Originally Posted by
livedarklions
My job necessitates many sedentary hours. Making the effort to go to the gym was key to breaking the habit of continuing on into a sedentary evening and weekend. In essence, those initially short visits served as a sort of "gateway drug" to a habit of doing a fairly rigorous workout routine throughout the week. I really have a much lower tolerance for sitting around doing nothing as a result.
Absolutely.
In some ways our generations have it far better than previous because there is no stigma or negative attached to fitness as a goal unto itself. In the past many men would think they had to stop childish "games" and get down to the serious adult business of working hard. Often at one set of tasks, they did this until they retired when they felt they could sit around guilt free, having earned a rest. Any relaxation or change during the work cycle was usually drinking at the pub/bar. Thus, death in their late 60's or early 70's.
Japanese businessmen still tend to do this and they even have a term for dying at your job called
Karoshi.
Today, recreational sports or pastimes are normalized, as is working out in a gym, and even specifically encouraged for adults. The fastest growing segment for travel and adventure leisure currently are zoomers, or older adults and most larger businesses have some form of health and wellness committees.
IMO - Having a sedentary job and recognizing the need for additional physical effort via the gym or physical pastimes is a recent but extremely positive development in human health. We are also getting a lot smarter about being healthy too but have a somewhat sad consumerist approach to it. For something to be good or effective it seems it has to cost more, whether that be food, exercise, equipment, adventure or travel.