This ought to tickle the many who say I read too much into normal things. I've been a good boy, lately, going to the gym six days a week for a month, now. I'm surprised to find myself loathing the treadmill less and less as I feel better and better (although I still feel like a rodent on a stationary wheel). On the machines at this gym there are a variety of programs, two of which I alternate between. Both are advertised as involving "intervals" and this appeals to a chubby kid because perpetual movement is just out of the question, for now. I'll call the one I used today "Program 1". This one is surprisingly nice because it takes what you do in the first two-minute-walk-two-minute-run cluster and automatically switches speeds every two minutes. The first time I used it was fantastic. There was no guess work, there was no having to put forth my chubby little finger and hit the "slow the heck down before I hurl" button, and I still felt like I was getting a work out. This is in stark contrast to "Program 2" which claimed to be an "escalating interval" but offered no sort of assistance other than blinking lights to remind me where I was in the time line. I have to do all the thinking for Program 2 on top of all the technical maneuvering. To a lot of people the choice would seem pretty simple. However, this morning I knew that I could jog longer than two minutes. My body remembered the morning a few days ago when it went for more than five minutes. I wanted to see if I could do it again, so I planned to watch the clock and once the machine warned me it was applying the brakes I would simply keep the speed up. Program 1 doesn't deal well with dissenters, evidently. I ended up messing with my rhythm and bowed my head in submission. I still got a great workout, but I felt like I hadn't pushed myself enough. I had given the machine the ability to make my exercise decisions for me. With no opportunity for me to choose to grow, I stayed just the same. I see this same choice placed before me in the upcoming elections.