So, Good Housekeeping magazine has so kindly run an article about the workout you can do on your sofa…while watching TV (link below). What a loathsome state of affairs we’ve come to when the two values espoused in such an article are 1) TV watching (wouldn’t want to interrupt that!), and 2) gimmick exercise. I watch as much TV as the next fellow, but I’m not going to pretend that doing a few crunches at commercials is going to validate my time spent numbing out on the couch. If you make the choice to sit and do nothing, then just sit and do nothing! You’re not going to get skinny and/or ripped because you decide to do a little sofa push up during the commercial break of Real Housewives of Bullshit City. Perhaps you’d like to make the argument that something is better than nothing? Phooey. Something done half-ass is not worth a cock-a-doodle.
Now, gimmick exercise definitely has its place. Crossfit is a gimmick. P90X is a gimmick. Yet, when people engage in these gimmicks, it’s more likely done with a focus of mind that can actually result in improved health and body composition. Sure there’s a TV involved with P90X, but the TV serves as the conduit, not the idol. Want a real TV workout? Every time someone says something cliché, grab a set of 50 pound dumbbells and knock out a set of deadlifts. The first set may be simple, but by the end of a half-hour program, you’ll wish you were reading a book instead.
To clarify, I am not necessarily vilifying television watching, as I too have indulged in marathon sessions of Family Guy. And I fully understand that the weak or injured have to start somewhere in their fitness routine. However, I feel like the magazine is saying, “look, we know you’re a lazy slob, so just assuage the guilt by moving around once in awhile.” It’s a pretty worthless little article, if you ask me. And if you asked me to opine further, I’d say there’s only one kind of exercise you should do on the couch, and that requires a partner.
http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/health/fitness/a22535/how-to-workout-while-watching-tv/?src=spr_FBPAGE&spr_id=1443_102214108
Now, gimmick exercise definitely has its place. Crossfit is a gimmick. P90X is a gimmick. Yet, when people engage in these gimmicks, it’s more likely done with a focus of mind that can actually result in improved health and body composition. Sure there’s a TV involved with P90X, but the TV serves as the conduit, not the idol. Want a real TV workout? Every time someone says something cliché, grab a set of 50 pound dumbbells and knock out a set of deadlifts. The first set may be simple, but by the end of a half-hour program, you’ll wish you were reading a book instead.
To clarify, I am not necessarily vilifying television watching, as I too have indulged in marathon sessions of Family Guy. And I fully understand that the weak or injured have to start somewhere in their fitness routine. However, I feel like the magazine is saying, “look, we know you’re a lazy slob, so just assuage the guilt by moving around once in awhile.” It’s a pretty worthless little article, if you ask me. And if you asked me to opine further, I’d say there’s only one kind of exercise you should do on the couch, and that requires a partner.
http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/health/fitness/a22535/how-to-workout-while-watching-tv/?src=spr_FBPAGE&spr_id=1443_102214108