One of my favorite qualities of the human race is our arrogance. I mean that; it’s not 100% sarcasm. On one hand, arrogance has served me well, and I respect people who can, as the cliché goes, talk the talk and then walk the walk. Some of our greatest athletic heroes, from Tiger Woods to Kobe Bryant and so many in between have shown a swagger and then backed it up. Only the weak don’t respect that.
And then there’s the other side of human arrogance; the destructive, ignorant side. This is the side that makes us actually believe we know what the hell we’re talking about. This is the side that makes us think we’re a threat to the planet. This is the side that makes us think we’re smarter than the universe. This is the side that makes us think that, with every scientific “breakthrough,” we’ve figured something out…even though 6 months later we often refute every detail of said breakthrough.
Sometimes, you can take the most simplistic thing and make an example of it which brings us to this latest sample of human arrogance, ignorance and stupidity:
Since the early 1990’s we have been drilling into everyone’s head that they NEED TO EXERCISE! Not just to look good (the most important thing in this superficial society) but also to be healthy and live a long, active life. After a decade of telling society that they needed to work-out 5 days per week for 90 minutes per day, studies starting flooding in showing that such activity levels were beyond damaging to the human body. For the last decade, we’ve been advocating what they call “less-stress” activity, defined as a total of 90 minutes per week. The common example is 3 walks of 30 minutes each per week.
Stand back for a moment and examine what a difference a decade of human ignorance and arrogance makes. For one generation, we demanded 450 minutes per week of rigorous exercise. For the next, we suggest 90 minutes of low level activity. Do you really need any more proof that we literally have no idea what we are talking about?
And now…the next breakthrough! No more walking! Or biking for that matter. All you have to do is take a bath. Yes, you read that right…just take a bath.
Here’s the premise; exercise makes your blood flow by raising your core temperature and opening your arteries so allow more oxygen in. Meanwhile, all of that work the body is doing burns calories we don’t need and keeps us both healthy and fit. Exercise is not the only way to do what was just described; so is simply taking a hot bath for an hour. Imagine that…you still get to watch “Stanger Things,” you just don’t have to be on a stationary bike hating yourself. Now, you can be surrounded by candles, maybe a glass of wine, and some dim lighting, and get the exact same results.
My favorite part of human arrogance is the way this news will be received. On one hand, people will scoff at the very notion, wave their hand and say it’s a bunch of crap. These are often the same people who cling to dogma that demands that salt raises blood pressure (it doesn’t), red meat is bad for you (it isn’t), and bodies need to move. Why? Why do bodies need to move? Because we’ve been told so? What if the truth is that bodies don’t need to move beyond achieving daily tasks? What if, in order to be what we believe is “healthy,” we could simply get up, go to work, come home and take a bath?
On the other hand, right there in the article that announced this “breakthrough,” is the line “science has proved that you don’t need to perform strenuous cardio when you could be in the bath instead.” HA! Do you have any idea how many things science has “proven,” only to later be proven they hadn’t proven anything?
This column is not about health…do whatever you want because you know as little as I do…and so does “science.” This column is about human arrogance; the actual condition that will destroy us all.
https://nypost.com/2018/03/13/how-a-hot-bath-can-burn-as-many-calories-as-a-brisk-walk/
