Japan awakens to Radio Taiso exercise tradition. One face of the country’s longevity

Sanatate

TOKYO (AP) — This is how Japan wakes up. It’s called Radio Taiso — Exercise Radio in English — a simple yet dynamic way to start the day. Japanese radio plays music every morning at 6:30 to accompany basic instructions for calisthenics , and millions perform in the choreography: in parks, workplaces, schools — and at home. Radio Taiso has an almost 100-year history, formally introduced in 1928 and coinciding with the enthronement of Emperor Hirohito . The tradition endures because the exercises