You’re Sure This Is Helping?
Okay, here’s an article from today’s Seattle Times the wondrous news that those who exercise regularly live longer than their sedentary peers. At first blush, this seems to vindicate my lifelong habit of exercising. I started running when I was 18 and looking to try out for the Ohio State Marching Band, and since moving to Seattle 31 years ago I’ve probably run over 13,000 miles around Greenlake near my home. I also took up bicycling as an obsession later in my 20s. And regular readers know that I spend time on the water sea kayaking.
But wait. the article says regular exercise may add “1.3 to 3.7 years” to my life as a result. Hmmmm. To counteract all that exercise, I’ve also spent 35 or so years as an accountant, and as an accountant, I can tell you this:
- It takes me, at this late stage of my life, 40 - 50 minutes to run the 4 miles from my house around Greenlake and back counting “stretching” stops and defibrillation episodes, and I do it 2 - 4 times a week. Let’s say that, between that and the other stuff I do, I get 45 minutes of exercise 5 days a week. That’s probably conservative. Say also that, by the time I’m 75 and ready to start drawing in this bank of wholesomeness to accrete it to the end of my life (10K’s deposited regularly throughout life become a 401(k) of extra time at 75, through the miracle of compounding). That’s 45 * 5 * 52 * 55, or 643,500 minutes of sweating, lung-searing torture (the “runner’s high” has always eluded me).
- There are 60 * 24 * 365 = 525,600 minutes in a year. My return on 1.22 years of exercise may be as little as 1.3 years?????!!!! 1.22 years I could have spent writing, travelling, drinking, watching porn, selling Amway on the side????
I shouldn’t be surprised. My portfolio sucks, too.
