“You do not realize how the headlines that make daily history affect the muscles of the human body.” — Martha Graham
By PJ Parrish
So, how you feeling today? Not so good? Stomach in knots? Head hurt for no good reason? Can’t sleep? Maybe you need to stop doom-scrolling on Facebook. Maybe you need to turn off cable TV.
Or maybe you just need a good walk in the woods.
I and others here have written often about how getting off your keister and going out in the fresh air is good for your well-being. And, more to the point for us crime dogs, how it helps you get the writing muscles going. So when I was paging through the New York Times book section Sunday, I was delighted to come upon an essay about just this subject, and I knew I had to share it with you.
The author, Dwight Garner, writes about the deep connection between reading, writng and physical health. But he admits that writers who work out are just not his kind of people. (“I run only when chased,” he admits). Writing is a sedentary job, he notes, and goes on to quote Harold Pinter that “intellectual arses wobble best.”
He seems a bit awestruck, though, by those authors who are exercise nuts. Dan (Da Vinci Code) Brown has his computer programmed to freeze for 60 seconds every hour so he can stop and do push-ups and sit-ups. Jim Harrison told the Paris Review that “I dance for a half-hour a day to Mexican reggae music with 15-pound dumbbells. I guess it’s aerobic and the weights keep your arms and chest in shape.” Now that I know this about Harrison, his books make a lot more sense to me.
There’s one basic problem with exercise, Garner asserts — it’s boring.
So you have to find ways to fool yourself into thinking it’s not. Boris Johnson, the ex-PM of Britain, claims that the only way he can do his daily run is if he recites poetry, specifically The Iliad, out loud in various voices. I’ll leave it to you to fill in the audio-visual there. Here’s a little help:
I used to listen to my iPod during my daily walks, singing as I went. But lately, during my 4-mile turns around the lake in the woods, I’ve taken to holding conversations with myself in French. I don’t know what’s more startling to my fellow path-mates. Hearing me belt out Bohemian Rhapsody or practicing “Un ver vert est dans un verre vert.” (a green worm is in a green glass).
I’m still up in New Jersey on family business and I am not getting outside much. And the only thing my brother-in-law seems to get on his TV is Say Yes To The Dress. So I am reading for hours a day. Reading is a lot like exercise. If you don’t do it regularly, you can lose the urge. Right now, I am working my way slowly through The Soul of America: The Battle For Our Better Angels by Pullitzer Prize winner John Meacham. It is an elegant, troubling, and ultimate inspiring recounting of America’s dark history. “In our finest hours,” he writes, the soul of the country manifests itself in an inclination to open our arms rather than to clench our fists.”
This is my balm until I can get moving again. As Don DeLillo said once, “I work in the morning at a manual typewriter. I do about four hours then I go running. This helps me shake off one world and enter another.”
I’m thinking of taking up yoga again. My physical therapist thinks this is a grand idea for my poor back. I dunno. I used to be quite the yoga-doer, could even do a proper head-stand and a serviceable crow pose. But I was never able to get that quiet-the-brain thing down pat. The world was always too much with me.
As the English novelist Angela Carter wrote, “Yoga improves one posture but not one’s tranquility.”
So that’s my new plan. Turn off the TV, return to yoga. Keep going for long walks, leaving early and taking the dog. Thanks for listening today. On this quiet muggy Sunday here in New Jersey, writing even just a silly blog post makes me feel better. May you find your own serenity in our roiling sea.
The treadmill is definitely boring. My go to is watching one of The Great Courses on my phone mounted at eye level. Right now I’m doing the history of Rome. Claudius has just been poisoned, probably by his fourth wife. Not lucky in love, that fellow.
Hi guys. Just home from Jersey this afternoon so am late in catching up. I am impressed that you can watch a PHONE on a treadmill. I can barely watch one of the gym’s big TVs as I walk without falling on my face.
I turned off my TV six months ago and feel so much lighter. I may have a problem when Matlock with Kathy Bates returns. Oh, and I’m one of those exercise nuts; I’ve been doing Pilates for 24 years and usually spend an hour at the gym five days a week. I actually get a high from exercise. lol
I have never tried Pilates but my PT guy thinks it might do me some good on my back/core. Gonna look into it when I return to Florida.
And yes, less TV is good for the soul.
Yoga, but only once a week. I could do it at home; my instructor has a passel of YouTube videos from her classes, but I don’t. I’ve recently been plagued with hip issues, so my daily walks with the dog–more like hikes because of where I live–have been reduced. I have a stationary recumbent bike downstairs, and keep meaning to get back to it. I normally read while pedaling.
We don’t watch much tv – about an hour and a half (recorded/streamed) a night except now that it’s football season, it’s a little longer. But the TV goes off at 8 PM, and then I shut everything down and will read in bed.
You’ve encouraged me to get moving more, hip willing.
I normally walk about 4 miles a couple times a week around the lake. But my PT guy says I have to cut down to 2 and work back up because of my back/hips issues. I am going to listen to him!
I walk 15 miles per week, and still have sleep problems. Can’t get rid of my bedroom TV. Listening to a thunderstorm (YouTube) with the screen shut off helps to slow my racing mind.
Funny you mention yoga. I’ve been searching for classes. The nearest gym only offers hot yoga. Sweating profusely in an 80 or 90 degree room with 15 strangers doesn’t appeal to me. Until I find regular yoga, I’ll stick with YouTube classes in my living room.
Hot yoga. I’m sorry but what a dumb idea. Tried it once. How do they expect you to quiet your mind when you’re sweating like a roasting piglet?
