Marketing a Revolution to Health

 Ohio is definitely showing some signs of moving towards spring.  There have been several 60-degree days of balmy weather to inspire us to hold on through the last damp, chilly, nasty days that Ohio seems to find joy in throwing down in March.  I definitely am feeling better. Believe me that sunshine alone cannot convince me that a dog needs walking. The truth is that I can hibernate from sunshine and sparkle as well as the gray damp chill. But this past week my energy, outlook and the weather all agreed that I needed to go for a walk and the Stuart dog readily agreed to accompany me. 

Exercise is said to be the best thing for improving how one feels. Well I did feel pretty good but also realized, again, how out of shape I have gotten.  Remaining prone on a couch waiting to regain your senses adds even more negatives to an already disadvantaged body.

Spending so much “down” time did permit me a window into another world. Daytime TV programming. I admit to catching a few of them here and there since I retired but these are definitely a new market.  Dr. Oz, The Drs., The Revolution…They all are filled with information and research results that can change our lives and help us live better.

Now I realize that there are all sorts of work schedules and people are watching TV at all times of day. But I still wonder. The watcher on the couch (in the recliner, etc) gets to learn how to eat healthier. We get to learn about new exercises, new surgical procedures, and new health supplements that will change their life.

Since my eyes hurt to read and my head hurt when I moved I got to listen. I got to watch the personal five-month transformation (The Revolution) of individuals. The miracle of film shows them losing 40 plus pounds over 5 days. Neat, huh?  This is all inspiring and good information but I notice that I am still flat on the couch.

Most of the people that I know that are truly fit don’t spend their afternoons on the couch. They are already in the gym or out riding their bike or walking their dog or kayaking down the river. 

I also can’t separate the image of my prone TV listening/watching body from some of the individuals I see parked in the nursing homes that that dogs I visit.  Most of the time the TV seems to be just noise to fill up the hours in the background.

I still watch some of those evening dramas but I get to think, “Someone got paid to write that script. Really!”  And the dogs all agree that they love to pile on the prone "couch body" in the evening for pack snuggle. (They do permit room for one laptop computer and the use of one hand. The other must be available for doggy body rubs.)

So, I am not sure what the point of all this is, except that I have to wonder about all those “improve your health shows” and if the seriously motivated “improvers” have not already left the room. 

It is a good thing, too.  They needed to get off the couch before all the fast food commercials. Between the Good Mood Food, and implied brilliance of ordering off of the Value Menu they might have just headed out directly to their cars.