It is an established running gag inPeanutsthat Snoopy is not usually the most active dog, typically preferring to laze around the neighborhood or the house with some junk food in tow. However, he does have a spurt of activity when he takes up jogging in some classic exercise-themed strips. He goes all in, jogging on top of his doghouse and in the neighborhood, even having a little jogging suit in some strips.
Likewise, Lucy ends up taking on jogging as well, withher and Snoopy being two characters who like to get their physical activity in a simple, classic way.Snoopy’s jogging streak showed a different side to thePeanutscharacter, who was typically shown as lazy as could be. Readers got to see the fitness version of Snoopy, which was a new aspect of the classic character that was never really mentioned before.
May 18th, 1976
Doing some healthy warm-ups on top of his doghouse, Snoopy acknowledges the benefits of jogging for heart health but admits that it tends to make the feet mad. Snoopy does not let his feet’s anger get to him,since his feet are always mad about something anyway.
Snoopy never lets the opinions of others deter what he wants (or does not want) to do, so he is not going to let his feet’s feelings of anger towards him make him stop jogging. Snoopy rarely wants to be active and work out, but when he sets his mind to jogging, he is not going to let anything, even his own feet, stop him. Snoopy’s feet probably wish for the days when he would sit on a bean bag chair in front of the TV.
9"All the Way Up"
August 15th, 1976
Jogging on top of his favorite spot, his doghouse roof, Snoopy’s feet are complaining loudly. Unable to ignore them,Snoopy knows they’re complaining because his feet hate jogging. Likewise, his ears and back are also grumbling before all the rest of his body parts also get in on the complaining. One body part is not complaining about the jogging, though: his stomach.
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Since the stomach gets paid in food and is the only body part to receive any sort of compensation, Snoopy thinks that all the body parts resent the stomach. As much as Snoopy loves to eat, his stomach should definitely not have any complaints whatsoever… except for when he overeats, which is not uncommonfor the belovedPeanutsbeagle. With all the complaining that Snoopy’s myriad body parts are doing, maybe a trip to the vet would be a good call.
8"I’m Sorry I Mentioned It"
October 7th, 1977
Snoopy has the idea that one is in good shape if one can talk while jogging. Likewise, if someone can carry on a whole conversation while they continue to jog, then that means they are in good shape. Woodstock takes Snoopy’s words as a personal challenge, going on a very long-winded,Lucy-like monologuewhile Snoopy listens, feeling very sorry that he ever mentioned his little factoid about jogging and talking.
Woodstock is usually quite the chatterbox, and with Snoopy being the only non-bird who can understand him, Snoopy gets unasked-for information from his very best friend all the time.What was once a quiet jog became a monologue from Woodstockwhere Snoopy has a front row seat - whether Snoopy wants to have that seat or not.
7"My Feet Are Restless"
April 23rd, 1977
Snoopy looks at his little paws, thinking that his feet are restless. As a result, he decides thathis feet must want to go jogging.The thought of having to jog is enough tomake Snoopy cry,so instead, he counts his lucky stars that his legs are in charge of his feet rather than the other way around. Restless feet can be a major annoyance, something Snoopy recognizes and ultimately chooses to ignore, much to his feet’s chagrin.
Snoopy’s tendency to jog waxes and wanes over time…
Snoopy’s tendency to jog waxes and wanes over time, with this strip capturing the dimming of Snoopy’s jogging enthusiasm. Sometimes he actually does push himself to jog, as multiple strips can attest, but this is not one of them. Snoopy may be able to listen to his feet, but it does not mean that he will abide by them, letting his legs take the reins instead.
6"I Have a Surprise for You"
May 21st, 1976
Jogging on top of his his doghouse, Snoopy is presented with a surprise from his very thoughtful owner,Charlie Brown. Supporting his dog’s new interest in jogging, he gives Snoopy a real jogging suit as a gift - but, unfortunately, the tracksuitis definitely one that Snoopy would have to grow into.
