This is the time of year that we often focus on physical New Year’s resolutions … eating healthy, getting into shape with exercise, creating new habits that will help us feel and look better. All of that is well and good, but keeping our focus on our spiritual fitness is an even greater priority.

I have worked in the field of fitness for a while now. The longer I do this work, the more I see our cultural obsession with our physical bodies. Over time, the Lord has shown me that we can easily miss the point of our lives when things of this world begin to play too big of a role or become our identity

My goal as a strength coach has always been to help people learn to move well, lift heavy things to get stronger, and to have fun doing it, with moderation and consistency. While this is a good thing, it began to change for me when I realized I was spending too much time and energy on it and not giving enough time to God.

I am learning to approach any and all goals, physical or otherwise, from a spiritual perspective. Jesus is with us 24/7 and he cares about everything we think, say and do. He and His Mother will help us discern and guide us to enjoy recreation (and any secular activities) with moderation when we seek their help — as it is our spiritual fitness and fulfilling our vocational call from God that matters most.

There was a time when I was new to coaching (this was a second career for me) and I exercised 2-3 hours a day. I was learning how to teach and that’s how I justified the amount of time I spent on physical activity. I was aware that I exercised far more time than I prayed, but it was new, fun and exciting. Eventually, the Blessed Mother intervened and set me on a more spiritually healthy trajectory by straightening out my priorities.

One day when I was swinging a kettlebell in the gym, the Hail Mary prayer kept coming into my heart. I put the weight down and took an honest look at my spiritual life. I wasn’t praying the Rosary any more and I knew that I needed more prayer time in general. I had a desire to go to daily Mass, but I hadn’t made the effort to make it happen with my teaching schedule. I wanted to give my time and talent more freely to those in need. This all came bubbling up as I prayed for Our Lady’s intervention, so I put the kettlebells away and went home to ponder these things in my heart.

That moment with Our Lady in the gym prompted a big change in my life. I was led to SoulCore Rosary prayer and exercise, attended their retreat, and started leading SoulCore Rosary prayer and gentle movement in parishes.

I made other changes too. I changed the location of my gym to reduce maintenance time. I decreased the number of classes I offered. I exercised for only an hour a day (and now it’s less than that and fewer days per week) and I’m healthier, happier, my life is more balanced and I have a loving and active relationship with Jesus and Mary.

Most importantly, God is first in my life, my prayer time is far longer than my exercise time, I’m able to attend daily Mass, be a volunteer, and enjoy the richness of family, friends, parish and diocesan life in a more peaceful balance with my physical life.

My identity is a child of God, a woman in love with the Lord, a wife and mother, a SoulCore leader, and a servant and sinner who is striving for holiness. My role as fitness coach is very small and I’m thrilled about that. It’s not who I am, it’s something I do — and I ask God to sanctify it every day. There is real spiritual freedom in not allowing a secular activity to own the lion’s share of my time and energy.

So in this new year, I pray that we focus on our spiritual fitness first, keep Jesus at the center of our lives, and ask him, and his Mother, to help us discern how to approach any and all New Year’s resolutions.