Getting Fit for a Long Life
With a Little Help From My Friends
The universe really seems to be cooperating with my desire to improve my fitness. To quickly recap, a couple of weeks ago I became inspired to really go for improving my fitness.
The Final Frontier
My activity level, in general, was not bad for a 64-year-old. For a year and a half, I’ve maintained close to a 5 mile-a-day walking average, making sure I was burning off a certain number of calories per day with my apple watch monitoring my activity levels.
I’d been maintaining my weight (at about 264 lbs), but was not losing any. I was still carrying around about 36 pounds more than I had when I stopped playing competitive softball, 4 years ago, when I retired while battling a brain tumor and chronic episodes of vertigo.
A friend I periodically take long walks with, through the woods in and around Vienna, also has an advanced degree in nutrition. Ever since I’ve known Wally, he’s watched his diet and had managed to lose 50 or 60 pounds when he first started doing so. Talking about it on one of our walks over the winter, he said he’d work with me if I ever got serious about my nutrition.
I knew that’s where I’d have to go if I ever wanted to shed that extra weight. I called nutrition “The Final Frontier” I would have to tackle if I’m really serious about living to be 100 — and I really am. I told him that I wasn’t ready yet, but hoped to get there within six months or so.
Play Ball!
I texted Wally a few weeks ago, “I’m ready, Dude.” He was in Italy at the time, I was heading to South Carolina for a week, but we’d agreed to get together upon our respective returns. Meanwhile, I seriously thought about playing softball again.
I had reviewed my medical charts online from my annual doctor visits over the past 14 years. They always take my weight and note it on my charts. My weight had pretty much maintained between 225 and 229 lbs during the 11 years that I was playing ball.
It steadily climbed from there to 264 lbs beginning the year after I stopped playing. Just about then, I got an e-mail from the Softball league, looking for players to sign up for the summer season, which started up this week.
I decided to go for it! I had about 2 weeks to get myself ready. I reached out to my friend Kris, who rides into work and back with me most days. Kris is my closest friend. Like Wally, he’s closing in on 50 years old.
He said, “2 weeks isn’t very much time, Pete — you have a lot of work to do.” But he helped me, suggesting I join the fitness center he belongs to, and that his wife is a class instructor at. I joined her Tuesday night class, “Body Pump”, and started going there regularly to work out and get in shape.
My old softball team wanted me on their roster, I went out and bought a new bat and glove, and started hitting balls at the batting cage. The old muscle memory was quickly returning. I was feeling like I could really do this — successfully make my return to playing ball, after a 4-year retirement. I was really excited about it.
Or Not to Play Ball
Early in my week on the beach in South Carolina, between feedback from my wife (“I don’t support your playing, this time”), and several family members on vacation (“I won’t sleep at nights, worrying about you out there”, “Can’t you find something safer to do to get back in shape?”, “I heard a nasty rumor on facebook that you’re returning to softball — really?”, and, “That’s just plain crazy”), followed by a special appearance from not one, but both of my deceased parents in the same dream, surrounding the same topic, I flipped a virtual coin and it said, “Don’t play.” So, I put the bat and glove back on the shelf, and decided not to play softball.
The Let-Up
I was about a week and a half into my improved fitness routine, maintaining my weight at the 255 lbs it had fallen to after a virtual colonoscopy I had two weeks ago. I let up for the rest of that week, relaxed and enjoyed vacation, ate whatever I wanted, and came back home having gained 5 more pounds back.
I wasn’t feeling quite as energized after putting that weight back on. I could feel the old lethargy kicking back in. I knew I was going to see Wally Sunday night, so decided I would use that to re-engage in my new commitment to fitness, softball or no softball.
Team Wally
He told me he needed to do this as much as I did. Instead of being my consultant, he wanted it to be a team thing, where we help each other out and hold each other accountable. He helped me come up with three goals for the week — no eating after 7:30 in the evening, 3 trips to the fitness center, and drink lots of water. I fully embraced the fitness routine again, the energy came right back, and the pounds came back off. By week’s end, I’m now down to 253 lbs!
Wally wants to start a web page where we write about what we’re doing. It might be something we just use to help each other out, or maybe it will turn into something more. We’re open to whatever happens with it. It sounds like fun. We’re getting together tomorrow to start exploring the possibilities.
Walking With Rick
I talked to my friend Rick last week, just checking in on him. He got a new job and was sounding much more positive than I’ve heard him sound in a while. He’d been through a rough patch after getting laid-off from his last job. He’s got twin boys just over a year old and had gotten really down about losing that job. He is just turned 50.
It was good to hear him doing so much better. He invited me to come over Saturday morning for a good hike through the woods in Arlington, where he lives. That was today. We walked a good six miles, and according to my apple watch, climbed the equivalent of 58 flights. That was a great workout! I had lunch at his place after, and he said how much he appreciated me reaching out to him.
“I really wasn’t into a friendship or anything like that at the time — but I’m glad you called. It meant a lot to me.”
I told him that like it or not, I’m his friend. He was there for me the summer I found out I had a rare brain tumor, was a true friend when I really needed one, during that dark, dark time for me. He was right there. How could I not be there for him?
Universal Cooperation
Kris called me while I was on the walk with Rick to say, he really wants to get in on what Wally and I are doing. “I really need this right now.”
This is how the universe is cooperating with my desire to improve my fitness. I know that left to my own devices, it’s not something I would have followed through on. But with friends like Wally, Kris and Rick all supporting my effort, and looking to get better themselves, it all seems to be coming together.
I love it when that happens.
