The human race, and essentially ever mammal in existence, default to inactivity as a means of energy conservation.
This is natural. In a non food abundant environment, you need to conserve calories.
Cold environments require adaptations to handle the cold. Cold weather animals have thick fur and blubber to insulate them, and elevated metabolism to maintain core body temperature.
In hot environments, many animals are nocturnal. It is cooler and you run less risk of overheating.
Animals behavior tends to default towards path of energy conservation.
Living things don't want to DIE.
I don't believe this is an arguable point. Nothing alive wants to die.
This also creates some behaviors that clash with modernity however, two critical ones
1) Feasting
Animals, given ample food, they'll eat until stuffed. Why? Because food is not typically guaranteed in the wild (exclude domesticated animals from this).
Humans are not any different.
Human beings, we LOVE to eat. But we live in a food abundant environment. Counter to our primitive origins. There are no buffets in the wild.
We are left then to enforce artificial scarcity on ourselves, and refrain from overeating.
This is challenging.
2) Sleeping and Rest
Anyone that owns reptiles, snakes or lizards, or turtles, etc, and they will tell you that they BARELY move. They take lazy to a whole new level.
Reptiles don't posses the neurological complexity of humans (not even close), nor do they have the thermoregulatory abilities (they are cold blooded).
They take up space, and they rest. They eat, and then they rest some more. That is what they do.
And what about mammals?
Mammals sleep, they sleep a lot. Zoos are much maligned at times, and for good reason, but an often overlooked fact is that most mammals in the wild do not do much at all, aside from sleeping.
You see them sleeping in a zoo, thats about they would be doing in their natural habitat. Yes, some animals cover cast swaths of territory, AT TIMES, but the majority of the time is spent in leisure/at rest. Or it is spent PLAYING.
Animals don't WORK. They hunt, or they graze. They play. They live purely within a moment
Being "inert" keeps you ALIVE most of them.
I call this the Inertia Instinct, it certainly serves a purpose.
It conserves energy.
Humans can exercise, but making ourselves exercises and move around is a peculiar behavior. It expends LOTS of energy. You need to eat enough to compensate.
We know exercise is good for us though. But how many people struggle to exercise consistently?
Based on the most current data, about 80% of people.
Human being still retain this "inertia" instinct to this day. We can think into the future and actively create it, but there is immense struggle by almost everyone to fight the impulse of laziness and be active/productive/moving/working/doing.
The Modern Environment is Technologically Designed for Efficiency.
Cars. Amazon Prime. Elevators. Cell phones.
We are always finding ways to reduce human labor costs.
Conserving energy.
What does this mean for individuals?
You need to be intentional in your environment. And your life. How you live.
No one is healthy by accident today.
Be purposeful.
Great Read!