The Personal Reverence That Sparked My Health Journey

Intro

Before health and fitness were ever on my mind, I was a kid who struggled to stay well. I was always getting sick. I spent more time resting at home, sitting in doctor’s offices, and getting checkups than most kids my age. I became familiar with feeling unwell long before I ever understood what real health felt like.

When I talk about it now, my family sometimes minimizes those memories. Not because they didn’t care (my family is very caring and supportive) but because their perception is different from mine. When something happens to you, it shapes your reality. It leaves an imprint on you that others may not ever fully grasp. Those experiences influenced me more deeply than I even realized at the time, and they changed the course of my life in a powerful way that I’ll never forget.

Before I tell you about that change, I want to take you back to some of the moments that came before it.

I can remember lying in the back of my father’s car while my mother pressed a cold towel to my forehead, trying to bring down a 104-degree fever on the way to the hospital. High fevers and a weak immune system were simply part of my life back then. 

I can remember watching my dad and brother play in the snow through the window while I had to stay inside. They brought snowballs over to me so I could throw them from indoors, a small way to include me in their fun despite my sickness that day. 

I can remember having pneumonia three times and missing so much school that someone had to do a wellness check. I remember teachers visiting me in the hospital, and my entire class crafting and sending me get-well-soon cards (which I still have by the way). 

I can remember how constant doctor visits were, and how I was the only kid I knew with an inhaler on the playground because I’d lose my breath while running due to asthma. 

I can remember getting pricked by those damn allergy tests year after year and countless amounts of blood work; which, oddly enough, I enjoyed because the nurse would always say, “Wow, you’re a pro!” And that made me feel really good.

I can remember constant stomach tests for constant stomach pains.

Now, I fully recognize that many children face far more serious, life-threatening illnesses. I would never compare myself to the weight of their experience. I was fortunate to avoid that. I was just a sickly kid. But sometimes just the steady, relentless and persistent nature of small things can leave a deep impression. Individually, these moments might seem minor, but together, they became the foundation that influenced my relationship with health.

The most powerful thing I can remember as it relates to my health struggles as a child was a feeling of reverence. And I want to pause here and give you the clearest definition of that word, because it really helps you understand how I felt and how I continue to feel. Reverence is “a feeling of deep respect, often mixed with awe, for a person or thing considered sacred, divine, or greater than oneself.”

This was the change I was referring to at the beginning of this blog. It was this strange, heavy pull where I almost felt bad for my body, like I was finally seeing it for what it truly was, everything it was capable of, and everything it had been doing for me. It was doing its best to keep us alive, and I couldn’t help but wonder if I was doing my part.

This didn’t happen all at once, and there wasn’t a single moment I can point to. It slowly grew, and then kept growing. It became a deep realization that me and my body were going through all of this together, which of course was the case, but the awareness of it changed everything. It made me see my body as something incredibly loyal to me. I started to view it as my best friend. And once that awareness settled in, I couldn’t help but want to do right by it. This entire concept was an extremely profound experience during my early childhood, and one I still carry with me to this day​​.

Reflection

Growing up, health felt like something I didn’t quite have, and that experience helped spark my pursuit of it. It became something I valued then and continue to value even more now. Although my sickly childhood was rooted more in genetic predispositions and immunity issues, not because of anything I could have really controlled at that age, it still taught me a powerful lesson. One that a lot of people never receive.

Most people don’t think about their health until it becomes a problem. I was fortunate to learn early. Many adults still haven’t. They treat their body like an afterthought. They neglect it, ignore its signals, push it past its limits, and then wonder why their health feels unpredictable or fragile. We blame the body for breaking down, but rarely acknowledge how often we fail to support it. The hard truth is simple: if you don’t make time for your health, you’ll eventually be forced to make time for your sickness.

Everything I went through as a kid, as it relates to my health struggles, gradually caused me to see my body differently, almost like I was noticing it for the first time. This allowed me to appreciate it and I then began to view my body as my closest companion. Not just a machine that keeps me alive, but a best friend that stayed with me through every fever, every hospital visit, every moment I felt weak.

When you start seeing your body this way, something shifts. Caring for yourself stops being an obligation and becomes a form of loyalty, a way of honoring the one part of you that has never left your side. Love, respect, and devotion become natural ways to show your appreciation, and caring for your health becomes the clearest way to express them.

You start wanting to care for your body out of respect. Health stops feeling like a chore and starts becoming an act of gratitude. Nourishing yourself becomes a way of saying thank you. Moving your body becomes a way of honoring what it has carried. Rest becomes a way of giving back what it has given you for years.

Understanding this deeply and wholeheartedly doesn’t just improve your health, it redefines the relationship you have with yourself. The two are connected, because the way you treat your body reflects the way you treat yourself. And that relationship should be rooted in love. If it isn’t, and your health is suffering because of it, then remember this: it isn’t your body that needs to show up more. It has been there since day one, doing its job every single moment. You’re the one who needs to change, to finally show up for it. 

So do it. For yourself. And for your oldest, most devoted, but newly recognized “best friend.”

Action:

Follow these steps in order:

1. Acknowledge that your body needs you as much as you need it
Take a moment to recognize your body as a living organism, a friend. Breathe deeply and realize that your body has been with you through every moment of your life. Feel that connection and take accountability for your part.

2. Identify one way your body has supported you recently.
Maybe it carried you through stress, healed you from a wound or a workout, or helped you wake up this morning. Acknowledge it

3. Do one act that treats your body with loyalty.
Eat a healthy meal, take a walk in nature, move your body with intention, or catch up on sleep. Choose something that reflects support, not obligation.

4. Give your body a place on your calendar.
Sign up for a fitness class, visit a health-food store weekly for groceries, or schedule a true rest day. Make it a habit your body can rely on.

Take the Next Step:

If something in this story spoke to you, it might be because you recognize a part of your own journey in it. Maybe you’ve ignored your body. Maybe you’ve treated it like an afterthought. Or maybe you’re finally ready to build a healthier, more respectful relationship with yourself. If so, I invite you to take the next step.

I offer one-on-one coaching for anyone who wants to improve their health, elevate their habits, and learn how to support their body with intention.

And if you’re a man reading this and want to make a positive impact on every area of your life, then apply to join The Intentional Man, an online men’s group built for growth, accountability, and becoming a more disciplined and capable version of yourself.