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Regular exercise is known to benefit physical and mental health — but there has been some debate about whether pursuing physical improvement could conflict with Christian principles.
Some have cautioned that putting too much focus on fitness could veer into “idol worship,” which is when another pursuit surpasses devotion to God.
In the book “Counterfeit Gods: The Empty Promises of Money, Sex, and Power and the Only Hope that Matters,” author Tim Keller defines an idol as “anything more important to you than God, anything that absorbs your heart and imagination more than God, anything you seek to give you what only God can give.”
According to some points of view, that could even include exercise.
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Others — like Hunter Sprague, a Christian bodybuilder and father of three in Texas — take a different perspective.
After spending time in Christian ministry, Sprague tapped into his personal passion for exercise and strength-building to launch Monolith Movement, a coaching and mentorship platform that helps men balance faith and fitness.
In an on-camera interview with Fox News Digital, Sprague described physical health as a form of spiritual stewardship, which is reflected in 1 Corinthians in the New Testament: “Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit … therefore honor God with your body.” (See part of the interview in the video at the top of this article.)
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Sprague acknowledged that in Gnosticism — a set of ancient religious beliefs that emerged around the 1st and 2nd centuries AD — followers believed that the physical body and the material world “just didn’t matter.”
“If you’re going to be saved, be enlightened, you have to kind of ascend the body,” he said of the belief. “It’s this mindset that it’s all about my heart, and my body doesn’t matter.”
‘Our bodies matter’
Over time, Sprague was able to strike a balance between his commitment to physical fitness and his devotion to his faith.
“Our bodies matter, our physical material world matters — it was created,” he said, noting that the physical form is a critical part of who we are designed to be.
“That is the natural created order — if the Lord didn’t desire for you to have a body, you wouldn’t have one.”
“I think the Lord kind of used fitness to illuminate a lot of this to me,” Sprague went on. “I can’t just live a mental faith — there has to be some experiential power that goes along with it.”
“If the Lord didn’t desire for you to have a body, you wouldn’t have one.”
In his view, exercise and fitness are a form of embracing the control — the “agency” — that the Lord has given us over our bodies.
“This is primarily a matter of stewardship,” Sprague said. “How are you stewarding the fact that you have a functioning body? How are you stewarding the fact that you’ve been given all of these tools and resources and abilities?”
“What are you doing with it for the benefit of others, for your benefit, as you seek to love the Lord and delight in him, and have that sense of peace and hope and resilience?”
Healthy living tips
In his own personal fitness routine, Sprague said he focuses on a mix of strength training and cardio.
“For a lot of people, fitness equates to just weight loss, but if you’re losing weight without building muscle, you’re shooting yourself in the foot,” he told Fox News Digital.
Strength training is “absolutely crucial” for Americans right now, the expert said, as many people are “overweight and under-muscled.”
Sprague spends three to four days a week in the gym lifting weights and using cable machines.
“It’s the hard part, it’s the slow burn. It doesn’t happen by accident,” he said. “It’s just pushing myself week after week, competing against myself.”
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For cardio, Sprague recommends finding opportunities to keep moving and to increase daily steps.
“You’ll see a massive difference between 2,000 or 4,000 steps and doubling that to 8,000 or 10,000,” he said. “And if you can go up from there, the more the merrier.”
Walking is an “easy barrier to entry,” he said, and is very good for brain health and digestion.
In addition to alternating between walking and sprinting, Sprague recommends finding other ways to stay active in day-to-day life.
“Just more activity that’s coupled with something you enjoy is really helpful,” he said.
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In terms of nutrition, Sprague focuses on what he calls “modular eating,” including a few lean proteins, fibrous vegetables and a handful of carbs.
If he’s trying to achieve a particular goal, he carefully tracks his food intake to get “absolute clarity” into how he’s doing.
When it comes to supplements, Sprague said he keeps it “very, very simple.”
“I do creatine and monohydrate every day. I’ll utilize protein powders to reach my protein target with minimal calories.”
‘Notice God’s goodness’
For anyone looking to honor their body and also honor the Lord, Sprague said it’s important to recognize that the physical being matters, but that it will never be the main source of happiness or peace.
“It’s hard to be satisfied, it’s hard to get to a place where you’re like, ‘I’m done, I made it,’” Sprague said. “There’s always going to be this sense of, ‘There’s more to go, there’s more to do.’”
“My identity, my worth, my value, isn’t wrapped up in what I achieve physically — rather, this process is just a joy in itself.”
In the pursuit of greater physical fitness, Sprague said it’s essential to “notice God’s goodness” in all of it.
“It’s a means of grace that the Lord designed endorphins for you — he designed dopamine for you,” he noted. “He designed the feeling of accomplishment you get when you lift something or run a little bit farther or have a really good day with your food — that’s not inconsequential.”
“The more you bring the Lord into this and notice His goodness in it, the better it goes.”
Setting specific goals and making a plan to achieve them is the most effective path to success, according to the expert.
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“Just get some momentum and start putting one foot in front of the other,” Sprague advised.
“It all comes down to time and effort. Put some pressure on yourself, set some deadlines and just go do it — because the thinking, considering and mulling it over will get you absolutely nowhere,” he went on.
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“And the more you bring the Lord into this and notice His goodness in it, the better it goes.”
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