A reader recently touched one of my hot buttons when he said that he 'should exercise more.' It's ironic that I am writing this when Coffee Girl, my new dog, is not supposed to exercise because she was spayed a couple days ago. Yesterday both dogs and I were restless and irritated. I think we are going to be naughty and have a nice walk today.
If only I had a nickel for every time I've heard someone say that they should exercise more. That is the moral equivalent of sitting on the sofa in front of the boob toob and saying 'I really should eat more organic dehydrated alfalfa pellets, washed down with distilled water, instead of this bag of potato chips and ranch dip, but...'
Why do people discuss exercise like they are swallowing bitter medicine? The worst idea of all is to do routine exercise indoors. No wonder people think that making yourself exercise is an exercise in sheer will power.
Is there an alternative to this self-defeating scenario? It is only homo sapiens that confuses exercise with health, guilt, duty, vanity, thinness and self-esteem, etc. Other animals have a healthier attitude. The easiest one to observe is the dog.
The dog does not go on its run in a mood of grim determination to lower its cholesterol. Strictly speaking he isn't concerned about exercise itself, but about the world around him: odors, prey, friends, foes, and new people. Physical fitness accrues to the dog indirectly.
If only I had a nickel for every time I've heard someone say that they should exercise more. That is the moral equivalent of sitting on the sofa in front of the boob toob and saying 'I really should eat more organic dehydrated alfalfa pellets, washed down with distilled water, instead of this bag of potato chips and ranch dip, but...'
Why do people discuss exercise like they are swallowing bitter medicine? The worst idea of all is to do routine exercise indoors. No wonder people think that making yourself exercise is an exercise in sheer will power.
Is there an alternative to this self-defeating scenario? It is only homo sapiens that confuses exercise with health, guilt, duty, vanity, thinness and self-esteem, etc. Other animals have a healthier attitude. The easiest one to observe is the dog.
The dog does not go on its run in a mood of grim determination to lower its cholesterol. Strictly speaking he isn't concerned about exercise itself, but about the world around him: odors, prey, friends, foes, and new people. Physical fitness accrues to the dog indirectly.
Perhaps this is just a specific example of what John Stuart Mill wrote of, in that classic chapter, "My Mental Crisis," in his Autobiography. He concluded that personal happiness could not be sought directly -- that it could only be a byproduct of more tangible or urgent pursuits.
Why not dwell on interesting things in the world, and experience them through the means of exercise, rather than dwell on exercise directly? Alternatively, running errands on foot or with a bicycle saves a lot of money, while giving the benefits of exercise indirectly.
Why not dwell on interesting things in the world, and experience them through the means of exercise, rather than dwell on exercise directly? Alternatively, running errands on foot or with a bicycle saves a lot of money, while giving the benefits of exercise indirectly.
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