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Exercise
Exercise
Lisa watched the T.V. as the group on the screen bounced and stretched to the upbeat music. The three woman all wore stretchy nylon unitards that show every curve, and the three men wore shorts and sleeveless T-shirts. With disgust, Lisa noticed that not one of them looked like they had even broken a sweat. She looked at the clock and realized that it was almost time to pick up her sister from baby-sitting.
It didn't seem like it had been two hours since Lisa had dropped her sister off at her baby¬sitting job. She had come straight home and turned on the T.V. and now already two hours had gone by. She stood up from the couch and started toward the T.V. to turn it off. As she got closer to it, she could see her reflection in the screen, superimposed over the enthusiastic work-out group that was still there. She noticed her pants that had the drawstring waist. She had started wearing them a few weeks ago when her jeans became uncomfortable. She could see her arms that were stretching the sleeve of her T-shirt. Then she looked to the screen. It hit Lisa that, for the last two hours, she had watched a group of people exercising. It was almost as if by watching, she thought she could benefit from the exercise. What she had really done is waste two hours.
Lisa walked toward the front door to get her car keys after she turned off the T.V. It wasn't until she had her keys in hand that she remembered that her sister was baby-sitting only three blocks away. She had plenty of time to walk over to the house where her sister was at, and then they would be able to walk home. For a minute, driving over seemed a better idea. Then Lisa thought of whether or not she wanted to keep being a watcher or if she wanted to be a doer. She placed the car keys back in her purse and headed out the door.
Lisa decided then and there to incorporate exercise into her life.
Questions for Students
1. What are some other ways Lisa could start exercising besides walking more?
2. When someone says that they don't have time to exercise, it that really true?
3. Is wanting to lose weight the only reason to start exercising? Pick another storie