But these days Durstine, who knows a thing or two about fitness since he's chair of the department of exercise science at the University of South Carolina, has different goals.
Timothy Noakes, a professor of exercise science at the University of Cape Town and the author of "The Lore of Running," the serious runner's bible, said that long training sessions help a runner burn off toxins, but drinking more than two beers a day usually harms performance.
Although elementary schools in the last decade have generally been supportive of physical education, only 29 percent of high school students meet the national guideline of 60 minutes a day, said Russell R. Pate, a professor of exercise science at the University of South Carolina, who has worked on national studies of fitness levels in students.
"When the Wii Fit was introduced in 2008, it targeted fitness instead of just entertainment," says Scott G. Owens, an associate professor of exercise science at the University of Mississippi and the lead author.
Instead of relying on anecdotal evidence, Scott Owens, a professor of exercise science at the University of Mississippi, has started a six-month study to uncover whether placing Wii Fit in a home will actually improve a family's physical fitness.
This program was created by Brad Schoenfeld, an assistant professor of exercise science and director of the Human Performance Laboratory at Lehman College in New York.
"In terms of physiology and body alertness, there are so many components that go into playing golf," said Shawn Youngstedt, an associate professor in the department of exercise science at the University of South Carolina.
Steven Blair, professor of exercise science at the University of South Carolina, agrees: "We don't all have to become gym rats or triathletes". In his view, we focus too much on weight loss and not enough on simply living a healthy lifestyle: eating a sensible diet and being physically active.
"It was bit of a revolution in the world of physical activity," says Steven Blair, professor of exercise science at the University of South Carolina and senior editor for the Surgeon General's report.
It was as he prepared for that ride that he came to the attention of Veronique Billat, a professor of exercise science at the University of Evry-Val d'Essonne in France.
