I’m going to try to do more Threads like this to encourage discussion when I have something on my mind that’s not quite robust enough for a full post. I better see you in the comments! Here goes:
If you were to name a single hobby of yours outside of media consumption (IYKYK), would you count working out? Is exercise a hobby?
Per the MW dictionary: hobby, noun: a pursuit outside one’s regular occupation engaged in especially for relaxation.
Sure, I Do Exercise outside of my regular occupation. I love it. There is a kind of relaxation in it. But I don’t think of it as one of my hobbies. Why? I guess because at this point it’s more a habit than a hobby. It’s Life Maintenance. It’s Adult Admin. I don’t really think of cooking as a hobby of mine, either, because while it’s not my job and it can relax me, most of the time it’s just a thing I have to do.
Exercise feels to me like the core curriculum of the week, whereas my other hobbies feel like extracurriculars. Saying exercise is one of your hobbies feels, to me, like kind of cheating. Dare I say: Hobby fraud.
Are you mad??? I’m not trying to make you mad! Please discuss how you feel about this question. xoxo
Interesting! I guess it all depends on the individual's relationship/"why" for exercise. Are they doing it for a specific goal (lose weight, gain strength) or it is something that genuinely brings joy/they "engage in especially for relaxation?" For me personally, I would consider certain types of exercise to feel more like a hobby than others (yoga, dancing, hiking vs pilates, weight lifting). So yes, I think it can be!
Ooooh I have THOUGHTS on this. On the one hand, exercise is necessary to my life/sanity/wellbeing. Making it a necessity or a habit, I guess, as opposed to a just-for-fun hobby. On the other hand, I “hobbify” my exercise a lot, in that I will fall into rabbit holes about certain lifts or stretches or movements, and I’ll research the shit out of that thing. Sometimes I’ll apply that research to my routines, but oftentimes it’s driven by simple curiosity, and I’ll tuck that info away. Or, more likely, forget it and then fall back down the same rabbit hole a few years later lolol. I’m currently very obsessed with max-effort (as in work till failure) body weight training, which I highly doubt I’ll ever try :) But is interesting to learn about!
That's such a good point. When I was training for a powerlifting meet (which I am not doing right now) it felt much more hobby-ish, because it was newer to me, I had to sort of "study" it, and it was time-bound in a way that made it feel more "extracurricular" than my usual thing!
I think movement itself is not a hobby, but certainly some exercise is a hobby! I think it depends on the type, maybe, like hiking and sports and boutique gyms are a hobby. Now I'm questioning myself though because the distinction I've been drawing is that of you enjoy it and/or pay for it, it's a hobby, but if you hate your life while engaging in it, then it's not a hobby. But I do strive to do movement that's joyful, so by my own definition, all my movement is a hobby which isn't correct...
"If you hate your life while engaging in it, then it's not a hobby" -- lol, but also this is interesting because I think getting past the "hate your life" phase of many types of exercise is key to eventually enjoying it/thinking of it as a hobby. I do yoga more now than I used to, in addition to my other training, and THAT feels more hobby-ish to me for some reason, and I totally hated it at first (because it was hard and I wasn't instantly good at it, ha)
I’ve been thinking a lot about this recently! Being a runner has been a core part of my identity for a long time and until recently I would call running a hobby. I’m slowly realizing that I want running to be something I do, not something I am, to take the pressure off performance and my associated appearance. It’s a work in progress. If I’m being realistic I would say running is more life admin at this point but part of me is still holding on to something more.
I like "something I do, not something I am" ... that's ringing around in my ears now, and I wanna think about how I apply that to weightlifting, which is my main thing these days
I would say it's one of my hobbies, but it's not a hobby to everyone who participates. Imo a hobby involves an active engagement — it's not merely relaxing or fun. It's something you experiment with, learn about, try to get better at, and you're actively thinking about how you can do those things with it.
I think that's absolutely right. Maybe lifting, for me, felt like a hobby at first and now it doesn't? I wonder when on the timeline it switched from one thing to the other ...
I think based on that definition, exercise *can* be a hobby. I think your argument is that it *shouldn't* be a hobby, which I partly agree with. (Because everyone should be exercising for their health.) I do think some things--like hiking, kayaking, rock climbing, certain sports--can be both. The things that are activities as well as movement, essentially. But I also think exercise is seen as a hobby, particularly in the U.S., because we have little opportunity for movement/exercise in our regular activities. Few people outside of major cities walk to work, most people don't live in walkable communities where they can pop down to the corner store on foot for their groceries, etc. Most people have little access to or no time for any third place, let alone regular attendance of recreational sports clubs. Exercise has become something you have to schedule around your stupidly long commute, your job, possible parenting/caregiving duties, housework, cooking, and other life admin tasks. The fact that it's not integrated into our daily lives makes people view it as separate and optional, not as a habit required for healthy living.
I think there’s a word missing in English, because “hobby” implies something passive and somewhat useless, and regular exercise is neither of those things. An “enthusiasm” isn’t quite right, and “a profession” isn’t it either, because we’re not paid to do it. I dislike the overuse of “it’s part of my identity”, and “lifestyle” doesn’t cut it, either - and it’s not a “cult”. We’re missing a word to describe the role exercise plays in life!
