January 2010
21 posts
Jonathan Mead is a fantastic writer, and this is his account of his transistion from the gym to outdoor bodyweight fitness. By no means do I post this article in an effort to convince anybody to cancel their gym membership - I love using the gym myself - rather, the article serves to remind us of the relationship we are forming with our body through fitness. It’s not all about outward appearences and fitness is not in itself a means to a muscly end…indeed we need to soak it up while we are doing it, not pound away at a machine thoughtlessly in the hope we will get ‘results’ faster that way.
I think Jonathan puts it so eloquently; “When we approach exercise as simply a stipulation of living, we diminish its merit. In truth, fitness isn’t just about looking good or even being healthy, it’s much more than that. It’s about embracing the art of movement and expressing the body. The predictable routines of lifting weights or moving on machines in two dimensional movements kills that expression. Weights can be beneficial, but chaos needs to be introduced into our practice to experience the true beauty of physical self development.”
My gosh I know it’s superficial, but I wish I belonged to a gym like this. It’s like Castle Fitness!
