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Last December, I sheepishly admitted that there was a huge hole in my belief in nerds.
I grew up drawing cartoons, took AP art in high school and have always been fascinated by hand drawn animation…
But I did I’ve never seen a second of any Studio Ghibli cartoon!
Studio Ghibli is Japan’s equivalent of Disney, with Hayao Miyazaki as Japan’s Walt: the studio has won multiple Oscars for its beautifully hand-drawn animated films, and Miyazaki has achieved legendary status for making these films over the past 40+ years.
Luckily, the amazing community on Threads gave me hundreds of supportive comments and helped me decide which movie to start with!
Ever since I posted that announcement, I’ve been watching all 20+ Studio Ghibli films, fell in love with Japanand became endlessly fascinated by Hayao Miyazaki.
(My favorites are Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki’s Delivery Service, Whisper of the Heart and The Wind Rises.).
After watching each movie, I moved on to watching documentaries about Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli because I needed to know more.
Thanks to these documentaries, I got a fascinating look at Miyazaki’s creative style and experiences in making these films together with his colleagues.
The joke was that Miyazaki was a “man with no end” and could not retire.
In every documentary there was something that stood out to me:
U Kingdom of dreams and madness, at one point, everyone at Studio Ghibli stood up and went through a series of mobility and calisthenics exercises, including Miyazaki.
Later in the document, I noticed Miyazaki demonstrates a very deep squat with perfect form and no help. How many people do you know in their mid-late 70s who can perform a deep squat unassisted!?
U The Infinite Man: Hayao Miyazaki, It’s Miyazaki filmed multiple times chopping wood with an ax in the yard of his studio.
And inside Hayao Miyazaki and The HeronMiya-san (his nickname), now in his 80s, still chops wood, goes for walks in the forest, climbs over fallen trees, does his office exercises and works hard on the film that will culminate his life’s work.
(Yes, I know. Miyazaki also has a cigarette in his mouth for almost every minute of every documentary! He’s lucky he hasn’t had lung cancer yet, and I remind him that he’s not the picture of perfect health!).
I mention this because I think it shows a different side of exercise than you would normally think of.
Train for your old person’s body
Watching this one as Hayao Miyazaki stays active and keeps his brain sharp in his 80s…
I was reminded of this amazing post from Elizabeth (@ThisGirlLifts on Instagram):
As we age, it’s easier for us to move less, which gives us less energy and makes it harder to find the momentum and mobility to keep moving. This could prevent us from spending time with family or friends because we are unable to muster the energy.
Teddy Roosevelt once said “rather risk wearing out than rusting.”
In other words: use it or lose it, bug.
It’s not hard for me to imagine that Miyazaki’s ability to be a “man of no end” is not only due to good genetics (and luck), but also because he actively chose to wear down rather than rust.
Reflecting on why he decided to complete one more animated film in his 8th decade on this planet, he simply replied that it was all he knew how to do: “I’d rather die doing this than die doing nothing.”
Fitness is more than just losing weight
At Nerd Fitness, we encourage all rebels to think about their “Big Why”:
Why bother exercising and building new habits and pushing yourself to improve your life when the couch beckons?
What’s the point of straining and learning how to deal with discomfort when retreating into comfort is easier and so damn tempting?
A really strong “Big Why” can help us stay on target, especially when life turns into a dumpster fire or we feel like giving up.
For Miyazaki, he decided that “bringing out what’s in me” was a worthy use of his time. He found peace and fulfillment through creating things instead of consuming them, which means he has to take care of his body enough to stay alive long enough to do those things!
For my grandmother (who I visited the hospital last month), her purpose is to support her community and help those around her. Staying active allowed her to do this well into her 90s!
If you struggle to come up with a reason to do something…
You can do worse than “Working out for my old person’s body”. This is the only body you get and the only life you get, so today is as good a day as any to start treating your body with a little more respect.
It doesn’t have to be dramatic either. We can start simply:
- We can go for a short daily walk.
- We can stand during the day and do movements like squats and arm swings.
- We can start strength training to build strong bones and prevent the need for assistance for as long as possible.
It’s up to us to keep our bodies active, and wear and tear is better than rust from disuse.
As a chaotic creator who spends a lot of time in his head, Hayao Miyazaki gave me a lot to think about:
I hope that in my 80s I will still be writing this newsletter and helping people, chopping wood, going for walks and spending time with loved ones.
I know I can’t control what happens and accidents happen and a lot of life is out of my control, but I’ll do my best to give myself the best chance to keep creating and wearing down, not getting rusty!
I’ll leave you with a final, humble quote from Miyazaki that ends the documentary Hayao Miyazaki and the Heron:
“Stop whining and get moving.”
Now, if you’ll excuse me, it’s time to train for my old man body!
-Steve
PS: Original Japanese title for The boy and the heron is How do you live?. This is a far more interesting (and appropriate) title for the film; it is truly an encapsulation of his life’s work, those who influenced him, and his deepest thoughts about the meaning of life.
PS: Need guidance and accountability to reach your fitness goals? Nerd Fitness has helped 10,000+ people over the past 8 years with 1-on-1 online fitness coaching. Click here for more details.
