Here's a little story about one of my PE girls learning self-confidence and life through a simple balance challenge. Enjoy! :)
*Photo: RJ @ Rock House

Here's a short passage from 1937 on exercise cults and fads and how they related to exercise fads and gadgets and exercising to get muscles strong--or living in such a way that produces whole health and well-being.

Source: "Exercise and Health" by Jesse Feiring Williams, A.B., M.D.; Professor of Physical Education, Teachers College, Columbia University; National Health Series; Edited by the National Health Council (1937).
*Photo by Ron Jones

I was shocked to see a size 58 belt last week, and it made me think deeply about how this can happen to people. I have worked with many obese people in my career, and one of my favorite populations to help with health are middle-aged obese women ready to change...however, it would be so much easier if people did not completely give up on themselves and their health.

Why do people completely abandon health so early in life?

Is anyone else having significant problems understanding what people are saying? Can you understand what they are attempting to write? It seems that we have a real communication breakdown from oral to written--and especially with children. Here are a few observations, some thoughts, and some interesting reading from an 1800s elementary school textbook.

Reference: "McGuffey's Fourth Eclectic Reader" (Revised Edition, 1879)
*Photo by Ron Jones

In a follow-up to my LA Fire and California fire history podcasts, here's an interesting look at the history and origins of "Smokey Bear" who went on to become the longest-running PSA in American history with a 96% brand recognition.

Related Podcasts: Feral Fire History of California; LA FIRES

References: SmokeyBear.com; The Aggie; NPR; Tread Magazine; American University.

*Photo by Ron Jones

1929 marked more than a stock market crash; it also marked a stern warning about the pending crash of American College Athletics if they continued to commercialize and professionalize college athletics. As usual, we did not listen. Here's what we knew in 1929 and what we should be following in 2025 to course correct, or, we can use the information as criteria to cancel sports programs altogether if they do not enhance our national life.

At this point, what real cultural value do American sports programs offer for improving our nation, our culture, and the human condition?

Source: "AMERICAN COLLEGE ATHLETICS" by Howard J. Savage, Staff Member, Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, and Harold W. Bentley, John T. McGovern, Dean F. Smiley, M.D.; Bulletin Number Twenty-Three (1929) *This is the full version; I used an abbreviated version for the podcast.

I lost one of my best students a couple of weeks ago who needed to relocate to a different school district. Despite her short years, she was truly a "holder of the flame" of life energy that lights a path for others to follow. In Native history, the person who held the flame for the tribe had a sacred position; I think this still exists somehow.

Every once in a while, you meet someone who seems to feel a lot more and has a much deeper understanding of life--and sometimes they are just a few years old. Good luck young grasshopper...keep the light bright.

*Photo by Ron Jones

"No people has ever yet done great and lasting work if its physical type was infirm and weak."

Here's a great article written by Teddy Roosevelt in 1890 on the benefits of manly exercises and other outdoor activities and the ills of professional sports and professional athletes...he references ancient Rome...we have been warned. Is anyone listening?

Reference: "Professionalism" in Sports by Theodore Roosevelt, The North American Review; Vol. 151, No. 405; pp. 187-191 (AUG 1890)

*Photo by Ron Jones

I just watched the news coverage of the recent plane crash in Toronto. The plane flipped completely upside down upon crash landing, and one of the passengers actually took a video of herself upside down while strapped into her seat--INSTEAD OF GETTING OUT OF THE PLANE!

Have we completely lost our minds through propaganda programming?

*Photo by Ron Jones

In view of the numerous health problems Americans have that are related to sexual issues, I need to take a respectful and scholarly approach to discuss: sex, orgasms, and improving whole health through healthier sexual relations. Many of the topics today are taboo for some because of social beliefs or absolute embarrassment, but again, I'm sharing some insights and some of my reading research to help people understand what lies under so many health issues from weight loss to movement constrictions to mental health and more--and it's about sex--or the absence of it altogether. Take what works for you; discard what does not apply...and take care of yourself too. 

Here are the books I recommended at the end of the show:

• "Ending Female Pain: A Woman's Manual; The Ultimate Self-Help Guide for Women Suffering from Chronic Pelvic and Sexual Pain" by Isa Herrera, MSPT, CSCS (2009)
• "Women's Anatomy of Arousal" by Sheri Winston, CNM, RN, BSN, LMT (2017)
• "Tantric Intimacy" by Katrina Bos (2017)
• "Sandstone Seduction: Rivers and Lovers, Canyons and Friends" by Katie Lee (2004)
• "Maps to Ecstasy: teachings of an urban shaman" by Gabrielle Roth (1989)

*"Sensual Orchids" photo by Ron Jones