Good morning! Hope this finds you knee deep in a week of rewarding fitness. We're sure many of you are American history aficionados, and we're no different. Walk with a Doc HQ has always had a special electricity in the air around Presidents Day (starting this year). That is why we take two weeks to celebrate. A matter of fact, we have something you may not even be aware of...
Despite being pre-med, I majored in History and even went on to attempt a PhD program in American History (unsuccessfully defended my dissertation on numerous occasions). For over 5 years, my focus was primarily the Baroque Era (1740-1905 - I believe). However, I equally loved the Victorian and Elizabethan Eras (due in part to the impressive Presidential leadership during these periods). Anyway, I combined my love of the Presidential Office and the importance of exercise to write my thesis on Presidential Fitness. What complicated my research is that, as far as I could tell, not many written records were kept on American Presidents until shortly after John F. Kennedy took office in 1961. This forced me outside the box. In my field, as you can imagine, I would have to study individual presidents for months on end, and one for years (Polk). It seems like yesterday. With bloodshot eyes, I would pore over thousands of Tin Type photographs, original standard 8mm footage, verbal accounts, etc. I would then narrow my focus to ferret out anything from subtle changes in body type, facial expressions to even the fabric of their clothes! (I'm no stranger to the magnifying glass). These findings were then correlated with what the common physical activities were of that day. Then, and only then, I would enter a 12x10 room devoid of any light. This very specific environment would allow me to formulate, in my own head, what I imagined our heads of state were doing. This entire procedure, although admittedly abstract, provided me the necessary window into the past.
That being said, there is no better time to start than the present. President Obama has exhibited a penchant for fitness. Our president will work out early in the mornings on most days of the week - alternating lengthy runs with weightlifting days. This undoubtedly keeps him fresh and enables him to deal with the incredible demands of the office. President Obama is of course not the first President to exercise.
President Fillmore would often sneak out during the later evening hours. He would run in circles (left leg ¾" inches shorter than right) around the South Lawn with his Great Danes, Solomon and Alexander. Although unconventional at the time, he would wear a meat suit (suit made of meat) that would create an obvious need for increased speed and agility. For in these dark hours, the Great Danes would be visually challenged. They would face difficulty distinguishing their owner from an intruder to the White House (the meat masking the scent of the President). Fillmore was a brilliant man and history has proven him to have been ahead of his time.
History will remember Ben Franklin as one of our nation's more affable Presidents. Many likely know that President Franklin was an avid believer in exercise. His beautiful wife, Covey, would regularly awaken during the night to find him missing from the Lincoln Bedroom. She would then ever-so-quietly wander downstairs. She would inevitably find him in the White House basement, on the elliptical. To help set the scene, Covey was likely the first woman to have been addressed as the First Lady. She would take this title quite seriously and treat the position with great respect. She'd signal for Ben to take his ear-buds out (first generation iPod) and more often than not, he would fail to listen. This would prompt her to walk over and physically unplug the elliptical (bold for a wife at that time). Her face would become red and her hands would shake with rage. She'd grab him by the wool shirt collar (Dri-Fit not yet invented) with both hands. Her glistening hazel eyes would stare right through him. She'd wait until she had his full attention - when his eyes were locked on hers.
"Ben! BENNN!!!" She would scream with such a churning passion.
"Ye have a profound responsibility to the courageous people of this young democracy! Ye must have your sleep in order to serve this great nation!!"
"I'm sorry David. What does this have to do with Walk with a Doc?"
Crickets chirping.