I don’t find exercise boring. I like walking, lifting weights, etc. The problem, however, is time. I’m disappointed to learn that one of my assumptions is patently false — I assumed that the older you got, the more free time you had. Unfortunately, for me at least, the reverse is true. I don’t believe for one minute that there are really 24 hours in a day. 12 maybe (which pretty much go to work and chores) but not 24. And for a number of reasons, I’ve fallen off the exercise bandwagon in the last few years.
As so often happens at TKZ, your post is timely because I was just at a dr’s appt and my BP is higher than normal — no doubt in part because of falling off that exercise bandwagon. So since tomorrow is October 1, I’ve vowed to start small and find ways to re-integrate at least some exercise into a crazy schedule. Because I do feel better physically when I’m a regular exerciser. I just have to defeat the time monster.
And since we’ve opened up the window of discussion on exercise, I’m going to share something that’s always heavy on my heart. There are way too many joint replacements done in this day and age, especially things like knee replacements. Yes, we may be living longer in this day and age, but I don’t think that means there has to be an increase in joint replacement.
I’m not clinically trained, but I believe part of the problem is that when we exercise, we may unwittingly form movement/gait patterns that cause imbalances that may lead to that future replacement. I’d say if you are so inclined, every few years, have a gait/movement analysis by a PT or other provider and just evaluate and be sure you’re moving in a non-problematic way. Several years ago I went to the mall and just sat there observing how people walked for about an hour–I was amazed how many people had walking patterns that were off (feet turned way out, etc). I’d like to see gait/movement analysis become a regular part of well exams. I think if we did that we could make quite a reduction in the amount of joint replacement that takes place.
Happy exercising – and writing.
👍👍👍
You sound exactly like my PT guy. Of course, as a medical pro, he knows that people have to have replacements. But he also is of the mind like you, that modifying your exercise routine to help you make the best of things as you age is the way to go. Which is why he told me absolutely no running (due to my hip issues — can’t take the pounding). He also had me scale back the LENGTH of my daily walks. I routinely would go 4 miles but now we says until my core and hip are stronger, I can do only 2. I’m listening to him. And guess what? It doesn’t hurt anymore when I walk. BTW, the other article I read in the NYT this week that stayed with me was about anti-aging supplements. Well, they don’t really work. You know what research has found that really works? Daily consistent and moderate exercise.
I used to walk, hike, run, do aerobics in my living room to Jane Fonda, Denise Austin, Billy Blanks, and Gilad . . . they probably saved my life when I was working fulltime in PR. The stress was killing me. But then I lost my mobility and gained cancer. So I do 30 minutes of chair aerobics (there’s this delightful funny guy named Paul Eugene who offers a ton of videos on YouTube for this purpose) and 30 minutes on a stationary bike 7 days a week. I watch TV programs my husband won’t watch while I do the latter. I find exercise to be my escape valve. When I couldn’t take long walks and do Tae Bo anymore, I floundered until I found these options. I sleep better too.
Exactly! As you age and things happen to your body, you can’t cling to old exercise habits. It’s kinda like trying to wear the same hairstyle you wore at 35 because that’s when you thought you looked the coolest. I was a Jane Fonda FREAK! 🙂
I like walking or running outside. I have an ancient iPod shuffle that I load up with audiobooks or podcasts, and enjoy listening while I puff. I have a TV set up in front of our treadmill, so if the weather doesn’t cooperate, I run/walk there. I’ll never get to all the programs I want to watch. I also have a bunch of exercise videos that I alternate with the running/walking. I have a sense of well-being when I’m exercising regularly. (I may have to buy an outfit like PM Johnson’s. Or maybe not. 🙂 )
Ha! I have the ugliest exercise clothes you can imagine. Ditto for pickleball. Some of my lady friends show up in cute little skorts and even makeup. I mean, are you kidding me? My exercise duds are faded rock t-shirts and old yoga pants that have passed their expiration date. Old age is liberating.
Swimming, disc golf, and stretching for me. Swimming is horizontal and non-weight-bearing; it’s entering another world. Disc golf is for agility and balance; and fun. Stretching is for indoor loosening and toning. And it’s all a good break from computer screen time.
Swimming is one of the best full-body workouts, and as you mentioned, it’s easy on the joints. Now you’ve got me thinking, Harald. I need to find a pool in my area.
I swim like a rock. I wish I could swim well because it seems so zen. And yes, when on the computer, get up every hour and do a quick series of yoga stretches!
Great post!
For me, short walks throughout the day keep me from becoming just another piece of furniture. 😜
And, it tamps down anxious thoughts, contributing to keeping the girls in the basement healthy.
I particularly appreciate BK’s take on joint replacements. I’m dealing with a rebellious knee, trying my best to stay out of the surgical suite. PT has been a great experience, strengthening and helping me get my normal gait back after months of limping with a cane. I use hiking poles outside. Hopefully, I can continue managing this on my own. 👍
Have a great day!
I wasn’t happy about going to PT. Had one bad experience with it years ago with a frozen neck thing. But I have become a true believer. My guy warned me I had to patient, that it might ache for a while because my muscles, tendons and such had to readjust. AND THAT I HAD TO DO MY EXERCISES AT HOME! 8 weeks into this, I am a new woman.
Try gentle Qi Gong breathing before bed. It’s helped me, and I can do it with a body so damaged that I can’t do yoga.
I know I made fun of it, but breathing exercises do work. In many many situations.
I recently took up archery. It may not be as physically demanding as running, but the process of learning something new where I need to focus on the most minor of details helps relax my brain. It makes a good transition from the end of my writing work into the evening.
Thanks for the inspiring article and all the comments from others sharing suggestions.
Archery! Wow. I am impressed. How….Victorian! 🙂 Seriously, the connection between body and mind health is so deep that whenever you attempt something new, it is going to pay off dividends.