Jogging suits were all the rage in the ’70s and are still pretty popular today, though they look somewhat different from their 20th century counterparts. Consequently, Charlie Brown’s gift is actually very appropriate for Snoopy’s newfound jogging interest and a timeless gift that he can enjoy. However, most dogs do not tend to go jogging on two legs, so the jogging suit Charlie Brown bought does not exactly fit Snoopy.
5"I Have Very Stubborn Feet"
February 4th, 1980
Telling his feet that it is jogging time, his feet cry out in protest.Snoopy argues with them that they all need the exercise, but the feet are very stubborn and are not the least bit amenable. It is safe to say that Snoopy will not be going for a jog on this day.Snoopy himself is a very stubborn dog,so it is really not all that surprising that his feet are stubborn too.
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Usually having an issue with jogging, Snoopy’s feet have a mind of their own even when it is at odds with what Snoopy wants, creating quite the predicament for him. As much as Snoopy attempts to exercise, his feet just will not cooperate. Given Snoopy’s propensity for laziness, it is likely to his secret delight that his stubborn feet will not let him jog.
4"Au Contraire"
September 17th, 1977
Lucy questions how Snoopy is capable of jogging all the time, since it looks so boring to her.Snoopy disagrees wholeheartedly with Lucy’s reception of jogging, thinking that it is actually quite exciting that he could pass out at any given moment.
It is not a shock to hearLucy being rudeabout someone’s hobby, so her comments are very in-character for her, but Snoopy’s love of jogging is very much a different side of him, giving depth to the lazy pup readers usually see in theirPeanutsstrips. However, Snoopy thinking he could pass out at any moment is perhaps a sign that he should make his exercise routine a bit easier. Everyone is different, but not many would think that being taken by surprise by passing out would be exciting.
3"Somebody"
June 29th, 1986
Lucy and Snoopy jog at the same time but from different directions. The two clashing buddies bump into each other,making Lucy furious.Likewise, Lucy runs into Charlie Brown walking on the sidewalk as she jogs right into him, yet again angering her to the point where she yells. Lucy goes on to bump into even more objects on her ill-fated run.
Who knew a jog around the neighborhood could be so dangerous?
After Lucy jogs into the back door, Linus thinks he hears a knock, only to bump Lucy yet another time, with him confused, as he thought somebody was there. Lucy, feeling like she has been through the wringer by this point, laments that she used to be the somebody Linus refers to and that she used to be there. Who knew a jog around the neighborhood could be so dangerous?
2"Typical Reaction of a Non-Jogger"
May 17th, 1976
Jogging as part of his workout routine, which typically occurs on the top of his doghouse, Snoopy gets served his meal by a suspicious Charlie Brown, who wonders how jogging mere inches before breakfast has any real health benefits. Snoopy, not being one to take things without some sort of rebuttal, reasons thatCharlie Brown only thinks that way because he is a non-jogger.
Snoopy may have a point; has Charlie Brown never heard of jogging in place before? Regardless, Snoopy does not waste his time trying to preach to Charlie Brown the benefits of doghouse roof jogging. Instead, Snoopy gets a little miffed at Charlie Brown’s, choosing to deflect. At least Snoopy does not throw his doghouse bowl at Charlie Brown as a result of the comment - this time, at least.
1"That’s Slow Enough"
February 5th, 1980
Snoopy reasons that jogging should be done on a regular basis, but if someone has not done it for a while, then they should start off slowly. In Snoopy’s case,starting slow is slower than a snail’s place when it comes to jogging.In fact, Snoopy’s jaunt back into jogging is so slow that he does not even need to move before considering himself done for the day.
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It’s important for those who want to get active to warm up first and not to go one hundred percent immediately. In contrast,Snoopy takes this fitnessadvice a little too close to heart, starting slower than anyone has ever started to jog before. Being the Snoopy readers all know and love, he’d rather lay on his doghouse than jog on it in thisPeanutsstrip.
Peanuts
Created by Charles M. Schulz, Peanuts is a multimedia franchise that began as a comic strip in the 1950s and eventually expanded to include films and a television series. Peanuts follows the daily adventures of the Peanuts gang, with Charlie Brown and his dog Snoopy at the center of them. Aside from the film released in 2015, the franchise also has several Holiday specials that air regularly on U.S. Television during their appropriate seasons.
