While Time Magazine may have claimed "you" to be the Man of the Year, we have selected Cesar Millan as our man of the year and the new "unintentional" fitness guru for 2007.

The Emmy nominated National Geographic series, The Dog Whisperer, has established Cesar as the top dog expert and his book, Cesar's Way: The Natural, Everyday Guide to Understanding and Correcting Common Dog Problems, rose to rank #1 in sales for 2006 at Amazon.com.

My brother Jim, who is a Cesar fan despite the fact that he is not a dog owner, first brought The Dog Whisperer to my attention. Even though I never thought I had much of a 'dog problem', I started watching the show.

I was somewhat relieved to find that I really don't have a problem in comparison to some of the psychotic dogs featured, but I have discovered that I might have a little room for some personal retraining.

Exercise, Discipline and Affection

So you thought a dog's life and simple basic needs were just food, water and sleep?

Cesar, who "rehabilitates dogs and retrains their owners", clearly specifies that a well balanced, happy dog - free of aggression and pretty much any other problem - has 3 essential needs: exercise, discipline and affection. To that end, asserting yourself as the "pack leader" is essential in becoming the owner of a well behaved dog, free of neurotic tendencies and aggression.

The Disclaimer

Although each segment of the The Dog Whisperer starts with a disclaimer - please do not attempt any of these techniques on your own, consult with a professional - I have started to apply some of the techniques anyway.

Seriously, if you have a "problem dog", it is NOT a wise idea to walk into a pack of dogs in an attempt to re-socialize your dog. I'm not promoting that - but I've decided to attempt to exercise my dog instead of following her on not-even-close-to-exercise spot-sniffing tours of the neighborhood

The Plan

I'm going to start slow with just walking - using my regular leash. The plan at the moment is to really commit to the concept by ordering a copy of Cesar's book (top) and an "official" Illusion Collar direct from Cesar (see links below).

Once I get her to follow me, I'm going to scrape the rust off my bicycle chain, put some air in the tires, and try exercising her that way - if I become confident that I'm the one in charge. Then I am either going to find my old blades or get me a new pair of cool ones like Cesar wears.

As I further commit to retraining myself to be "calm and assertive" as I walk my dog, I'll do some additional research to see if there's any advantage to those funky wheels on the side of Cesar's skates. If there is, I'll start saving for a pair!

Now, I am certainly not new to exercise, but I am new to this dog whispering thing. At the moment, I feel really weird about "TSSSSSST'ing" my dog out in public. But I recognize it as the discomfort everyone feels in doing something outside of their personal norm.

So having ventured timidly into whispering Princess into a little more than a stroll to the vacant lot down the street, I am excited to think there will be greater benefits for us all. As far as retraining is concerned, I'm a little more optimistic about my dog than I am about retraining my husband to become a "pack leader".

Nevertheless, I shall pursue and will try to keep you posted. Of course these are simply my personal musings - I disclaim everything that may result from following my lead.

For the healthy side benefits associated with whispering your dog into exercise, we proudly proclaim Cesar Milan as our our 'unintentional' fitness guru and man of the year!

Next

What are those funky "out of line" wheels all about???

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