BooneThink

Early in my life, my father spoke of what it meant to be a man! I was very young, but I have to admit that his comments have always been with me. So, from my perspective, if anyone thinks that I am suppose to apologize for my beliefs about exercise physiology, get real. You will be able to climb the highest mountain with one hand before I will ever stop working on behalf of students who want to be credible exercise physiologists.

Something new begins when someone stands up and says, “Enough is just that — Enough.” Honestly, when you think about it just for a moment, the forerunner of a new exercise physiology, one in which a person does not need a doctorate degree, is the ASEP organization. It is a powerful and sustaining hope and expectation. Yes, it is also a serious stretch of possibility thinking. But, there is no question that the ASEP leaders are getting the job done.

The responsibility for making exercise physiology better for students and professionals in the field rests entirely on those of us who are partnering with new ideas and new possibilities. After all, it is all about integrity and buying into the professional infrastructure that the ASEP leaders have put in place. They believe in the ASEP effort and perspective. That is exactly why they are pushing new ideas about professionalism.

Why not get over the idea that anyone who disagrees with ASEP is somehow right. There is plenty of room for disagreement. What good is what we have if it is not valued and our students can’t benefit from it? The short answer is: None at all. That is exactly why an academic major in “Exercise Science” is a meaningless, worthless, and stupid college degree. Yes, I said it: Stupid.  Some things are stupid, regardless of how common or accepted they may be. 

I suppose statements like the ones I just made represent part of the reason why a recent email said that “I should apologize to the academic exercise physiologists for my writings.”  All I have to say, aside from this posting, is “read my lips cowboy!” I will continue to capture every possible thought or manner in which I can write about. The idea of constantly growing as an exercise physiologist appeals to me. Perhaps, my colleagues who fail to get this point have unfortunately remained as they have been for decades. They fail to understand that the 20th century thinking has an expiration date. Today, it is the 21st century. Hello, wake up and get past yesterday’s thinking.

You can hear Reed saying, “But, I remember exercise physiology like it was yesterday.” This is exactly the problem. The idea exercise physiology “today” ought to be like exercise physiology of “yesterday” is senseless.  Exercise physiology is MORE THAN acute and chronic changes resulting from regular exercise.  Any good member of the academy should understand this point. In fact, it is surprisingly simple and intuitive.

All exercise physiologists should understand the ASEP big picture. Donald Trump said it best: “You have to think anyway, so why not think big.” Remaining as a discipline is not big! Remaining as fitness professionals is not big thinking!  Thinking as a healthcare professional is BIG!

So, if anyone thinks that I’m going to apologize for speaking the truth on behalf of exercise physiology, forget it. Admittedly, it is hard to see the value of the ASEP organization while inside the organizational mind of a different view. To see how ASEP exercise physiologists think, you must first get in touch with how they think and why they have chosen a different path.

Those who “get the big picture” get the ASEP vision. Let’s face it: Big-picture thinkers do their own thinking. They don’t let emails that resulted in this piece get to them. That’s why there is no reason to apologize to anyone for anything.  Of course this view doesn’t mean that I have all the answers, just one.  That is, failing to do the right thing for the right reasons is a bad thing.  But, keeping the mind open to suggestions and new experiences is the kind of mind-set required of professionals who want their students to be successful.

“The joy is in creating, not maintaining.” — Vince Lombardi

Have a good day!