Are we hardwired to hate exercise? article

[bikehikeskifish]

Note: there are a handful of four-letter words

Suffer on,
Tim

 

[hiking lady]

Note: there are a handful of four-letter words

Suffer on,
Tim

OMG- that's my husband explaining why he repeatedly does 6 gaps! Love it!!!! Soooo true!! In the off season he smashes his hands against ice until he gets the screaming barfies from the cold.

 

[Neil]

How bout the king of the jungle? Seems hard-wired for not doing much of anything most of the time.

 

[bikehikeskifish]

OMG- that's my husband explaining why he repeatedly does 6 gaps! Love it!!!! Soooo true!! In the off season he smashes his hands against ice until he gets the screaming barfies from the cold.

Six Gaps is an awesome ride! Can't get much more challenging than that in New England.

Tim

 

[KV]

I scrolled past this a few times and finally read through the responses (haven't read the article yet). I would like to add that at times the gym workout has been essential for my mental health and well being. When (and still) recovering from shoulder surgery the gym was my salvation. I was cleared to hike ("be careful" I was told - DUH. Of course I will be careful...always am) until I took a fall and landed ~ you guessed it ~ on the recently re-attached biceps tendon and rotator cuff repairs. So.....I was told I might want to stick to a recline bike at least until I was out of the sling. I do not own a recline bike so off to the gym I went. I have since worked with the weights there and have rebuilt the muscles that were re-attached, were withered and those that atrophied in the years of mis-use pre-surgery. I love hiking and being outdoors but after work if I have only an hour and a chance to work on my cardio AND weight training, I'm all for the gym.

 

[Remix]

I agree with pretty much everything in the article-- some people jump at a chance to go out for a run or bike at any time (and at some danger to themselves in packed urban areas) and some people need to travel to the woods and the mountains, with exercise and its benefits just a by-product of the effort.

 

[Dehydrator]

If you think about it, peak-bagging is pretty artificial too. I mean, no preindustrialized person would exert him or her self to reach a summit. Nevermind the fact that without cars, roads, and equipment, most of us could never make it up to the mountains. I'm sure an alien would find all the effort we put forth to reach certain viewless summits in nasty weather foolish. But then of course if that alien expected something useful to come from all the work intergalactic travel required for him to get to Earth, then he's the fool.

 

[bikehikeskifish]

Unless, reaching all those summits (viewless or otherwise) demonstrated excellent genes, longevity, strength, etc., which increased ones mating success

Tim

 

[DougPaul]

If you think about it, peak-bagging is pretty artificial too. I mean, no preindustrialized person would exert him or her self to reach a summit.

There is evidence of pre-European-contact American Indians on top of some of the higher peaks out West including Longs Peak (http://www.frommers.com/destinations/rockymountainnationalpark/1460039051.html) and a sub-peak of Grand Teton (http://www.nps.gov/grte/historyculture/cultural.htm) and over 115 Inca ceremonial sites at over 15K ft on ~30 Andean peaks. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/ancient/ice-mummies-inca.html

High peaks were significant to a number of pre-European cultures (eg homes of various gods) which was incentive to climb them in some cases and incentive to avoid them in other cases.

Doug

 

[Dehydrator]

The Incans had an extremely sophisticated civilization that built cities on top of mountains. Those cities featured very precisely engineered aqueducts bringing water from melting glaciers many miles away, carefully terraced slopes for agriculture, and superior stone work. Maybe they weren't technically industrialized but their system allowed for a group of them the luxury of leisure time necessary to undertake the climbing of high peaks. And they probably climbed, as you suggest, to fulfill religious duty, not for fun or "because it's there".
And there is no evidence that anyone climbed Mount Washington before Europeans settled in New England in the 17th century. And I'm sure those climbs were undertaken for the sake of exploration and mapping, not for fun or leisure.

 

[Neil]

Unless, reaching all those summits (viewless or otherwise) demonstrated excellent genes, longevity, strength, etc., which increased ones mating success

Tim

Hence the Patch.

I wrote a whole tongue-in-cheek "thesis" on this very topic. It's probably still here somewhere.

 

[Mike P.]

Unless, reaching all those summits (viewless or otherwise) demonstrated excellent genes, longevity, strength, etc., which increased ones mating success

Tim

No, I'm pretty sure sweating in stinky polyster (or wearing wet wool) for hours won't increase your chances & for the time being, it's still more males than females in the woods. (sure it's not as pungent as the old 80's poly but it's not Axe, CK or any other sold fragrance) The ratios may help women but they are too smart & tactful to say something liek that, even if they are thinking it.....

Hard wired not to like hard work maybe, but hard play is fun, especially will an goal that is fun. (Hence all the "find a job you love & be happy" sayings.) Most people who play sports enjoy the games but not the hours of practice you need to become good.

You have to be driven to know that practice is the plan that helps achieve your goal. Volleyball T-shirts have some great sayings, one of my favorites. "We bust ours so we can kick yours"

On a similar note (maybe similar) I was at a school function where many children performed in an open format recently. Some of these kids were very good, some were fair. (all better then me, I'd dreadful artistically, musically, etc. stick figures & I can't clap to a beat) but in an age of everyone plays & there are no winners & losers, we only praise, don't discourage, do we keep kids living the dream they should drop instead of moving onto finding & focusing on something they will be better doing & come to enjoy?

(personal exp - as kid growing up in the late 60's - 70's I played BB, baseball in town leagues & soccer when it was first introduced in town leagues. I was awful in baseball & more of a bruiser in the other two - no outside shot, a career fullback. Once I was allowed to play Volleyball, I found a game I really enjoyed and was pretty decent at. would I have kept looking for a sport I really enjoyed if I was told over & over how good I was at the other sports when it wasn't true? - started hiking really as a hunter & decided the walking & being outdoors were the best parts.)