This is big news, a revelation: do a bit of sport and you’ll live longer. Wow! Who’d’a thought? Who’d’a known? It’s almost like there’s link between exercise and health! But newspapers have to fill columns and cynics need to take the piss. It’s the way of the world. But here’s an irony.

I work with a guy who is ‘a little overweight’. He loves his food, no surprise, and for exercise he stands at the bus stop. Rather than sitting there. Even though he’s only going one stop and could have walked there three times while waiting for the bus. But heh, that’s the way he is.

Me, on the other hand, walk everywhere. I play sport. I exercise, I stretch, I tai chi, I tennis, and as a consequence have become the aspirational god-figure for all of mankind. I’ve played sport my whole life (so FAR!!!!) and will be carried off the tennis court by paramedics or undertakers when the time comes. Maybe even a football pitch!

And here’s the funny thing. My co-worker has no joint issues, no strains, no muscular tears, no aches. Just a big belly. Whereas I have evolved into the largest single repetitive strain injury on the planet. Along with most other ‘sporty types’. Because all sports involve repetitive movements. Tennis players get elbows, housemaids (not a normally quoted sport, I grant you), get knees, footballers get concussion, rugby players… don’t ask. But generally speaking, though there may be exceptions, those who don’t do ‘sport’ don’t get sports injuries. More amazement. And other than the repetitive strains, the actual injuries come back to haunt you. Well, not so much haunt you and necessitate replacement shoulders. Possibly hips. Knees…

So today they’re telling us not to overdo it. You must ‘do it’ but not ‘overdo it’. Yet it might seem that under-doing it may be the way forward. Not so good for the waistline, possibly heart, blood pressure, sugar levels, arteries, cholesterol… but joints and bones? Good as new.

Reconsidering my whole life Tuesday

A xxxx