.
The Resistance
Gran Sasso National Park, Italy
So why is it so fucking difficult to sit down and practice mindfulness or walk out the door to be physically active?
Steven Pressfield tells us in his classic book, The War of Art, that it's the Resistance that's fighting against us, preventing us from making these positive changes in our lives. Pressfield says that "Resistance is the most toxic force on the planet," and is responsible for the vast majority of the pain and suffering experienced in this world.
While The War of Art is touted as mandatory reading for creative professionals embroiled in work like writing and painting, Pressfield tells us that the Resistance is also elicited by "any diet or health regiment," and "any program of spiritual advancement" (among other things). Any time that we set out to create a better life for ourselves, the Resistance is there, lying in wait, ready to ambush us and trip us up.
While the Resistance is dead set on derailing our healthy advancement in life, we can use this feeling of Resistance in order to figure out what we should focus on and devote our energy to. A very good rule of thumb is: "the more important a call or action is to our soul's evolution, the more Resistance we will feel toward pursuing it."
This is why people with overloaded lives feel like they can't make the space to go outside and be active. This is why I still struggle to meditate every single day. The Resistance is actively fighting us, trying to keep us mired in the muck of daily existence.
So how do we beat the Resistance?
Gran Sasso National Park, Italy
I don't have all the answers on how to beat the Resistance, otherwise, I wouldn't still be fighting with this mindfulness practice. But I have found one key in my own life: when I do the things that I find inherently valuable and worthwhile, the Resistance is robbed of its power
I have a hard time fighting the Resistance when I'm trying to do something that only feels like a means to an end. For instance, I could never force myself to eat healthy when I only felt like it was a means to another end, like losing weight or looking fitter. However, a change occurred in my mind and motivation when I realized that certain healthy foods tasted better than their sugary, over-processed counterparts or that I simply felt better, both inside and out, when I fed better food into my body.
When that shift occurs in any aspect of my life, I start doing things not for a result that will appear somewhere far down the line, but because doing the thing—right here, and right now—is inherently valuable, good, and enjoyable in my life.
The same applies to Outside 365. As Lisa astutely identified, many people who have been raised in urban settings have been robbed of "the intrinsic appreciation of the gifts of being outdoors."
Outside 365 isn't just another item to put on your to-do list because some fucker on the internet said you should. Outside 365 is a way of life, and those of us who choose to live it do so because going outside and moving our bodies through the natural world is intrinsically valuable. We live Outside 365 because when we do this activity, it resonates with us and speaks to our souls. We feel at peace with the world and our place in it. It makes us feel happy, well, and whole... or at least, it gives us a sense that happiness and contentment are within reach and are things that we can create for ourselves.
See also: “How to Figure Out What You Value: A Quick Guide”
Intrinsically Valuable Activities
Gran Sasso National Park, Italy
Perhaps I would be a more advanced and developed human being if I could do more things not for their own sake, but for the benefits that derive several steps down the line. Unfortunately, I've developed enough personal awareness to realize that I have a certain capacity to do this, but that it's limited. (See: Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength, by Roy F. Baumeister and John Tierney)
In order to truly excel in life, I've found myself chasing the things that I find intrinsically valuable. I choose to do the activities that I enjoy doing simply for their own sake.
I don't mountain bike for fitness—I mountain bike because I fucking love it. I don't write because someone tells me to—I write because trying to create something beautiful or meaningful feels inherently good and important.
If you're only going outside and moving your body every day because you think it's a healthy thing to do but not because you love doing it, you'll never succeed in reaching 365 consecutive days. But when you can make the crucial mental leap and realize that going outside is simply good and valuable in its own right, then suddenly you will find yourself looking forward to your outdoor time, and not dreading it.
You won't find yourself worrying about how to fit it into an overloaded schedule and, instead, you'll find yourself conforming the rest of your schedule around the highlight of your day: moving your body through the natural world.
This is how you beat the Resistance. This is how you reach Outside 365.
