For most people free of injuries and genetic predispositions, it’s not that hard to stay in shape. Simply standing up at your desk while working, taking the stairs instead of elevators or escalators, parking your car as far as you can from entrances, etc. is enough to burn a few extra calories. You don’t need a home gym, trendy workout videos, a membership to a fancy gym, or a dietitian to be healthy. You just need to use some common sense.

Also:

“But instead of us calling them fat and lazy, many seem to want to re-label this, and cause us to accept this as part of the times we live in.”

That reminded me of the “jelly belly” memo that a Florida police chief was fired over. Here’s part of his memo and it really encompasses this whole discussion:

“Take a good look at yourself,” he wrote. “If you are unfit, do yourself and everyone else a favor. See a professional about a proper diet and a fitness training program, quit smoking, limit alcohol intake and start thinking self-pride, confidence and respectability. And stop making excuses for delaying what you know you should have been doing years ago. We didn’t hire you unfit and we don’t want you working unfit. Don’t mean to offend, this is just straight talk. I owe it to you.”

The fact that he was fired for writing such an eloquent and sensible memo is proof that we’re definitely headed in the wrong direction.

Well put, and well expanded upon the point. I think we’ve allowed our youth, and therefor a lot of society to get lazy, and often fat. Kids used to grab a ball and play for hours, now they gather and text. Often the result is that they get fat. But instead of us calling them fat and lazy, many seem to want to re-label this, and cause us to accept this as part of the times we live in.

Now don’t get me wrong. People with LEGITIMATE reasons for being overweight (injury, genetic issues, etc.) get a free pass from me, as well as a lot of compassion. It goes with my common thread of people who refuse to help themselves, and the enablers that perpetuate the condition, and that whole diatribe. I’m afraid that this is another long-term issue that will fall upon the backs of the responsible people to have to shoulder this hefty burden.

At least the Wii has come out that forces the kids to move a little when playing. And Ian, since I have zero disagreement, let me at least take a weak shot at you: You need to keep up with the times — it’s NBA Live 2009 ya old fart!

I’d like to add an interesting observation I have concerning our culture, which I’m sure many others have picked up on. That is, we used to exercise without even “exercising.” When I was growing up video games and computers weren’t in every household. Children and adults used to entertain themselves by playing sports, hiking, walking or running aimlessly outside, etc. It wasn’t too long ago that parents would tire out their hyperactive kids by taking them out to the playground and letting them run themselves ragged – now they just plop them in front of a television set until they become zombified.

Kids used to watch sports and then go outside to play them and emulate their favorite player. I remember running around in my driveway throwing up “buzzer beating” three pointers like I was Larry Bird, now kids fire up their Playstation and play NBA Live 2008. Even the types of sports we watch and appreciate are different. Nascar, UFC, etc. These are spectator sports and children aren’t encouraged to go outside and race on the roads or beat up their neighbor.

Today we have gyms cropping up all over the place so that people can “exercise.” People crying for laws to ban “trans fat.” There’s nothing wrong with that per se, but I find it strange that in the past we did just fine without them.