Fit to Play with Jim Johnson: Don’t stop playing

Published: 02-06-2023 3:48 PM

As I was leaving my office a few years back I noticed a long line of students snaking across the gym waiting to go into the fitness studio. They informed me they were taking a class called “Awesome Abs.” Going down the stairs I passed a Pilates class and a yoga class — both full of students struggling on the floor. One level down I passed the empty squash courts and went through Smith College’s beautiful indoor tennis facility to find two professors hitting balls.

As I drove home that day I couldn’t help but think how quiet the gym was. I missed the bouncing balls, yelling, and laughter. I distinctly remember when we opened the gym for squash and tennis; people signed up a day in advance to secure a one-hour slot. The department used to offer 18 tennis classes a year; now they offer only four poorly attended classes. Play seems to be limited to organized sport, and then one has to wonder if that’s really playing or a job.

This demise of play is not limited to college students. Outdoor basketball and tennis facilities lay in wait for the occasional player. Golf courses close. We have no outdoor public swimming pool around. It’s not as if people are not exercising, they’re just not having much fun. I’ve taken yoga and done Pilates, but it’s not play. And I must admit that a class focused on one’s five stomach muscles seems incomplete. Where did this infatuation with stomach muscles come from, Calvin Klein underwear commercials? Has this obsession with the body compromised our joy of physical activity, the gift of play and fun?

Some years back my colleague, Don Siegel, and I conducted a study on exercise adherence. We determined there were four general reasons why someone would sign up for a class: 1. Get fit, lose weight, 2. Do something different, 3. Social interaction, 4. Have fun. Then we monitored how long before they quit. The first to quit were those in the get fit/lose weight group. The have fun group lasted longest. It only takes minutes to have fun, but much longer to get fit or lose weight.

I’m not suggesting that we drop yoga or Pilates; these activities are beneficial, but I am suggesting to find play in your activity. One way is to find a group or a partner. When I arrived on the Washington University campus I asked around for someone who played badminton. Competitive badminton players are not plentiful. One Friday morning a colleague told me a guy named McDowell in the mathematics department played. I gave him a call and we set up a game for Monday morning. About 3 p.m. that afternoon this guy sticks his head in my office and says, “I’m McDowell. I couldn’t wait until Monday, can we play now?” We played almost every morning for years — never arguing, always laughing.

Like children, adults need play to stimulate our brains, relieve stress, and to pursue our natural instinct. Play is for its own sake, an activity that gives us pleasure. We were born to play as well as run. Play can be worked into any exercise. For years I had a jogging partner — every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 11 a.m. We ran but we also played at running — never around a track but on the road and trails. We ran at a pace at which we could talk, tell jokes. It was fun, a simple pleasure. One’s attitude can turn any activity into fun.

Laughter is a miracle drug. In Norman Cousins’ wonderful novel, “Anatomy of an Illness,” he tells how he used humor to heal. Cousins was diagnosed with a crippling disease. He lay in bed and worried but noticed that when family members visited and told him funny stories, symptoms waned. He obtained copies of Candid Camera; the relief of symptoms allowed him to sleep. As Cousins laughed he realized that his symptoms vanished. Cousins convinced his doctor of the benefits of laughter and the doctor, in his wisdom, decided to go along, helping Cousins design his own treatment of laughter. His medical tests improved. Cousins recovered.

Play is not wasteful. Play comes in all forms and doesn’t have to be fitness oriented. Just watch a group of adults playing backyard croquet and you will see a lot of smiles and hear a lot of laughter. Darts, pool, cards, and lawn games all work. Make time for fun. Don’t stop playing.

Jim Johnson is a retired professor of exercise and sport science after teaching 52 years at Smith College and Washington University in St. Louis. He comments about sport, exercise, and sports medicine. He can be reached at jjohnson@smith.edu]]>

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