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national sporting and fitness programs in an effort to demonstrate superiority. During this long-simmering conflict, the Olympics evolved into more than just a venue for individual excellence; they became a referendum on cultural supremacy. Watching the rise of Soviet athletes, leaders at home rushed to create programs that prioritized physical fitness. “Physical fitness is not only one of the most important keys to a healthy body,” President John F. Kennedy told the nation. “It is the basis of dynamic and creative intellectual activity.”The trajectory of fitness culture has continually trended upward since JFK uttered those words. A Vox article, wonderfully titled “When Running for Exercise Was for Weirdos,” notes the existence of a 1968 Chicago Tribune piece detailing a new phenomenon: jogging. Seeing runners dot the roads is a regular occurrence for most of us, but it used to be reserved for boxers and other professional athletes. There EDUCATING THE PUBLIC
are even stories of regular folks being tailed by the cops simply because they went for a run.
As the ‘80s progressed, America’s appetite for exercise grew to epic proportions. You couldn’t turn on the TV without seeing an ad for a program designed to make you look and feel great.
As Americans grew more interested in fitness, they sought out ways to effectively work out. Before the internet, that meant scouring libraries for books and relying on word of mouth. The science itself was also in its infancy. Nobody had studied different exercise types or how much exercise we needed. Unsurprisingly, an approach that favored heavyweights and big muscles was one of the first trends to emerge. Released in 1977, the documentary “Pumping Iron” explored the world of bodybuilding and introduced Americans to a muscle-bound Austrian named Arnold Schwarzenegger. Not long after its debut, an increasing number of people — usually young men — began showing up to places like Gold’s Gym in Venice Beach looking to get jacked. Five years later, Jane Fonda released the first of her many aerobics videos, providing fitness instruction to a much wider audience.
EXERCISE SCIENCE GROWS UP
As getting fit became a bigger concern for the general population, figuring out how to get fit became a preoccupation in academia. In 2016, more than 25,000 undergraduates received a degree in kinesiology, aka exercise science. These folks and their professors research the safest and most effective ways to approach fitness. The days of Hulk Hogan appearing as a beacon of wellness and telling us to “say our prayers and eat our vitamins” have long since passed. For many, the gym is their “third place,” the spot where they are most likely to be aside from home and work. That’s easy to take for granted in 2019, but it’s important to remember that exercise in America, like America itself, didn’t come from nowhere.
The Perfect Pushup Tips To Step Up Your Game
Have you ever noticed how military personnel can drop to the floor and crank out 30 pushups effortlessly? Believe it or not, so can you! All it takes is a little practice. Follow these tips to perfect your pushup. FOCUS ON FORM There’s a variety of pushup forms, and they vary both in difficulty and in which muscles they target. However, there is one pushup form that sets the foundation for the more technical and challenging moves. For the standard, military-style pushup, keep your torso lengthened in a straight line and your hands directly underneath your shoulders. When you drop to the ground, keep your body rigid and drop in one fluid motion, with the bend of your elbow pushing outward. ( Pro tip : While form should be your main focus, the faster you go, the easier pushups will be.) Once you master this style of pushup, you can begin to increase the difficulty. GET ON THE FLOOR After a quick stretch and warmup, start your pursuit of the perfect pushup by limiting the distance your elbows have to drop. Try doing
pushups with your hands placed on the seat of a stable chair and your legs stretched into a pushup position behind you to train your body for the form you need on the ground. Next, get into a standard pushup position with two yoga blocks underneath your chest. As you drop to the ground, watch your body for proper form and remove the blocks as you progress.
PRACTICE
Rest days are essential to any fitness routine, but when your rest days are more frequent than your fitness days, your body isn’t going to adapt and grow. Keep practicing and tweaking your pushup technique. Set small goals, such as not dropping your hips, and make plans to meet them. Asking a friend to monitor your form is a helpful way to improve too.
With a little patience and plenty of practice, you’ll be doing pushups like a pro in no time!
2 • www.ThomasPhysicalTherapy.com
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