Wednesday, April 09, 2008
My Neoliberal Corpse
A while back, a friend in Pittsburgh confided in me that he had been using a workout video series, called P90X. I don't really know how to describe this guy adequately to tell you how funny this was. He's a fairly masculine Irish guy who has spent his summers during the last decade planting trees in Northern Canada. This is rough work. He was in punk bands up there, he knows how to drink, and for as long as I've known him, he has made fun of people that do yoga. Lo and behold, P90X has a yoga video, and he has had to eat humble pie.
Anyway, his description of the thing peaked my interest. The series is like sweating to the oldies for alpha males, in other words everything I'm not. I've been working out a lot here in College Park, but I thought it might be nice to have an outside structure placed on my routine, so I asked to borrow it when he was done.
I haven't been disappointed. Not only is it a good work out, but it is also hilarious in an over the top, overly serious kind of way. Imagine if Steve Carrel got in shape and then made a work out video where he barks orders at you and makes fun of your sad physique the whole time. Awesome.
I basically agree with the leftist critique of today's cult of fitness: it revolves around an Enlightenment belief in self mastery, it turns our society's health problems into moral issues of personal responsibility, it is parasitic on our vanity, and it drives a giant industry of sports supplies, exercise videos, nutritional supplements, and health clubs. But this line of reasoning has its limits as well. Even if you wanted to dedicate your life totally to the revolution or to serving others or whatever, you aren't going be of much use if you are an out of shape, overweight, alcoholic sad-sack, like I am. So a bit of self-care makes sense.
Here's a promotional video for the series. For those that know me, just imagine me in the crowd. I like to picture myself as a pallid guy in the back of the video, who begins panting and moaning two minutes into the routine and keels over at minute twenty, knocking the weight rack and all of the dumbbells to the floor.
Anyway, his description of the thing peaked my interest. The series is like sweating to the oldies for alpha males, in other words everything I'm not. I've been working out a lot here in College Park, but I thought it might be nice to have an outside structure placed on my routine, so I asked to borrow it when he was done.
I haven't been disappointed. Not only is it a good work out, but it is also hilarious in an over the top, overly serious kind of way. Imagine if Steve Carrel got in shape and then made a work out video where he barks orders at you and makes fun of your sad physique the whole time. Awesome.
I basically agree with the leftist critique of today's cult of fitness: it revolves around an Enlightenment belief in self mastery, it turns our society's health problems into moral issues of personal responsibility, it is parasitic on our vanity, and it drives a giant industry of sports supplies, exercise videos, nutritional supplements, and health clubs. But this line of reasoning has its limits as well. Even if you wanted to dedicate your life totally to the revolution or to serving others or whatever, you aren't going be of much use if you are an out of shape, overweight, alcoholic sad-sack, like I am. So a bit of self-care makes sense.
Here's a promotional video for the series. For those that know me, just imagine me in the crowd. I like to picture myself as a pallid guy in the back of the video, who begins panting and moaning two minutes into the routine and keels over at minute twenty, knocking the weight rack and all of the dumbbells to the floor.
# posted by Fishtank @ 17:50 
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