Can a More Active Population Save Our Planet from Doom?

...........(I dusted off and revised an old blog given its relevance to our current world situation)........

There is an ongoing debate over whether or not we are detrimentally affecting the world's atmospheric environment.

There are climate change believers and climate change deniers!  In my previous existence prior to my Fitness Training career, I had a university degree in Geography and worked in the Environmental field.
I am a believer and have difficulty understanding deniers. I actually find the climate change debate between believers and deniers rather futile. It seems counter productive!
   It is irrefutable that industry and cars can produce gaseous waste. Too much waste can pollute! No matter how far to the political right that you are, how can you argue that? Trying to reduce gaseous emissions can only be a good thing.
   My environmental days happened in the Canadian west. That's oil country! I totally understand the importance of energy extraction as the engine that fuels that economy. I like to try to see the middle ground and look at ways that the fossil fuel business can help fund the growth of alternative energy sources that may have less environmental impact.
   Unfortunately those at the left and right extremes see everything in black and white. This stunts the search for real, practical answers!
   Fortunately, Alberta has a premier who seems to think like me. Use the revenue from oil production to fund the move to alternative, greener forms of power. 

   What does this have to do with Fitness Training! According to the 2012 book "The End of Growth" by Jeff Rubin, one of the most successful countries at reducing emissions has been Denmark. They have many wind farms but most of their energy still comes from coal. Coal is a significant source of pollution and emission.
   So how does Denmark do it? They have made oil prices costly.
When this happens there are possible effects:

• People may drive less. 
• They may tend to live closer to where they work. 
• They take public transit more often.
• They run, bike, walk, skate, or ski more to get around instead of taking a car.

This could have longer term consequences:

• Urban sprawl with it's low density, sidewalk-lacking, automobile dependent environment may become less of a choice for short sighted urban managers and land speculators.
• People may become more active.
• People may decide to park their personal cars and seek other modes of mass transport or join car-sharing clubs.
• Emissions may actually drop.

   Hamlet said "Something is rotten in Denmark!" Well it smells less rotten now. Other countries may follow the Dane's example out of necessity.

A walk or bike ride to work might be healthier

   As people become more active because of fuel costs, they may decide to take the next step and seek the services of a Fitness Trainer. Conversely, energy costs may force them to become more money conscious and curtail non-essential spending.
There is also the issue with luring the youth of today away from their electronic gadgets and back to the playing fields/courts and the great outdoors.
Will it be Boom or Bust for future Fitness Trainers? I'm betting on the Boom!

Fresher air and fitter days could lay ahead!

Until next time,...keep fit!



Little Bobby Strong
Links
www.fitnwell.com

www.rabbitview.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/dancarle/?ppe=1

Reference
Rubin, Jeff  The End of Growth (2012) Random House Canada

   

Online Gaming Tutors for Kids! Is This for Real????

    I saw this news feature on T.V. recently that almost floored me, but it really should come as no surprise.
 Parents are now hiring online gaming tutors for children! Yes, you heard me correctly. (From my observations, most children are already experts at this). Furthermore, parents -mostly Dads- are also hiring such tutors for themselves in order to spend more quality time with their children! Why take them for a hike or throw a ball around when you can sit on the couch and bond while blasting online zombies or hostile alien spacecraft? This is a sign of the times and the likely wave of the future.


 The training starts early! They are ready for the online gaming tutor.


 This matter leads me to a few personal observations:

• The fees for online gaming tutors range from $25.00 and up. Ironically, that is the same price range for hiring most Fitness Trainers which might be a better use of the money for purposes of health and physical well being.
• I have acquaintances with outdoor swimming pools. They often have to coax their kids to go go out for a swim even on a scorching hot day. Why jump into a pool of unknown temperature when they can play with their electronic gadgets on a sofa in an air conditioned room?
• Organized sports for youth are still booming. Unorganized sports, also known as physical play, are an endangered species. 
• School boards in a certain district banned soccer balls from school playgrounds because some unlucky pupil got hit in the head. You can't totally blame the school officials. Insurance and liability issues often become a factor.
• We used to play a schoolyard game of chase in the winter known as 'British Bulldog'. The person that was 'it' would attempt to tackle those that he pursued. The snow cushioned the tackle.
• I do not remember any serious injuries. You learned to relax when getting tackled.
• We had a kid at school named' D. W.' who was an overweight 250 pounds. Occasionally someone would get winded if tackled by D. W. 
• Even though D. W. was overweight he was active and was actually a capable athlete in any sport requiring some strength or power. 
• School physical education classes are also an endangered species. Most schools are phasing them out for more computer related learning.
• The fitness club where I work out has a kid zone where there are gaming exercise machines. The participants must run or cycle to create the energy source to power the machines, These machines sit idle. 
• Meanwhile the regular sedentary video machines located in the lobby are surrounded by kids. or else they use their own hand held devices.
• Go by any elementary school in the late afternoon and there is a line up of parents in cars waiting to drive their children home. Heaven forbid they should fall prey to the hordes of evil child abductors while getting exercise by walking home. 
• There are exceptions to this anti-activity epidemic. Skateboarders seem to rebel against the sedentary system in significant numbers. Likewise with snowboarders. All is not lost -yet!

   Twenty years from now, there may be an exponentially greater demand for Fitness Trainers. However, first they will have to market their product and make it more appealing that what the online gaming tutors are selling. Good luck with that. L.O.L.

You have to admit - the gaming tutors produce gaming scholars!

Until next time,  Keep Fit

Little Bobby Strong
 
 Links
www.fitnwell.com

www.rabbitview.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/dancarle/?ppe=1