I am guilt-tripping myself to the best of my abilities as I trudge through campus, head down, making my way east. It’s not like I did anything that bad over winter break, but I know can’t keep making excuses. I told myself I just needed to go — that I’ll feel better, that the guilt will fade away. It’s a new year, and I’m going back. To the gym.

Some people pray. I do push-ups. Some quote verses. I follow dance choreography. I’m not exercising just for my health — I believe in fitness. I believe that if I go to my aerobics class tonight, I’ll be a more patient, clear-headed person than I am right now. I believe in what working out does for my mind and body, even if I don’t always see the instant results.

I’m not saying physical exercise is by any means identical to faith in a deity, but in identifying as a gym rat I almost feel religious. I am part of a community. I do things out of habit because I think it will be good for me — and I wipe down the elliptical after I’m done because I would want someone else to do the same for me.

The fitness world has the whole “acceptance” thing down much better than today’s major world religions. If so many different types of people can co-exist peacefully in a fitness center, what’s stopping us from doing the same thing on this planet when it comes to religion?

You’ve got your devoted fitness junkies who make working out their lives, while others only go a few times a week. But don’t forget your fair-weather gym-goers who frequent only when the holiday calories start to creep up or because someone in their family eggs them on. Some wear more modest clothing because the gym for them is not somewhere to show off, it’s a place to focus on getting healthy. For others, health takes a backseat to weight-lifting competitions or who can wear the tiniest shorts — just to be seen at the gym is a goal for many.

And for better or worse, not everyone feels like they belong in a gym. Going to one may feel odd, even downright terrifying, especially if you’ve never been in a fitness center or have not visited for years. Issues with self-confidence keep people from going places that may expose perceived “flaws.” The people, much less the institution itself, can sometimes be quite intimidating. For this and other personal reasons, many active individuals choose to exercise at home or in private.

Everyone listens to different music, does different exercises and has a different level of focus and personal background. Everyone thinks his or her workout is the best, but most will at least entertain other opinions when it comes to how to stretch or how to fuel a workout.

Examples of tolerance exist on a daily basis all around us, and yet religion is a topic that supposedly cannot be paralleled. Why is it that the term “belief” is somehow most powerful when associated with faith?

Maybe it’s not always what or whom we believe in but simply that we believe. Belief, the inner strength that fuels cognitive conviction, has been sighted as the negative side of humanity; wars fought over whose god said what, laws made on which book reads how.

But what about all the positives that believing in something, anything, can bring? Conviction has been cited in the sports world as being a key motivator toward success; i.e. an athlete tends to perform better when he or she believes in winning the title, scoring the most points, setting a new record. Placebo effects in medical practices such as scam arm surgeries cited by The World Research Foundation found that those patients who had undergone a fake surgery reported just as much recovery as those who received actual treatment. They believed in the doctors, in the procedure and in the fact that they would get better.

Belief makes us feel better about ourselves, gets us focused on helping others and maybe even gives us the willpower to fight temptation. Belief, whether religious or not, is a good thing. But all too often, people interpret the notion of belief through only one lens.

Believe in what gives you strength, gives you clarity, gives you courage. Believe in what makes you a better person. Believe that others can be better, too. Believe that we can all somehow get along. And if all else fails, at least believe in yourself.

Renée is a senior in Media. She can be reached at [email protected].