(warning, possible rant ahead)
I guess the next "big thing" for
fitness is body weight training. yee haa. whatev. I read comments on
articles about fitness, and how "us older people can't do these things"
or how "Senior Stretch" is the perfect class for them.
I'm
going to tell you something kind of harsh, kids: it ain't the years,
it's the lack of miles!!! As soon as you tell yourself you can't do
something, guess what? you won't be able to do it! Many seniors (and
normal middle aged folk, too for that matter!) tell themselves they
can't lift heavy things, that they can't so a squat, that they can't
function on a healthier level.
Bullshit.
Don't take it all
at once, start small, but push yourself at regular intervals! Make
yourself grow, or you won't grow. The opposite of growth is stagnation,
and stagnation leads to failure and failing health. What did you do
today? did you challenge yourself? or did you simply get by? Are you
letting life walk on you, or are you walking with life, and guiding it?
When
I work with people, I need to be gentler with my seniors on these
subjects, as they are a different generation, but that's only an excuse
for a very small slice of our population pie chart.
Everyone
else? Are you going to let the GOONS tell you how to live? Are you
going to sit back and let life happen to you? Do something, even if
today it is very little, tomorrow can be more, and likely will be. It's
the difference between surviving and living. An incredibly wise man I know once said, do something, even if it may be the wrong thing, because it's better than doing nothing. If you're doing it wrong, get help, ask questions, learn how to get it right.
I'm probably one
of the most broken trainers on the face of the planet, and I get told
that maybe I'm too old for some of this stuff. I know what happens when
people stop. I've seen it. So I'll take my rickety knees and hips,
rotten feet and shoulders like glass and take them to go move. Maybe
I'll do some body weight training, it's part of my routine already,
there's a challenge today, and I think I'm up for it.
