Getting Close to the Fire: Why Action Matters
“If you want to get warm you must stand near the fire: if you want to be wet you must get into the water. If you want joy, power, peace, eternal life, you must get close to, or even into, the thing that has them.”
C.S. Lewis
The quote above promotes a simple idea, yet it is one that challenges how many of us approach change. We often want better health, more strength and higher fitness levels but wanting alone doesn’t create results (no matter how much the Gooroos tell us that if we manifest it, it will happen). Change only happens when we take action and place ourselves close to the very thing that produces it.
Knowing Isn’t Enough
Most people already know what supports good health: move more, sit less, eat well, sleep properly and manage stress. The problem is rarely a lack of knowledge. It’s the gap between knowing and doing.
Reading about exercise won’t make you stronger. Planning a healthier lifestyle won’t improve your fitness. Just as standing next to water won’t make you wet, thinking about change won’t create it. You have to step in.
Health Is Built, Not Given
Our bodies adapt to what we ask of them. Ask your body to sit still all day, and it will get very good at sitting still. Ask it to move, lift, stretch and work, and it will become stronger, fitter and more resilient.
Physical health is not passive. It doesn’t arrive by accident or through good intentions alone. Strength is built through use. Fitness is developed through effort. If you want results, you must engage with the process.
Action Comes Before Motivation
Many people wait to feel motivated before they start. In reality, motivation usually follows action. A short walk, a quick workout or a single positive choice can be enough to create momentum. Momentum builds confidence, and confidence makes action easier next time.
You don’t need to change everything at once. You just need to take the first step and keep stepping.
Progress Beats Perfection
You don’t need perfect routines or ideal conditions. You need consistency. Showing up imperfectly but regularly will always outperform waiting for the “right time”. Getting close to the fire often enough will warm you; even if you step away occasionally.
Health is shaped in small, repeated actions, not dramatic overhauls.
A Simple Reflection
Ask yourself honestly: Am I standing close to the things that create the health, strength and fitness I want or am I watching from a distance?
There’s no judgement in the answer, only opportunity.
Step Into Change
If you want better health, move your body.
If you want strength, challenge it.
If you want fitness, place yourself where it can be built.
Nothing changes until you do. And the moment you step closer to the fire, change has already begun. And as ever, if you would like help making changes to your lifestyle to help you become fitter, stronger and healthier please get in touch. I’d love to be able to help you “get closer to the fire” 🔥 Click the gold button below and let’s have a chat about how we could work together to get you where you want to be. ☺️