Sports have always been a big part of my life, both as a participant and spectator. And although I don’t play football, basketball and tennis like I used to, I still take time to stay active through regular workouts, which I have come to realize are more important than ever with the onset of the holidays.

Not only do workouts help relieve the anxiety (as well as calories) of dealing with enormous amounts of food, but, also, in facing stress related to the hustle and bustle of Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years.

George Allen, a highly successful NFL coach whose wisdom stretched far beyond professional football, emphasized the importance of staying fit through an essay-like piece titled “What is a Workout?”

Allen described a workout as 25 percent perspiration and 75 percent determination or one part physical exertion and three parts self-discipline.

So true. The exertion is necessary but it takes sheer determination to get there and get ’er done, as the Ozark term goes. And with all our daily distractions in life, it is often much easier to find something else to occupy our time than a workout. Food, for instance.

“A workout is a personal triumph over laziness and procrastination ... the mark of an organized, goal-oriented person who has taken charge of his or her destiny,” Allen penned.

Or, how about this: “A workout is a wise use of time and investment in excellence. It is a way of preparing for life's challenges and proving to yourself that you have what it takes to do what is necessary.”

If you are like me, who once participated in a lot of sports but now find yourself limited due to knee or other nagging injuries, you have to take a first step in realizing that the competitive sports that once compelled you to work out hard and long are no longer an incentive.

Several years ago I faced a dilemma. After playing basketball and tennis for over four decades, a knee injury forced me to take up much lower-impact, not to mention non-competitive, activities, such as walking and the use of fitness-center machines like the treadmill or stair-climbing apparatus.

This is where the self-discipline that Allen refers to dramatically hit home. I thought I could be self-disciplined enough to keep up a workout regimen on my own but I soon discovered it takes more ... much more. It wasn't long before the three-mile walks I began with dwindled to two and, then, one, and became much less frequent, going from every day to two or three times a week.

And, as much as I liked taking Jack, our beloved Beagle, on his daily jaunt, I found he was looking forward to those walks much more than I. So the next step was to raise the level of my determination and find a way to overcome boredom and make workouts enjoyable again. Although I was getting older, I decided that was no reason that my attitude should.

I revived myself by rejoining the fitness club where I had spent so many hours playing basketball and tennis, only this time knowing it was with a new perspective on workouts. Now, in addition to a bit of weight training, I began working out on machines but with boredom-proof distractions, such as my MP-3 player and television, which, by the way, may be the most ingenious tool ever for fitness centers.

It is so easy to fall into that rut, telling yourself that the body doesn't perform like it used to, therefore, why put out the effort?

That is exactly opposite of what you should be thinking.

“A workout makes you better today than you were yesterday,” Allen wrote. “It strengthens the body, relaxes the mind and toughens the spirit. If you work out regularly, your problems diminish and your confidence grows.

“A workout is a key that helps unlock the door to opportunity and success. Hidden within each of us is an extraordinary force. Physical and mental fitness are the triggers that can release it.”

Granted, it may be somewhat naive to think that we should work out an hour every day without fail but it is not too much to comprehend that workouts at least four or five days a week are really important.

The bottom line (as Allen said) is this: “A workout is a form of rebirth. When you finish a good workout, you don't simply feel better. You feel better about yourself.”

Rich Brown is a sports writer for The Joplin Globe. Comments may be addressed to him at rbrown@joplinglobe.com or by calling 627-7269.