In a recent conversation with a coach on our team we were discussing the weather, specifically the extreme heat Tennessee (and much of the country) has been in all of summer 2026. We were both curious if the world is slowly continuing to get hotter and hotter and for longer. And will Fall and Winter eventually disappear altogether?
That led to wondering how people lived before the invention of electricity and air conditioning. Although they were likely better adapted to the weather, it likely had affects on them that we don’t have to experience now, as we’ve engineered our way to being comfortable all of the time.
So what if there were no change of the season and it were 90 degrees all year? How would that affect our quality of life?
Well, unfortunately, for a lot of people life wouldn’t be much different than it already is.
We life inside, in our climate controlled 70 degree homes, get food and “stuff” delivered to our door same day and even work from home.
Regardless of the outside temperatures, we could go about our lives in comfort, because that’s what our society has prioritized. Make everything literally as comfortable as possible. I mean, have you sat inside a brand new car lately? Are you kidding me? The amount of creature comforts, gadgets, and arguably unnecessary stuff that we’ve been trained to think we “need” is absurd.
The sad part about this,…is that it’s actually happening already, the comfort part, not the year round heat. So it’s not going to take some crazy act of extreme weather pattern disruption to make us slowly become less and less physically capable.
We’re already doing it. And its costing us.
Much of our society has disregarded any importance on physical ability because living these days is so easy to do while being physically incapable. You don’t have to be strong. You don’t have to be fit. If you can walk from the dining room chair, to the door to receive the Uber eats, back to the couch, then back to the door to get your Instacart Groceries, to the fridge, then back to door to get that new cute outfit you ordered (to wear, where?)… you can basically stay inside all day, do your job, watch your shows, get your stuff delivered, and never have to do anything that demands muscle or fitness.
And so the cycle continues.
And you get weaker, and more deconditioned by the day.
Your muscles atrophy, your lung function declines, and you become less capable.
To that you may say, so what? “If that’s how I live, why do I need to be strong or have lungs and heart that can operate under heavy demands?”
Well, because eventually at some point life will throw a demand at you that you’re not ready for. It might be simple, or it might be monumental, either way, having the physical ability to handle it will bode well in your favor.
I’m not referring to purposely doing things that require physical fitness, like signing up to run a marathon or compete in a sporting competition.
What we’re talking about here is living life.
Just yesterday, I used my hose at my house, and I don’t have one of those fancy garden-hose reel things. So when I’m done, I have to roll it back up and carry it back to the shed. It’s 100′ long, probably weighs about 50lbs, and is awkward to hold. Without any amount of muscular fitness, that hose would never had made it back to the shed.
Are you a parent? Do you want to be? Carrying a kid, lifting them up, getting them in/out of the car seat, holding them up to see themselves in the mirror, chasing them, playing with them… it all takes a lot of physical capability. Sure, you can get away without it, but the whole process is going to be much harder.
Maybe you don’t have a garden hose, or a kid…
Have you ever had to climb a ladder, and do anything from it?
Have you ever had to hustle through the airport,…with luggage? And then place your carry-on in the overhead compartment?
Have you ever had to move an appliance? Or furniture? Or heavy boxes up into the attic?
Heaven forbid you’re ever in a situation where you have to carry an injured Labrador, or even worse, a person.
Every day there’s a possibility of an opportunity that requires us to be physically capable.
And every day millions of people are ignoring it, thinking that the only reason people go to the gym is to look good.
Maybe you live like this and manage to stay alive until 80, or 90, but the quality of life of a person with minimal physical ability will be decline drastically after 60 to the point where you’re “alive” but not “living.”
The good thing for everyone is that this is easy to combat, no matter what age you’re at.
Start moving your body.
Walk more. Do some bodyweight squats and lunges. Carry something heavy do to the end of the driveway and back a few times.
Need more instruction, structure or motivation? Join a gym. Not necessary, but maybe it’s what you need!
Here’s your sign to go do something that requires some muscle today!