When you’re around the age of 40, your find yourself with a lot of responsibilities — with your spouses and children, your parents and your career. For a lot of us, we’ve pushed our athletic years out of sight and at some point, fitness became less of a priority.

However, now that we’re here, we feel like we’re slowing down because of aging. Our body might tend to punish us for unhealthy habits that we used to be able to get away with. Then we realize that taking care of our health is nonnegotiable. We often wonder if it’s still possible to make a place for exercise in our busy schedule. The fact is, it is.

Getting into fitness, at any age, can be made much easier if we find a physical activity that is a good fit for our lifestyle. We also benefit much more by doing activities or exercises that we actually enjoy.

“Mum, you really need to start training more. You are growing a one pack” said my 10 year old when I was getting dressed ? #blimey #harshcomment #nothinglikebeingdirect #iguessihavehadsomedowntimesincethegames #andbeeningreenpastures #maybeitistimetopickthingsupabit #crossfit #crossfitgames #crossfitmasters #fitaid #teamfitaid #fitaidaus #fitaidausnz @deluxemediagroup

A post shared by Helen Harding (@hchharding) on Sep 13, 2017 at 6:11pm PDT

Enter CrossFit

CrossFit has helped countless people develop a habit of exercising regularly even if they previously thought it impossible. The approach, the competent instructors and the great community that CrossFit has make it possible for most people to get into exercise, regardless of their age, sex and fitness level.

With scalable workouts and great instruction, age really is just a number.

Some might say CrossFit is a scary cult, but it’s really all about the community. While everyone is helpful and welcoming, it also introduces a drive to always strive to exceed your personal best. The small competitive fire that CrossFit ignites is healthy. It makes you less aware of your age and puts you in a place that wants you to keep on going for the long run.

The Mindset

Working on your fitness makes you better at life in general. With functional fitness, you’ll notice that it’ll be easier to do everyday tasks like run to catch a bus, walk up a flight of stairs and pick up your child and carry them.

Aside from that, your body benefits from having a healthier heart and lungs. Being healthier also means having a more enjoyable life to spend with your family.

Mental health comes into play, too. The general mindset that exercise brings is uplifting. It makes you realize that a lot of things are possible if you just put the work in. There is a drive to always beat your personal best and become your strongest possible self. The level of dedication translates into your career, your family and other relationships as well. CrossFit isn’t just about the gym. It’s about life.

Getting work done at work with my vest from the @crossfitgames . Not a #tbt but it definitely threw me back to memory lane with the Triplet from the Games when this vest felt like 80#’s! #wgt @jasonleydon @chad_armed @theironsmurf @niketraining @nike #crossfit #crossfitmasters #rtg2018

A post shared by Shawn C. Ramirez (@shawn_theram) on Nov 9, 2017 at 5:31pm PST

Finding fitness is possible at any age. We are never too busy as long as we know our priorities. If we are to make the decision that our fitness is going to be one of our top priorities, then we must make time.

In the end, the one who will benefit the most is ourselves.

Main image: Jeb Simmons/Instagram