Quote Originally Posted by piper184 View Post
If I am going to expend that much energy I want something tangible in return. New shingles on the roof, new fence line built, trees planted, or a garden where all the weeds have been hoed. "working out" is just a waste of energy if you don't accomplish anything. This guy proved you don't need a factory made workout machine. Dig a few post holes by hand and carry the posts uphill to the holes and you have proved you don't need a machine at all.
Well, you are right that doing work will make you strong. Look at farmers' bodies and the muscle attachments. But, what work does not do is make a balanced body. Properly done, exercise creates a balanced body, symmetry, reduction of injury, increased stamina.

Back in the day, when farmers' and farm kids' pickups had a gun rack in the back window with an ACTUAL!! gun in the rack, I wanted to be a state champ wrestler. My pop had me carry around a 30 lbs steel bar. I carried it at school from class to class and around the farm when doing chores. It worked. You couldn't carry a 30 lbs hunk of steel anywhere today without causing alarm.