When Americans think of exercise, if indeed they do, it is viewed as a chore or a hardship or an unpleasant atonement for the sin of sloth. Our mechanized society, where transportation is totally automated and home conveniences make housework almost unnecessary, has resulted in epidemic overweight and obesity. But that's not true in other parts of the world.
Having traveled to remote, challenging locations throughout the world, I appreciate the role of daily exercise in the maintenance of good physical health. There are no weight-loss clinics in the villages near the highest Himalayan mountains. I took a two week trek to the base camp of Mount Everest about twenty years ago which I described to friends as the ultimate Stair Master. The Sherpa people, the famed indigenous population of this Shangri-la, do not suffer weight problems at all.
Even in the "lower" ranges of the Austrian Alps or the Moroccan Atlas mountains, everyone appears fit and trim. A walk to the local store in Badgastein takes one down a forty-five degree angled street for twenty minutes. No matter what Viennese pastry one might eat as a snack, it is thoroughly burned off after the ascent back to the train station. Was it worth it? I could hardly move my legs the day after I tried this for the first time, despite going to a New York City gym daily for twenty years.
According to the American College of Physicians, via their workshops and seminars, exercise is much less important than diet if someone is obese. Caloric control is therefore a necessary first step in any attempt to lose weight. However, as one gets closer to an ideal weight or a realistic goal, exercise becomes mandatory. Regular structured exercise is necessary for weight maintenance, for which reason I sometimes call those "last ten pounds" "exercise pounds".
All exercise programs must include strength training and cardio, and the most skillful personal trainers have learned how to teach these to their clients simultaneously. Attention must also be paid to flexibility and balance; these are extraordinarily important for aging baby boomers, especially those born in Brooklyn.
Are there psychological benefits to exercise? I feel that the ability of skeletal muscles to use lactic acid as a fuel (a property that must be developed through cardio exercise) makes an individual more energetic and upbeat. Other researchers feel that endorphins are released during exercise, but I favor the reduction of lactic acid levels as a biochemical explanation of the beneficial psychological effects.
A good personal trainer is not merely a human textbook of calisthenics. He or she must be a motivational speaker and somewhat of a psychologist. Most people who do not exercise need to be inspired, and this will jump start their participation in physical activity. For the 67% of adult Americans who are overweight or obese, this needs to be more than a temporary New Year's resolution. I didn't like to exercise at all when I was in high school and college. Then I grew up. Now it's your turn.
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