I have not been Gov. Daniels’ most ardent fan, but I really do appreciate his use of the bully pulpit to promote fitness in Indiana. Along those lines, Cheri Daniels was in Richmond promoting fitness at my old stomping grounds, Forest Hills Country Club. (I worked there for 5 years cleaning golf clubs and whatnot for the princely sum of $3.35 per hour.)
“If the governor can find time to exercise, you can,” Daniels said of her husband, Gov. Mitch Daniels, on Tuesday night before speaking at a fundraiser for women’s health in Wayne County. “Yeah, he works out probably five days a week, running and lifting weights.”
While I appreciate the sentiment that one has to make exercise a priority, I think Gov. Daniels, busy as he is, has some advantages that many working class family people don’t have. I don’t pretend to know Gov. Daniels personal set up, but I can bet he has more schedule flexibility than the average wage earner. Probably he has more ready access to weight facilities and good places to run than many Hoosiers. (And, once again, to be fair, his work on Indiana’s trail system is helping to provide better access to trails.)
The bottom line, however, is that neglect of our health is statistically more dangerous to us than most of the stuff we spend our time worrying about. Heart disease is a heck of a lot more likely to get you than a terrorist, for example. But, such dangers are gradual, far off, and unexciting. And, besides, it’s dark and cold outside – do I get up and go run or maybe roll over under these nice warm covers and grab another 30 minutes of sleep? With the deck stacked like that, we need some cheerleading to give us a fighting chance.
FYI, the governor works out at NIFS on the IUPUI campus, where most people who are serious about fitness/running go. It’s a common thing to run into him in the weight area. IIRC, he usually squeezes his workout in late afternoon — four-ish. (A friend of mine used to overlap workouts with him several days a week.)
I’ve always had the feeling that NIFS pricing was out of my league, but thought I should check it out on their website. What is it about fitness places that they don’t post their pricing?
Gives off that sleezy vibe that the price is whatever they want to set it at depending on the hard-sell.
Some fitness places definitely have sketchy pricing practices. We’re lucky enough to have a decent YMCA which isn’t fancy by any means, but has resources sufficient for my needs, really good child care facilities, a fair variety of exercise classes for those inclined, and very reasonable prices.
The childcare was fairly important for us since, if Amy wants to work out during the day, our kids need supervision. The place we initially checked out was a joke in terms of child care. The list of things they wouldn’t do was extensive. Basically, they’d sit and stare at your kids and, presumably, come get you if they required any direct attention at all. With the Y, kids seem to be one of their core missions to start with, so looking after kids for a short period of time fits in pretty well.
But I digress.
I’m a health educator, and sorry, I find Mrs. Daniels statements off-putting and more than a little out-of-touch. Most of the people I work with are not anywhere near the Daniels’ socioeconomic status or even anywhere near being upper middle class. People who are working two or three jobs to get by (or even one job with irregular hours and no authority to leave early to go to the gym) have neither the time nor the money to work out at gyms and fitness clubs. Walking in many neighborhoods in Richmond is becoming a dangerous enterprise, also.
I think it is telling that Mrs. Daniels made her appearance at Forest Hills, a dying country club used only by the ever-shrinking group of well-off citizens in Richmond/Wayne County. She was basically preaching to the choir. Why not go to Townsend Community Center (or just about any other part of town) to promote healthy living? I suspect she and her handlers knew that her simplistic message would not have been well-received elsewhere.
It’s hard for any working person, regardless of class, to get in the workouts. It just takes a commitment and a bit of scheduling to get at it. And fitness clubs are unnecessary, if the commitment is there. Last I checked, running is still free. $150 bought me a bench and weights a-plenty. The garage is my ‘club’.
I also am not a great Daniels fan, but I share the view that he is using his bully pulpit for a very worthy cause. Prodding Hoosiers into activity in the interest of better health shouldn’t be sneered at too vigorously.
Mike Kole:
No one is sneering at promoting public health. Only, Mrs. Daniels was not promoting public health. What she was saying was that if the governor (oh, so busy; oh, so harried) can work out, anyone can. The governor has the flexibility and the money to work out whenever and however he pleases. Furthermore, if Daniels thought this message would play well with average Hoosiers, why wasn’t his wife addressing average Hoosiers? She (or her handlers) chose to go before a friendly audience made up of people mostly from the same socioeconomic status as Mr. and Mrs. Daniels. The country club set in Richmond is shrinking and probably doesn’t need to be told about how important it is to exercise and eat right. I would applaud Mrs. Daniels if she were to promote healthy living to all Hoosiers (without the “if the governor can do it, you can do it” nonsense.) She could have gone to Townsend Community Center, the Boys and Girls Club, the high school, and several other venues if she wanted to promote healthy living to average people in Richmond. She chose instead to talk to the few wealthy people in a mostly working class and poor town. If she’s serious about this issue, she should take her message to everyone, not just a select few.
To fail to recognize that that some people may have more hindrances to exercising and eating right than others is to be willfully ignorant. I deal with poor people almost every day on my job. Yes, the attitudes and folkways that some people have can be frustrating at times. But I never assume that if only people would be just like me, all their problems would disappear.
Health disparities exist for myriad and complex reasons, not simply because people are lazier than you are or more stupid than you are, or unwilling to take personal responsibility for their health.
Yeah, Richmond did an awesome job of inspiring a healthy lifestyle to me-not! The Y was horrible int the ’70’s and ’80’s. No trails to bike, etc. Things are changing there.
Mike Cole has a good point in that it did take me wanting to make a change that has led me to drop from 250+ in January to 180 tonight. (I weighed myself in the locker room.) But for me I need to see the cost of the club coming out of the check book to keep up the good work. Plus they have awesome child care and childrens’ programs at a reasonalbe cost. Our oldest two are in karate there-which gets us to the club three times a week for that alone.
Pila-I’d love to have seen her at the Townsend Center. Of course that isn’t in the lovely rolling hills outside of town.
Again, a plug for cycling. Bikes are cheap, the only fuel used is the extra fat on your body, and most people would get 30-60 minutes of good cardio if they replaced their 3-7 mile commute with a bike ride.
Can be used by the rich or poor, and they take less time out of your workday. You might spend 30-60 minutes on the bike, but it only “costs” you the difference between what you would spend sitting behind the wheel. For most people, that means that 1 hour of workout only “costs” you 30 minutes of extra time, unlike going to the gym.
Downsides to cycling to work:
1. The streets & traffic – sometimes I feel like I’m taking my life into my hands riding on busy streets with narrow or non-existent shoulders.
2. Sweat & wardrobe – I don’t have a place for a shower or clothes storage at work. If it’s a day when I have to wear a suit, cycling isn’t a good option.
3. Weather – I’m a weenie, but I have little patience for cycling when it’s rainy, cold, and/or windy.
Not to discount it as an option. I’m really happy with myself on days I manage it. But there are some difficulties.
Bikes are great, and there does seem to be a resurgence of their use in Richmond. Bikes are not without issues, however. Older, out-of-shape people (a big hunk of the population of Richmond/Wayne County, sad to say) are unlikely to take up riding bikes; bikes do require some degree of care that some people are either unable or unwilling to give them; bikes are easily stolen; weather can be a problem (check out Monday’s forecast :(); in some parts of Richmond you would be taking your life in your hands on a bike.
On the upside: a local group recently produced a Richmond bicycle map that includes safety tips, local ordinances, and alternative routes to the busier roads. The map was one of the most popular giveaways at my table at a recent health fair. Maybe there is hope for us down here in Fast Food Heaven!