Plato, ca. 427 BC-ca. 347 BC
was a Greek author and philosopher in Athens
Bodily exercise, when compulsory, does no harm to the body; but knowledge which is acquired under compulsion obtains no hold on the mind.
( “The Republic” (Plato), ca 380 BC )
Joseph Addison, 1672-1719
was an English essayist, poet, and politician
Exercise ferments the humors, casts them into their proper channels, throws off redundancies, and helps nature in those secret distributions, without which the body cannot subsist in its vigor, nor the soul act with cheerfulness.
( “The Spectator”, July 12, 1711 )