Last December, I sheepishly admitted that there was a huge hole in my nerd cred.
I grew up drawing cartoons, took AP art in high school, and was always fascinated by hand-drawn animation…
But I had that have never seen a second of a Studio Ghibli cartoon!
Studio Ghibli is Japan’s equivalent of Disney, with Hayao Miyazaki as Japan’s Walt: the studio has won multiple Academy Awards for their beautifully hand-drawn animated films, and Miyazaki has achieved legendary status for creating these films over the past 40+ years.
Luckily, the amazing community on Threads gave me hundreds of messages of support and helped me decide which movie to start with!
Since I made 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 film, I started watching documentaries about Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli because I wanted to know more.
These documentaries gave me a fascinating look at Miyazaki’s creative style and experiences making these films with his colleagues.
The running joke is that Miyazaki is the “Never-ending man” and can’t seem to retire.
There was something that struck me in each documentary:
In The kingdom of dreams and madness, at one point, all Studio Ghibli employees stood up and went through a series of mobility exercises and calisthenics, including Miyazaki.
Later in the doctor I observed it Miyazaki demonstrates a very deep squat with perfect form and without help. How many people do you know in their mid-seventies who can perform a deep squat without assistance!?
In Never Ending Man: Hayao Miyazaki, Miyazaki does filmed several times while chopping wood with an ax in the backyard of his studio.
And inside Hayao Miyazaki and the HeronMiya-san (his nickname), now in his eighties, is still chopping wood, taking walks in the forest, climbing over fallen trees, doing his office exercises and working hard on the film that would 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 developed lung cancer yet, and I’m reminded that he doesn’t have the perfect view of health!).
I bring this up because I think it shows a different side of exercise than we would normally consider.
Train for your old person body
Watch how Hayao Miyazaki’s documentary stays active and keeps his brain sharp into his eighties…
I was reminded of this great post from Elizabeth (@ThisGirlLifts on Instagram):
As we get older, it’s easier for us to exercise less, which leaves us with less energy and makes it harder to find the momentum and mobility to keep moving. This can keep us from spending time with our family or friends because we can’t muster the energy.
Teddy Roosevelt once said, “Let us rather risk wearing out than rusting.”
In other words, use it or lose it, bub.
I can’t imagine that Miyazaki’s ability to be a ‘never-ending man’ is not only due to good genetics (and luck), but also because he actively chose to wear out rather than rust.
As he reflected on why he pushed himself to complete another animated film in his 8th decade on this planet, he simply replied that it was all he could do: “I’d rather die doing this than do nothing.”
Fitness is more than weight loss
At Nerd Fitness we encourage all rebels to think about their ‘Big Why’:
Why bother exercising and building new habits and pushing yourself to take your life to the next level when the couch beckons?
What’s the point of putting in the effort and learning to deal with discomfort if retreating to comfort is easier and so damn attractive?
A really strong “Big Why” can help us stay on track, especially when life turns into a dumpster fire or we feel like giving up.
For Miyazaki, he has decided that “bringing out what is inside me” is a worthy use of time. He has found peace and fulfillment by creating things instead of consuming them, which means he has to take care of his body enough to stay alive long enough to get these things done!
For my gramma (who I was in the hospital last month), her goal is to support her community and help those around her. By staying active, she was able to do this well into her 90s!
If you’re having trouble thinking of a reason why you should do something…
You could do worse than “Exercising for My Aging Body.” This is the only body you get, and the only life you get, so today is a good day to treat your body with a little more respect.
It doesn’t have to be dramatic either. We can start simply:
- We can take a short walk every day.
- We can stand all day and do mobility work like squats and arm swings.
- We can start strength training to build strong bones and need help for as long as possible.
It’s up to us to keep our bodies active, and wearing out is better than rusting from lack of use.
As a chaotic creator who spends a lot of time in my own head, Hayao Miyazaki has given me plenty to think about:
I hope that when I’m in my eighties I’m still writing this newsletter and helping people, chopping wood, going for walks and spending time with loved ones.
I know that I have no control over what happens and that accidents happen and that a lot of life is out of my control, but I’m going to do my best to give myself the best chance to keep creating and wearing out instead of rusting out!
I leave you with the final curmudged quote from Miyazaki that concludes the documentary Hayao Miyazaki and the Heron:
“Stop whining and get moving.”
Now if you’ll excuse me, it’s time for me to train for my old man body!
-Steve
PS: The original Japanese title for The boy and the heron is How do you live?. This is a much more interesting (and appropriate) title for the film; it is truly the summary of his life’s work, of the works that influenced him, and of his deepest thoughts about the meaning of life.
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