Find Your Fit: Why Taking Care of Your Body Is an Act of Obedience

"What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (KJV)

Your body is the only thing that will be with you from the moment you take your first breath until the moment you take your last.

Not your business. Not your title. Not your bank account. Your body.

And when you do not prioritize taking care of it, you are telling God that the temple He loaned you is not worthy of your stewardship. That is not a small thing. The scriptures are clear that we are called to be good stewards of what God gives us. And your body is the first and most personal thing He has ever placed in your care.

I want to talk about that today. Not just theologically but practically. Because the culture we live in is not designed to help us be well, and if we are not intentional, we will coast through life treating our bodies like afterthoughts until our bodies start demanding our attention in ways we cannot ignore.

A Culture That Does Not Prioritize Wellness

Here in the United States, we are known for being hard workers. We celebrate the grind. We end the year with unused vacation days and paid time off we never touched because we were afraid of falling behind. And when we do talk about self care, it tends to look like a spa day, a manicure, or a glass of wine. Those things are fine. But they are not wellness.

Real wellness looks like going outside. Taking a walk in nature. Sleeping enough. Drinking water. Moving your body. Eating food that fuels you instead of just filling you. Spending time doing things that genuinely refuel you from the inside.

I have noticed that the only pressure I have ever felt to perform and overextend myself has been the pressure I put on myself as a professor, a founder, and a mom. When I am not taking care of myself, it shows up in specific ways. Hitting the snooze button multiple times when that is not characteristic of me. Not eating the best, or sometimes forgetting to eat altogether because I am so locked into work. Reaching for sodas. Feeling foggy and drained.

Now every day I make it a goal to do at least thirty minutes to an hour of something just for me. That might be watching a show, reading a book, or just being still. I try not to let it be mindlessly scrolling on social media. And I take one full day a week, usually Saturday, where I do not work. If something creative comes to me, I write it down and come back to it. Sunday is worship and family and planning. But Saturday belongs to rest. Because I know what burnout feels like and I know how long it took me to come back from it. I will not go back there.

"Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth." 3 John 1:2 (KJV)

God wants you to prosper in health. That is not a suggestion buried in a letter. That is a declaration. But you have to partner with that desire by actually taking care of the body He gave you.

What Aging Well Actually Looks Like

I have always had confidence in my body. I have always liked how I look. But as I have gotten older, I have noticed the changes. I have had major surgeries. I have had another child. My body has shifted in ways that come with doing life for over three decades. And I am paying closer attention now than I ever have before.

What I want at sixty, seventy, eighty, is to still be taking care of myself. I do not want to be in a position where the doctor tells me I have to manage high blood pressure, cholesterol, or diabetes with prescriptions that I could have potentially avoided by making different choices now. If something can be managed with lifestyle and I have the ability to do something about it, I want to do something about it.

I love seeing older people on social media, out in the community, still going to the gym, still walking, still washing their cars, still functioning and living well because they took care of themselves. That is the picture I am building toward.

I think about my great grandmother, who is turning 101 this month. She walked to church. She walked to the store. She walked us to school. Movement was simply a part of her daily life. And I believe that has contributed to her health in ways that no prescription could replicate.

I think about my great aunts Terry and Shirley. One of my earliest memories as a child is walking with them through the cemetery in the morning. That was how they started their day. Decades of that habit. A simple, consistent commitment to moving their bodies.

That is the legacy I want to carry forward.

"I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service." Romans 12:1 (KJV)

Presenting your body as a living sacrifice is not a one-time act. It is a daily practice. A reasonable service. Something you offer God every morning when you choose to steward what He gave you.

Four Things You Can Do Right Now

First, take an honest look at your body and how you are treating it.

What do you actually think when you look in the mirror? Not the critical voice, not the comparison voice, but a real honest assessment. What does your body need or crave that you have been depriving it of? More water? More sleep? More sunshine? More movement? Sometimes something as simple as a wardrobe update can shift how you feel in your own skin. Start there. Start with honesty.

Second, find a workout or movement routine that fits your actual life.

I used to love walking outside in nature. I could walk five miles, two to two and a half hours, and do it consistently because I was a full-time entrepreneur and I had that kind of flexibility. Now I am a professor and that is not my reality anymore. So I joined Burn Boot Camp. Forty-five minutes of high intensity interval training, four times a week, in a community that keeps me accountable.

Some days I really do not feel like going. But once I am there, I lock in. And I am always glad I went. In December 2025 when I started, I could not do a pull-up. It is now April 2026 and I can. I recently hit 50 workouts for the year. My first milestone. The second is 100. The third is 250. And I plan on exceeding all of them.

Find your version of that. It does not have to be a gym. It could be a walking group that meets in the park. A run club. A yoga class. Dancing in your living room. Whatever moves your body and fits your life. The best workout is the one you will actually do consistently.

Third, drink more water.

I want to say this plainly because it worries me when adults say they do not like water. Water is not optional. It is how your body functions. If plain water is hard for you, do infused water. Add lemon, lime, cucumber, grapes, peppermint, or fresh fruit. It enhances the taste without adding sugar, so you are still getting the full benefit. Hydration is one of the simplest and most powerful things you can do for your body and so many of us are chronically under-doing it.

Fourth, find your accountability.

I go to Burn Boot Camp and the community there is genuinely supportive. I have not yet found my specific accountability partner there, not because they are not present but because I have not been actively looking. That is something I am working on. Because I know from experience that accountability changes everything.

Think about my great aunts. They have been walking together for decades. That consistency did not happen by accident. It happened because two people made an agreement and kept it. Find someone with a similar lifestyle and similar goals. A friend, a neighbor, someone from your faith community. Link up. Check in. Celebrate each other's milestones. The journey is always better when someone is walking it with you.

The Bottom Line

Your body is not a convenience.

It is not something to be managed when it breaks down and ignored when it seems fine. It is a temple. It is a gift. It is a responsibility.

And every time you choose to take care of it, you are worshipping. Every workout, every glass of water, every good night of sleep, every walk outside, every day off you actually take, that is you saying to God: I value what You gave me. I am going to steward it well.

In my book Deal With You First, I write about the physical dimension as one of six dimensions of wholeness. And what I want people to take away from this article and from that work is simple. Your body is with you from birth until death. When it is time to close your eyes, your body cannot go with you. So honor it now. Take care of it now. Not because society tells you to. Because God entrusted it to you.

That is enough reason.

Maleeka Hollaway is the founder of SAVEDpreneur Media and Lead and Influence. She writes about faith, wholeness, and the work of building a life that reflects who you are and Whose you are. Her book Deal With You First explores the six dimensions of wholeness including the physical. Follow her at www.maleekahollaway.com.