Thursday, July 05, 2007

"I don't have time to exercise."

There's a young, disabled man at our gym. He is barely able to walk, even with crutches, and his forward motion is painfully slow. Still, he manages to use the elliptical trainers, always works up a good sweat, and somehow gets around the room to use the weight machines.

He lives just a couple of blocks from the gym and it may take him half-an-hour to go the short distance on crutches. If it is raining, or very hot, sometimes we drive him home. He is always grateful for a ride. The circumstances surrounding his disability never come up, but sometimes he talks about having more surgery.

Last week, Patty and I were turning into the gym parking lot as he was crossing the street on his way home. As we passed him we both had the same thought: How many times have we heard someone say, "I know I should get in shape, but I just don't have the time right now"? And here is this young man who really struggles just to walk, but, by golly, he gets there.

You can bet he would gladly exchange the hindrances he endures daily with someone who is just "too busy" or "too tired" to make the effort.

If you are honest with yourself, you know that there are really no excuses for a lack of effort or commitment. Not legitimate ones, anyway.

Like the Nike slogan says, "Just do it!"

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