It makes my life enormously richer and fills it with color and perspective - it makes me content with the world. It brings out the best version of myself.
But I don’t have a word for something that does all these things…
Food for thought - the definition of “hobby” is - an activity or interest pursued for pleasure or relaxation. So I guess each individual can decide what a “hobby” means to them.
Interesting! I guess it all depends on the individual's relationship/"why" for exercise. Are they doing it for a specific goal (lose weight, gain strength) or it is something that genuinely brings joy/they "engage in especially for relaxation?" For me personally, I would consider certain types of exercise to feel more like a hobby than others (yoga, dancing, hiking vs pilates, weight lifting). So yes, I think it can be!
I think you're right!
Ooooh I have THOUGHTS on this. On the one hand, exercise is necessary to my life/sanity/wellbeing. Making it a necessity or a habit, I guess, as opposed to a just-for-fun hobby. On the other hand, I “hobbify” my exercise a lot, in that I will fall into rabbit holes about certain lifts or stretches or movements, and I’ll research the shit out of that thing. Sometimes I’ll apply that research to my routines, but oftentimes it’s driven by simple curiosity, and I’ll tuck that info away. Or, more likely, forget it and then fall back down the same rabbit hole a few years later lolol. I’m currently very obsessed with max-effort (as in work till failure) body weight training, which I highly doubt I’ll ever try :) But is interesting to learn about!
That's such a good point. When I was training for a powerlifting meet (which I am not doing right now) it felt much more hobby-ish, because it was newer to me, I had to sort of "study" it, and it was time-bound in a way that made it feel more "extracurricular" than my usual thing!
I think movement itself is not a hobby, but certainly some exercise is a hobby! I think it depends on the type, maybe, like hiking and sports and boutique gyms are a hobby. Now I'm questioning myself though because the distinction I've been drawing is that of you enjoy it and/or pay for it, it's a hobby, but if you hate your life while engaging in it, then it's not a hobby. But I do strive to do movement that's joyful, so by my own definition, all my movement is a hobby which isn't correct...
"If you hate your life while engaging in it, then it's not a hobby" -- lol, but also this is interesting because I think getting past the "hate your life" phase of many types of exercise is key to eventually enjoying it/thinking of it as a hobby. I do yoga more now than I used to, in addition to my other training, and THAT feels more hobby-ish to me for some reason, and I totally hated it at first (because it was hard and I wasn't instantly good at it, ha)
I’ve been thinking a lot about this recently! Being a runner has been a core part of my identity for a long time and until recently I would call running a hobby. I’m slowly realizing that I want running to be something I do, not something I am, to take the pressure off performance and my associated appearance. It’s a work in progress. If I’m being realistic I would say running is more life admin at this point but part of me is still holding on to something more.
I like "something I do, not something I am" ... that's ringing around in my ears now, and I wanna think about how I apply that to weightlifting, which is my main thing these days
Love that it resonated with you. I hope this train of thought takes you somewhere that feels good!
I would say it's one of my hobbies, but it's not a hobby to everyone who participates. Imo a hobby involves an active engagement — it's not merely relaxing or fun. It's something you experiment with, learn about, try to get better at, and you're actively thinking about how you can do those things with it.
I think that's absolutely right. Maybe lifting, for me, felt like a hobby at first and now it doesn't? I wonder when on the timeline it switched from one thing to the other ...
I think based on that definition, exercise *can* be a hobby. I think your argument is that it *shouldn't* be a hobby, which I partly agree with. (Because everyone should be exercising for their health.) I do think some things--like hiking, kayaking, rock climbing, certain sports--can be both. The things that are activities as well as movement, essentially. But I also think exercise is seen as a hobby, particularly in the U.S., because we have little opportunity for movement/exercise in our regular activities. Few people outside of major cities walk to work, most people don't live in walkable communities where they can pop down to the corner store on foot for their groceries, etc. Most people have little access to or no time for any third place, let alone regular attendance of recreational sports clubs. Exercise has become something you have to schedule around your stupidly long commute, your job, possible parenting/caregiving duties, housework, cooking, and other life admin tasks. The fact that it's not integrated into our daily lives makes people view it as separate and optional, not as a habit required for healthy living.
I think there’s a word missing in English, because “hobby” implies something passive and somewhat useless, and regular exercise is neither of those things. An “enthusiasm” isn’t quite right, and “a profession” isn’t it either, because we’re not paid to do it. I dislike the overuse of “it’s part of my identity”, and “lifestyle” doesn’t cut it, either - and it’s not a “cult”. We’re missing a word to describe the role exercise plays in life!
It makes my life enormously richer and fills it with color and perspective - it makes me content with the world. It brings out the best version of myself.
But I don’t have a word for something that does all these things…
Food for thought - the definition of “hobby” is - an activity or interest pursued for pleasure or relaxation. So I guess each individual can decide what a “hobby” means to them.