Personally I need both! I can't cope without some exercise (though I hate gyms and prefer to play football) and I go stir crazy if I can't get out to the pub now and then to see friends. I also live way too much on my phone and I know I am less mentally healthy because of it than I was before all this crap was invented!
Gaming the system isn't limited to the UK, I know people over here in the Netherlands that have deemed themselves 'unemployable' but are active in the black economy. Something I believe to happen most if not all countries with unemployment benefits.
But on the other hand, kids from council estates seldom make it in music these days, because it’s got so much harder to claim the dole while trying to build an audience.
Nobody really makes it in music these days. It's not a career, it's a hobby for 99.999999999% which you can do from your bedroom.
I am probably wrong, but I think that music started to decline with Karaoke (hear me out lol). All of a sudden, everyone thought they could sing because 100 drunken people applauded their rendition to Robbie Williams 'Angels'. Then technology came out that meant that virtually anyone with a computer could record a cover a record and it would actually sound ok. This IMO led to the music execs being inundated with 'singers' and demos like never before. Then you had x-factor that actually gave airtime to the ridiculous and in the words of Don McClean, that was the day that music died. Totally wrong probably, but how I, as an outsider, see it.
It's actually more that distribution became something you could do/inflict on people yourself. I can fart into a microphone and put it onto all the streaming services for about £40 a year now.
I disagree with this. Maybe in the way gyms and ‘gym bros’ were perceived in the 80s/90s, you could argue this. Weight lifting is basically the best thing you can do for health, both mental and physical. The social aspect is also great. The narcissistic approach is only a few unhealthy people that I would argue would be unhealthy in a different way if they weren’t addicted to the gym. Most gym people, even the huge ones, are the friendliest people you could meet. Usually they’re smarter than people think too. The idea of “meatheads” is an outdated concept imo One of our country’s biggest failings is that doctors don’t prescribe weightlifting as a course of action. It can cure a huge range of illnesses and mental health issues. From bad backs to depression.
That's a fair point, Os, and agreed that lifting heavy weights is one of the most important aspects of physical health (particularly as you get older). People are friendly to a degree at gyms too, agreed. My point is more about the fact that we now have an obsession with 'gains', and a lot of the perception of the aesthetically 'good' way to look has changed as a result. The "do you even lift" mentality. Coupled with people recording said 'gains' consistently on Instagram and the like, it does lead to issues if you don't look a certain way (and many people can't look like that).
At the extreme end, you’re probably right. But I think the bigger issue is obesity and mental health issues caused by inactivity. It’s no exaggeration to say if everyone was eating a high protein diet and weightlifting 3x a week, it would probably save hundreds of millions a year on medical costs. I have seen a 90 year old woman do deadlifts, squats with a barbell (of course exceptionally light), and it changed her life. The mobility benefits and health benefits are hard to overstate. Millions of people are unaware of these benefits
No doubt. It's just the lack of balance across both spectrums, and the advent of social media combined that creates a broader issue.
I agree with this. There are a lot of charlatans in the health industry too, which confuse things. Also there is a genuine lack of knowledge, even from medical professionals. They still prescribe physiotherapy, drugs or even surgery in many cases where simply lifting weights to strengthen muscles is all that’s needed.
I agree with Osvaldorama. Exercise is the best medicine for everything. I also agree with LTL. Exercise culture, like any other culture, can leave some people feeling left out - as they cannot look like that. But I used to have sciatica and the fix was lifting weights (and stretches). Life changer.
Same thing happened to me. My sciatica still kicks in when I overdo it as the nerve runs through the centre of a muscle that I've repeatedly torn but I do a lot of lifting and stretching in my current role and (touch wood) I haven't missed a day due to my back in the last 15 months whereas it was a major issue a couple of years ago. I've just turned 58 and feel fitter than I have done for years. I haven't done any proper lifting in a gym, but I use a rowing machine 3 times a week at work and that seems to keep everything running smoothly
