Starting when I did was strategic. I didn't want to gain weight during the holidays... only to start an exercise routine in January, so I figured I would get a jump start on things.
i.e., There's something called "weight gain creep" which means every year during the holidays many of us add about 5 pounds of body fat and never work it back off. Decade-after-decade goes by and it really begins to add up. One day we look in the mirror and realize we've packed on fifty-to-eighty pounds since high school.
More importantly, I turned 60 last year which got me thinking more and more about the quality of life I wanted to live for my remaining years. I decided I wanted be as healthy and active as possible in my 60s and beyond. I don’t want to shrivel up in my senior years, become obese, or die from heart disease.
If I am to continue in the ministry - or whatever the future holds for me - I must be healthy to be productive.
Besides, I’m an active outdoors-man (I like to fish, go boating, camping, work in my garden, hike trails, ride bikes, go canoeing, etc, etc, ) and I’m not ready to give that up. Living my remaining years in
Miami playing shuffleboard with the old people is not part of the plan.
That was my inner reason – to be healthy and fit in my 60s.
I realize I will never have my 30-year-old body again, but it doesn’t mean I have to shrivel up either. I can still be active, have more energy, and keep up with the grand-kids.
If you’ve been thinking about beginning an exercise program but just can’t get started, find an inner reason. It makes all the difference. Do you want to look good? Be healthy? Have more energy and confidence? Regain youthful strength? Slow down the aging process? Find your own inner reason - whatever it is - and it will motivate you to get started and stay with it for a lifestyle change.
#2. No one else really cares what I'm doing. I get it.
It’s exciting to talk about what’s going on in my life, but the truth is most people don’t really care that much.
I’m good with that.
Know why? I’m doing it for me... and that's why I haven't said anything for one year. Besides, the more time I spend talking to others about what I’m doing the less time I devote to actually making it happen! Instead, I free myself up to achieve a lot more when I stop trying to tell everyone. I simply put my head down and do the work quietly while no one is watching.
By the way, if you find your own inner reason to get started, you'll feel the same way. An audience will not be needed.
#3. My gains have been slower. A lot slower.
When I was younger I could start working out and within six weeks I would be pumping weight like a boss, and in six months I would pack on several pounds of muscle.
Not now. Took me a while to figure that out.
At my age, making progress comes a lot slower than in my 30s & 40s. I mean a lot slower. My body just doesn’t respond as quickly. Getting stronger and adding muscle doesn’t come so easy. And losing body fat seems to take forever. Fooooor - evvvvver. Dang!
Understanding this – (no, figuring it out after injuring myself a few times) has helped me tailor a good workout routine and pace myself appropriately.
I went to the doctor for a checkup to make sure all my vitals on the inside were good. Then I began an exercise routine, starting out very slow and easy – walking, then progressing to interval jogging, then bike riding, and finally to serious strength training.
Twelve months of lifting weights has improved my strength dramatically. I'm lifting like a boss again - (that is, like a 61 year old boss 😎). I have added a few pounds of muscle and lost body fat (especially the visceral belly fat that collects inside the abdominal cavity around the organs and causes all sorts of diseases). I’m sleeping better at night (most of time). My appetite is under control and my blood pressure is down too. Plus, many of the aches and pains in my joints that have plagued me for years are now alleviated (I live almost pain free).
4. Lifting weights feels good and I really enjoy it.
Physical activity reduces stress by releasing endorphins, which are feel-good hormones. Although (both) cardio and strength training stimulate your body to release endorphins, your body produces more endorphins in a faster period of time when you're weight lifting.
Now that I have plowed through the painful stage of beginner (sore muscles, struggling with self-motivation, etc) and reached the intermediate stage, I really look forward to my workouts. Instead of being a struggle, they are enjoyable and empowering.
Finally....
I have chosen something that gives me a little bit of self-improvement each day. It's a much better option than dissipating myself through over-indulgence, the party life, toxic relationships, over-consumerism, and expensive toys as a vehicle to self-identity.
I just want to be healthy and live a long active life. I still have places to go, people to meet, and things to do.
PS ...... and fish to catch.
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