Thoughts on Exercise

Last evening, as I was riding my bike to and from a friends house, I started to get lost in my thoughts.  (I think it is one of the reasons I like going for a good ride.  Time to think).

Anyway, as I saw a few random joggers/walkers I thought about the methods of exercise that are common to our society.  You have your gym members, your runners and walkers, and stay-at-home treadmillers.  I guess there are some people who use sports - basketball, soccer, tennis, etc. - to get exercise.  It got me to thinking how sad it is that for most people, exercise is compartmentalized outside of any practical use.  People know it is good for them (health reasons or weight loss) and feel like they should get exercise.  So... after work they stop off at the gym to sweat off a few hundred calories.

Maybe I am being a bit too idealistic, but it appears to me that our society's method of burning calories for calories sake is so inefficient.  (Please pardon me if what I am about to say offends you or sounds pious.  I am just thinking outloud for a moment, so join my thoughts for a while).

For example, how much sense does it make for a person to drive to a gym so that they can walk in place?  Wouldn't it make more sense to just walk to the gym, say "Hi" to your friends on their treadmills, and walk back home?  Does it make sense to pay a monthly fee to exercise?  Sure, we get to use the equipment, but just stop to think about how funny it is that someone is making a living off of your exercise, your sweat.  The gym owner fills his/her pockets with money while you drive to their building to sweat off the two pieces of chocolate cake you ate before getting in the car to work out!

Which brings me to my next thought.  Why do we walk without going anywhere?  Isn't that what happens on a treadmill?  We walk or jog "x" number of miles without moving so much as one inch.  Jogging or walking a track is much the same.  Sure, we burn calories, but we have recieved nothing in return.  We haven't picked up any groceries. (We'll have to stop at the store on the drive home).  We haven't talked to our friends.  (We'll have to catch them on facebook).  We haven't played with our kids.  (We'll have to do that... well let me see.  After dinner they will need to do their homework, make a lunch for tomorrow, and get ready for bed.  Maybe tomorrow night).  It just doesn't make good sense to me.

My point is that we should be able to exercise as part of our daily lives.  Walking, jogging, or biking, to work, the grocery store, the libray, school, or church.  We should be able to make our exercise count for something.  We would get the exercise we need, spend less money on gas and doctor bills, and already have groceries for dinner.

Let me guess, you are thinking, "Well, your idea sounds good and all, but it just isn't practical.  I live too far away from work to bike/walk/jog.  I don't want to be sweaty when I get to work.  Besides, it would take me too long to get there."

Many of these points are true - but only because our culture, workplace and surroundings have made them easy to be true.  We live under the presupposition that these obstacles are inevitable, that they cannot be changed.  We forget the importance of making good decisions instead of easy ones.  Setting priorities, placing value on things that are truly important, and a willingness to change are foreign to most people.  Might I suggest we rethink our exercise?

Keep in mind I am only thinking outloud.  I really do not mean to sound like street preacher.  Much of my rant, if you will, is to work out my own priorities and exercise habbits.  How often do I spend a couple hours on the bike going nowhere?  It is definately something to think about.

One of my favorite bloggers, Kent Peterson, quietly goes about his life without owning a car.  His blog gets me thinking about how biking doesn't have to be about conquests, having awesome gear, getting more streets with bike lanes (although that would be nice), or even exercise.  It can be about biking to the places we need or want to go and seeing the places and people we want to see.  And we get the benefits of exercise along the way!  Cool.