The history of April Fool’s Day or All Fool’s Day is uncertain, but the current thinking is that it began around 1582 in France with the reform of the calendar under Charles IX. The Gregorian Calendar was introduced, and New Year’s Day was moved from March 25 – April 1 (new year’s week) to January 1.
Communication traveled slowly in those days and some people were only informed of the change several years later. Still others, who were more rebellious refused to acknowledge the change and continued to celebrate on the last day of the former celebration, April 1.
These people were labeled “fools” by the general populace, were subject to ridicule and sent on “fool errands,” sent invitations to nonexistent parties and had other practical jokes played upon them. The butts of these pranks became known as a “poisson d’avril” or “April fish” because a young naive fish is easily caught. In addition, one common practice was to hook a paper fish on the back of someone as a joke.
This harassment evolved over time and a custom of prank-playing continue on the first day of April. This tradition eventually spread elsewhere like to Britain and Scotland in the 18th century and was introduced to the American colonies by the English and the French. Because of this spread to other countries, April Fool’s Day has taken on an international flavor with each country celebrating the holiday in its own way.
In Scotland, for instance, April Fool’s Day is devoted to spoofs involving the buttocks and as such is called Taily Day. The butts of these jokes are known as April ‘Gowk’, another name for cuckoo bird. The origins of the “Kick Me” sign can be traced back to the Scottish observance.
In England, jokes are played only in the morning. Fools are called ‘gobs’ or ‘gobby’ and the victim of a joke is called a ‘noodle.’ It was considered back luck to play a practical joke on someone after noon.
In Rome, the holiday is known as Festival of Hilaria, celebrating the resurrection of the god Attis, is on March 25 and is also referred to as “Roman Laughing Day.”
In Portugal, April Fool’s Day falls on the Sunday and Monday before lent. In this celebration, many people throw flour at their friends.
The Huli Festival is celebrated on March 31 in India. People play jokes on one another and smear colors on one another celebrating the arrival of Spring.
In the fitness industry as with any industry there are many fools out there, so as a consumer here are some things to be wary of that will let you know that your trainer is playing you for a fool:
- If your trainer works out with you at the same time they are training you. How many other professionals perform the service on themselves when you are the client? Does a dentist clean his own teeth while he is supposed to be cleaning yours?
- If your trainer tells you that you have to buy a package to train with them. Personal training is meant to be specific for the individual, so what if you only need 3 sessions instead of 10? You should be able to determine what works best for you.
- Check your trainer’s success stories. Many trainers will brag about the volume of people they train or how busy they are? Yet they have time to post on Facebook all the time and the success stories Also, look at what your trainer is doing in the community as far as giving back. This will help with determining where their core values are.
- If they GUARANTEE the results in 2 weeks or promise excessive weight loss in a short duration. Be wary of liquid diets or pills that go along with their training regimen.
- Does your trainer text, make calls, or socialize with other individuals during your training session? If the focus is not on you, then you know that they are just collecting money and are not concerned with your goals.
Hopefully this helps and YOU are not the fool on April Fool’s Day or any other day.