There are more important things in life than money. There is family, learning, music and art, love and friendship, and your health. There is joy, laughter, passion, triumph, and the pleasure of accomplishment.
All these important things have to be paid for, and some of them can be expensive. Money is handy like that.
Physical strength is like money in the bank, in that it enables you to do the things you want to do with your body. Work, play sports, hunt and fish, and be physically independent well into your later years – physical strength is the basis of all these things.
Intellectual pursuits are indeed important, but having a strong enough body to host an intellect effectively, and to enjoy the fruits of intellectual accomplishment into old age is part of the equation. Strength is the antithesis of ill health, and ill health is not how an intellect flourishes.
In fact, the muscle mass that comes with the development of physical strength has been proven to prevent the diseases and afflictions that come with aging. Everyone can get and stay strong, but this requires work, and excuses are easier than squats and deadlifts.
The muscle mass that is the hallmark of physical strength is the key to longevity, to health, and to the maintenance of physical function. In its absence, a towering intellect in a weak and sickly body is a poor legacy.
You must have a plan for getting older. All the “cardio” in the world will do nothing to maintain your muscle mass, while effective strength training both grows muscle mass and keeps your heart and lungs in shape. If you have enough sense to know you must devote some time to exercise, strength training is the far more logical way to spend that time.
Money in the bank, muscle on the frame. Both are the consequences of effective planning, and both are among the most important things you can do – if you’re thinking ahead.
