If the body is a machine, fight rust every day – Shaw Local

Ernest Andrus is already planning his next birthday in 11 months.

He invites us all to the Mt. Shasta Mall in Redding, California on August 19, 2025.

He wants you to accompany him as he runs exactly 1.02 miles. This August he ran 1.01 miles. Do you see the progress?

It's about his age. Ernie just turned 101.

I wrote about Ernie in 2016 after he completed a short jog across the country that lasted 2.75 years, covering 2,631.08 miles. He was 93 when he finished.

Ernie is a former Navy medic and his mission was to raise awareness of the LST, the Landing Ship Tank, and its role in World War II.

I am part of a group of more than 8,000 people across the country who follow Ernie on his Facebook page. He has inspired many.

He never stopped moving – now he walks more than he jogs. But still moving. And therein lies a message.

I've been thinking about Ernie since a message from motivator James Clear, author of Atomic Habits, landed in my inbox.

I get monthly inspiration from Clear, including this quote from theologian and philosopher Soren Kierkegaard:

“Above all, do not lose the desire to walk: every day I enter a state of well-being and escape from any illness; I have immersed myself in my best thoughts, and I know of no thought that is so burdensome that it cannot be gotten rid of. Even if you were running for your health and were always one stop away – I would still say: walk!

“It also shows that when you walk you always get as close to feeling well as possible, even if you don’t quite achieve it – but by sitting still, and the more you sit still, the closer you come to feeling sick.” . Health and salvation can only be found in movement…if you just keep moving, everything will be okay.”

Movement. Movement. It's easy to take this fundamental skill for granted. And Kierkegaard wisely notes what comes next after sitting still.

There is now a lot of talk about the unhealthy habit of sitting. (I think about this every time I sit at my computer. One day I should keep track of all the hours I sit or slouch.)

I'm surrounded by cheerleaders and experts. I should be encouraged by Ernest Andrus, a true pacesetter, and inspired by Kierkegaard.

I also have my wife and her frequent words of encouragement: “Get off the couch and get moving!”

The key word seems to be “movement.” Not just the body, but also the brain.

Keep everything moving. Everything. Move it or lose it. So true.

In fact, on my next birthday, like Ernie, I'm vowing 77… hmm, not miles… let's say steps. Yes, 77 steps.

And I have several months to prepare for it. I can do it.

Sorry, I couldn't resist. I had to make a joke. But I shouldn't.

The truth is: No matter how old you are, the more you don't move, the more you go nowhere. Fast.

Take a short walk if you can. You'll see what I mean.

And if you can't do that, then you already understand better than I how important exercise is.

• Lonny Cain, retired executive editor of the Times in Ottawa, was also a reporter for The Herald-News in Joliet in the 1970s. His PaperWork email is [email protected]. Or email The Times, 110 W. Jefferson St., Ottawa, IL 61350.