31 Days to a Better Body: Day 20 – Trash the TV (or internet)
(source)
Or in the very least reduce it.
Besides being a passive use of time, it’s a total kill joy. According to most commercials, I need more money, clearer skin, stronger cleaning products, a nicer house, a thinner body, nicer clothes, a newer car, shinier hair, longer thicker eyelashes, softer toilet paper, more absorbent paper towels, better insurance, more effective drugs, and a happier family. Don’t even get me started on the news.
Whatever.
Don’t get me wrong there are some fantastic products out there, some good news stories, some clever ads, and good shows but the really good stuff I’ll find out about by word of mouth.
I’m certain that not having TV has improved my self esteem, saved me money, and given me more time for the internet days of life that might have been spent watching others live life. I looked up The 2011 Statical Abstract of the United States and saw that in 2009 the average American watched 1721 hours a television a year. What?!?! That’s almost 72 days a year. Couple that with the standard American diet of processed crap food and the incessant message that we aren’t good enough and it’s easy to see why we are facing a health crisis.
Just think about what those people could do with those 71.7 days! Imagine how different those people swapped out just 15 of those days (1 hour a day) for some exercise.
Disclaimer: We do have a television and have been longtime subscribers to Netflix. We watch about 1 or 2 movies a month. What can I say I’m an internet girl. 😉 Aside for the year of 2001, I haven’t had any TV programming since 1996 and I don’t miss it. Truly.
What about you? Do you have a television? Do you watch it? Anyone else totally annoyed you now have to pay two separate Netflix fees? We are canceling the DVD delivery and going with online streaming only.
Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn
Check out our family’s adventures at New School Nomads as we plan to take a year long road trip through the United States!
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This is my (almost) sane quest for insane health. Let's 
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I must confess we love many TV shows, but use our DVR (and DVDs) judiciously. I abhor sitting in front of the TV watching whatever’s on, just for something to do.
Still, I could do better at this. I do try to stand/stretch/foam roll/etc., at least part of the time, instead of simply sitting, because I do that enough at work and I really don’t like how it feels to sit so much (and I also love to read, and for that I don’t have much choice but to sit or lie down). I might have to break down and invest in a small rebounder for the living room. 😀
Foam rolling while watching tv! Brilliant!