CHAPTER 3: EXERCISE John decides that he should really start taking better care of himself by exercising. It will help manage his stress and even help him lose the extra weight he put on. Starting next week, he will begin a jogging routine, where he will run five days a week. On the first day, he wakes up extra early before work and puts on his tennis shoes, eager to get started. After some basic stretches, the jogging starts, and everything seems to go well. Within two minutes, however, John is out of breath. He's wheezing, and his breathing becomes super heavy. And after just five minutes, the jogging is replaced by walking. While it would be easy to blame his asthma and call it quits, he admits the truth. He is out of shape. As time passes, days become weeks. Weeks become months. John is now able to run continually for 30 minutes. Within a year or two, he could be running a marathon, he thinks. While he's proud of his improvement, doing nothing but cardio has grown extremely boring, so a change of routine is the next step. John's friends Andy and Joe have invited him to come lift weights after work, so they all meet at the gym, eager to spend some time together. They decide to commit to a workout program five days a week, where they will work one body part per week: chest, back, shoulders, legs, and arms. Each day requires strenuous effort, but the endorphin rush at the end of each workout makes it all worth it. To cool down, the men relax by walking on the treadmills or sweating it out in the sauna for 10 minutes. Some time passes, and John decides that weightlifting isn't a good fit for him. Andy and Joe get too competitive with it, and the intensity of the workouts has become more painful than fun. At the gym, however, they offer yoga classes, so John signs up, eager to start. The classes teach a variety of stretches and poses designed to loosen the body and calm the mind. The lessons are not easy by any means, and they make all the students sweat. Yet, it's not as intense as weightlifting. And it's much more fun and relaxing than jogging. John leaves each class feeling refreshed and excited to come back for more. He even starts chatting with some pretty girls whom he looks forward to seeing every week. It's a routine with an extra incentive to maintain.