Sports movies can captivate and inspire us at anytime, but they are especially potent when we are 12. Our kiddo selves don’t pick apart obvious plot twists, feel manipulated by overly dramatic musical anthems or stop to wonder about the improbability of certain scenarios. “Vision Quest” is a movie that I loved as a much younger, aspiring athlete and I hoped with the innocent heart of a child that my old favorite had not aged as badly as an old wrester’s knees.
     I’m happy to report that Vision Quest is everything a 1980’s sporty melodrama should strive to be and more. It takes place in Spokane, Washington and stars a very young and super fit Modine in one of his first leading roles. Modine plays Louden Swain, an unassuming 18-year-old who wants take on “Shute”, the state’s best wrester. Shute is rumored to eat kitten ears for breakfast and likes to train while balancing telephone poles on his back. As Louden’s wise short-order cook mentor says so well, “This might be the sort of move that a reasonable man would want to avoid.”
     Indeed the odds are stacked against our questor as he tries to lose an obscene amount of weight (to make the 168-pound category), dodge the advances of a gay tai chi master, score the hot she-drifter who happens to have moved into his bedroom (see above for improbable scenarios) and get his article on the clitoris finished for the school paper; all while preparing for the wrestling match of a lifetime.
     Luckily, Louden does not have to do it all alone. A quirky cast of characters and some of the most inspiring hair music of the 80’s are there to help him through the rough patches. We can’t help but be lifted as Survivor and Louden, sporting his shiny silver and red rubber track suit, run together through the dark city streets. Heat stroke, dehydration and metabolic failure be damned! Together we can do this.
     The wresting sequences are beautifully shot and do justice to the incredible strength and fitness of any solid high school wrestler. These guys (and now girls) demonstrate the awesomeness that can be achieved with basic equipment like a jump rope, a pull up bar and a person’s own weight (check out the scene of them doing sit-ups on each other’s backs). These are functional athletes who balance strength, flexibility, endurance and the confidence to wear man leotards while going through puberty.
     I’ll skip being tossed like a sack of potatoes on a regular basis, but it is important for all of us to be fit enough to avoid and recover from falls. And working out with a purpose and a vision, it sure beats the alternative. Training like a wrestler is not a bad idea, just skip the singlet and cauliflower ears.

1. Exercise is almost always more fun then work, but often times less glamorous then the multitude of tempting after work activities. If you take care of your workout at lunch you won’t be tempted to skip it later.

2. Working out at lunch breaks your day into two manageable chunks.

3. A noon time workout will give you a blast of energy that will carry you through the mid-afternoon doldrums. Don’t listen to what your jealous, back-biting, self hating co-workers say about you actually taking a lunch. You will be more productive, and sexier, in the afternoon. Remember, you get paid for what you produce, not for holding down your chair.

4. If you don’t feel particularly competent or appreciated at your day job, a workout can be just the thing. The burst of endorphins will help prop up you flagging self-esteem and if you do something you enjoy eventually you will be good at it. I don’t care what your boss, girlfriend and mother say, you can do something right.

5. You only have about an hour so your workout will be intense and efficient. A great use of your valuable time.

6. Having a workout planned is a great excuse not to go to lunch with annoying co-workers.

7. You’ll be so hungry after you workout that even a healthy, fiber rich, tasteless lunch will taste great.

8. Working out in the early morning (especially if you are over 30) can be a creaky and uncomfortable experience. By midday the body is warm and ready for action.

9. Because you’ve got to get out of the office. Stretch your muscles, feel the sunlight on your pasty skin, get some perspective.

10. You will have your evenings free. Learn a language, go to the ballet, tame of herd of wild guinea pigs. The world is your oyster!