There was a time in history when exercise was designed to be both traumatic and private. Odd contortions were shown to be “effective” in curing all sorts of ailments but only done in a limited capacity. Women especially were cautioned by physicians about the dangers of over-exertion in the 1930s.   Even more recently, there was a time in history when going to a gym was an abnormal thing to do. In the 1970s,  popular exercise included walking, running, ping pong and something called calisthenics, which was a fancy way to say you were doing a push-up or a situp with purpose.

 The weightlifting types of my high school years were those who congregated in someone’s basement, usually after normal hours of human function. While they lifted long bars drooping under the tonnage of the plate on either end, their friends consumed mysteriously-colored drinks and cheered them on.  Anything that happened while in the basement stayed in the basement.

Within the walls of public school, there was something even more sinister. The President’s Physical Fitness Test was a stressful time for all of us who did not participate in these activities. Given twice yearly, it was a way to judge the physical abilities and somedays the letter grade of every student. Looking back, it would have made much more sense to have the students practice in advance of the actual, ego-smashing test.

Instead, on the surprise day of whichever portion of the test to be taken, each student would be forced to perform these random tests of fitness, never to be used in real life, in front of the entire class. I’d like a show of hands for all who have utilized the flexed arm hang in daily life? How many have been long jumping their way to Starbucks each week?

In some cases, performance in the President’s Physical Fitness test was tied to the P.E. grade for the semester. This was especially traumatic for those of us who could only jump as far as the end of our shoes. “Maybe next year… when pigs fly.”

Slowly, enjoyable fitness found its way into the mainstream and eventually public life. But not before popular exercise classes were performed in the privacy of one’s home. With the help of a VCR (look it up) hair scrunchie and some fantastic spandex, the exercise craze had begun.