Today I decided to make a mental nod to my age and
cut myself a little slack.
In the continuing saga of my adventures in exercise, I tried yet another class at the YMCA. I should have looked more closely at the person recommending it before I signed on. I should know better – I’ve seen her high-speed march around our complex.
In the continuing saga of my adventures in exercise, I tried yet another class at the YMCA. I should have looked more closely at the person recommending it before I signed on. I should know better – I’ve seen her high-speed march around our complex.
The
class was circuit training. No, nothing electrical, just stations with varying
forms of physical agony challenge. I was reminded of a past lit course with
Dante’s 9 layers of hell. We went from
push-ups, medicine ball bouncing, boxing shuffle with punching, weight lifting
with lunges, plank-style leg lifts, to more planks with weights. In between,
lest we actually rest for a nano-second, were jumping jacks and jogging. I made
it through two full rotations but left with 10 minutes in the class remaining.
In
another age-related piece of news, Jimmy Carter was operated on today. He had
fallen recently, and doctors were concerned about a bleed in his head causing
pressure. Outside of his recent falls, the man has been a phenomenon of will
over health, brushing aside brain cancer and continuing his work with Habitat
for Humanity.
Still,
to show how your perspective can change as you yourself age, it now seems laudable,
but not impossible for our ex-president to still be wielding a hammer in his 90s.
And
yet when his mother, Miss Lillian, at age 68 joined the Peace Corps in 1966, I
remember thinking “Are they nuts?” What on earth does the Peace Corps want with
someone that old? Of course, I was in my teens at the time, so 68 was
ridiculously ancient. And, by the way,
Miss Lillian was sent to India where she worked with lepers for almost two
years. There was a lady with drive. Now, of course, from my different
vantage point, charging across the world in your 60s seems perfectly
reasonable.
I enjoyed Miss Lillian's spunk! I am that age...I doubt I would leave this country...I guess I have no spunk!
ReplyDeleteI was a gym rat for 7 years and really enjoyed it. then I moved out to the country to a town with no gym. by the time we finally got one I was over the whole thing. I do yoga only now (did then too) concentrating on flexibility and balance. two ladies who used to come to yoga twice a week got into kickboxing and their attendance at the yoga class is now spotty. I've noticed that while they may be more muscular and stronger, their flexibility has suffered.
ReplyDeleteMind over matter. Also ease into new exercise routines. Do about a third of each set and then slowly build up. You could do this class, but you need too grow into it.
ReplyDeleteYes, it's amazing how much our perspective changes with age. And I notice that when I gain a few pounds, everyone around me looks thinner. Changes, changes, nothing stays the same. Praying for Jimmy Carter to make it through the surgery. :-)
ReplyDeleteCarter is an excellent example for all of us. You're a trooper to get in an exercise class like that.
ReplyDeleteTwo or three years ago, I would have agreed with you, but now I'm finding myself so often unwilling to even leave the house except for grocery shopping. There's no drive left in me to do anything more than what I do inside.
ReplyDeletePerhaps you should look up Jimmy and fall in with a hammer. Far easier than nine layers of hell.
ReplyDeleteI remember when I was a girl scout driving in a car with our leader. She asked us what old is, and we all agreed 30. Our leader must have been shocked, I think she was about 30. At the age of 10 thirty can seem ancient. It is all perspective.
ReplyDeleteIt seems like your body is up to a lot. My exercise class is MUCH lower key.
ReplyDeleteWhen I joined the Peace Corps in the early '90s they were actually looking for MORE retirement-age volunteers. They'd found that people in many cultures hold older people in more esteem and are more likely to listen to and respect them. Perhaps her age helped make Miss Lillian a more effective volunteer!
ReplyDelete