When I lived in Brazil, the main thing I noticed about missionaries
is that their weight seemed to change dramatically during their
missions. Of the about 50 missionaries I knew during my four years in
Brazil, I would guess that about 40 of them lost weight (in one case,
an elder lost 120 pounds), five of them gained weight and about five of
them stayed the same.
I was thinking about this the other day because the missionaries in
my area of Miami told me their mission president has scheduled a
half-hour of exercise time for them during their normal morning
routines. What a great idea.
I can’t say how new a phenomenon this is to allow missionaries
regular time for exercising. I did a lengthy google search on the topic
and came up empty-handed, except to notice that the MTC apparently has
a relatively new gym.
My wife went on her mission in Germany in the early 1990s, and there
was no exercise time for the missionaries there. When I lived in Brazil
from 1999-2003, same thing. None of the missionaries in Brazil had
cars, thus they lost a lot of weight. They had to take the bus and/or
walk to all of their appointments, and they probably walked three to
four hours a day. That will keep the weight off for sure.
I’m pretty sure missionaries in Miami did not get exercise time until about a year or so ago.
Miami is the kind of place where missionaries could get seriously
out of shape if they didn’t exercise some. Most of the wards here are
huge geographically, so it’s not practical for the elders or the
sisters to ride around on bikes or take the bus. So, most of them have
cars. Missionaries are doing a lot less tracting lately. And of course
they get fed big Cuban-American lunches and dinners, so they could put
on the pounds if they are not careful.
The missionaries in Miami love the fact that they get a half-hour of
exercise time, and the ones I’ve talked to really use the time, either
to lift weights or walk and jog.
I’m curious is others in the U.S. or elsewhere have noticed that
missionaries get exercise time. If they do, what do they think of it?
Do they see it as a chore and unnecessary (taking up valuable time that
could be spent preaching the gospel) or do they like it?
I am a big proponent of regular exercise as a part of keeping us
physically and spiritually healthy and taking care of these temples we
have been given on the Earth. If I were a mission president I would
definitely emphasize daily exercise for the elders and sisters in my
charge. Of course if they are in a mission where they are walking a lot
anyway, perhaps it wouldn’t be necessary. But in places like Miami, it
seems a must.