Our society has circumvented this basic truth
The human body was created for movement.
It’s a sad fact that our society has circumvented this basic truth.
In our 20th century quest to make our lives convenient, we’ve come into the 21st century relying on time saving gadgets from electric mixers to television remotes and modern conveniences from fast food drive thru windows to cars and escalators to save us physical effort.
Here we are in the 21st century and everyone seems three times as busy and more time crunched than a few years ago. And nearly everyone is heavier and less healthy.
What free time we have is spent on the couch watching professional athletes move their bodies or at the computer playing games that only challenge our mouse fingers. In our rush to make life easier we’ve created a nation of overweight couch jockeys flirting with disaster.
Diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and a number of other serious health problems plague our overweight population. 400,000 Americans died in 2002 from obesity and sedentary lifestyle related diseases. 15 percent of our children are overweight and pediatricians are reporting a sharp increase in high blood pressure, high cholesterol and type II diabetes (once referred to as adult onset diabetes) in children as young as 3 years old.
The average calorie consumption has risen 300 calories a day since the 1960’s. Inactivity and over-consumption of cheap high calorie foods has brought the greatest nation on earth to its knees. Or more accurately flat on its fat bottom.
The solution is obvious. Americans need to eat less and move more.
Eating less does not sound easy, human nature abhors denial. But a closer look reveals cutting back in small ways can be effective. Switching from whole fat dairy products to low fat dairy products can save enough calories in a year to lose ten pounds. Cutting bloated portion sizes such as 8 ounces of steak or chicken to the USDA recommend portion of 3-4 ounces can save you enough calories to lose 1 pound every 2 weeks.
But the real shame in our present situation is the sedentary life we’ve adopted and are passing on to our children. Movement alone could reverse the obesity epidemic. But what is really sad is physical activity is treated as another chore to get through or avoid altogether. Movement is natural to humans and should be a source of joy, not derision and dread.
Most of us love to watch our favorite sports and the talented athletes who compete at them. Why does this no longer translate into enjoying sports or other physical endeavors ourselves?
Physical activity for recreation and sport, and movement for enjoyment has become as rare as blue diamonds in America.
Too many children choose computer sports over the real thing. Too many adults view exercise as a chore that ranks below cleaning the toilet.
Yet the truth lies in hearts and minds of amateur and professional athletes everywhere (few though their numbers may be.) Movement of the body is naturally exhilarating. A routine of lifting challenging weights or running an irregular trail with the wind in your hair creates positive chemical reactions in the human body and opens the door to positive thinking and self-esteem in the mind. Friendly competition between youngsters or adults on the playing field, the golf course or the court brings joy and camaraderie to the participants, not to mention distraction from everyday problems and stress relief.
The truth behind physical movement is it is not unrewarding work or a punishing chore to the human spirit or boring drudgery you must push though as a means to an end (fitness). Physical movement is a joyful expression of a healthy, happy, balanced spirit. And the rewards of regular physical activity are not limited to a healthier body and mind. The greatest reward of movement is the joy of expressing you are alive and experiencing the fullness of living in a human body.
Movement is truly a gift from God.