Tag: Motivation

Daily Life, Diet, Health, Motivation

How Old Are You?

I’m a sucker for a good quote. While on a hike yesterday I was listening to a podcast and heard this:

”The greatest predictor of age is how old you think you are”

Time to rewind a bit. It’s been an… odd summer. To be honest, probably longer than that. Weight has been slowly piling on. Motivation has dwindled. Life events, real and imagined, got in the way. There were a couple of unexpected surgeries (my first!). One of which left me with foot pain that has been pretty significant. For a while I was sure that I would not be able to ever mountain bike or ski again. The result was me sitting in a chair for most of the summer, feeling sorry for myself. And eating. And more eating.

If you had asked me in August how old I felt, I would have given you a number ten years older than my actual age. Fat. None of my clothes fit. Everything hurt. Tired all the time. Zero interest in doing anything to actually improve my situation. I played zero golf all summer. Did not ride my mountain bike or the motorcycle. A few walks in the interest of rehabbing the foot was the sum total of my activity. In short, I was in the express lane to becoming an old man.

It’s interesting, that quote above is not a new idea. I keep a running list of quotes, sayings, and thoughts that I think might be something interesting to write about. I went through my list a few days ago and found this one I wrote down a year ago:

“How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you were?”

That quote is from the 1920’s. This concept of your perceived age is not new. Why that first quote resonated with me is that several years ago if you’d asked me how old I felt I would have given a number ten years younger than my age. A twenty year swing in perceived age. That hits hard.

The good news is that a little bit ago I started the process of reclaiming my health. That process sucks. It hurts. It’s demotivating because you see no progress. You’re basically just hungry and sore all the time. And then all of a sudden, the number on the scale starts trending down. Cardio starts improving. I found a way to ride my bike without pain. Energy improves. I’m able to do long backcountry hikes again.

And the best part… when I heard that quote while listening to that podcast, I can honestly say I now feel my actual age rather than older. I have an impedance scale that calculates your metabolic age based on a bunch of factors. This morning it reported my metabolic age matched my actual age for the first time in a while.

The takeaway is that the pithy quote is true. You really are as old as you feel you are. The important part is that it’s up to you. Your age feeling can go both ways. Would you rather feel older or younger? Making a noticeable change takes less time than you think it will. You just have to start. Granted, the motivation to get started is easier said than done. If I had the secret sauce to making that happen, I’d be a very rich social media influencer.

I think it’s worth honestly asking yourself – how old do you feel? If you’re not happy with your answer, make a change.

My goal these days is no longer a weight target or to achieve some physical sport or endurance goal. It’s to get back to feeling ten years younger than my actual age. Because if I feel younger, I’ll act younger and do things like a younger man. The rest will take care of itself.

Daily Life, Health

I’d Like To Buy Some Discipline Please

I went mountain biking with my crazy fit neighbor yesterday. Crazy fit meaning – he went for a trail run and then did leg day at the gym before we went for our ride. Halfway through the ride we joined up with another guy who turned out to be a pretty good rider. I was left in the back desperately gasping for air while they laughed and carried on a normal conversation. Granted they’re twenty years younger than me, but still… I hated that feeling. Being the slow guy who’s holding everyone up.

It’s a very painful feeling because once upon a time, I was the guy in front. I was the guy first up a climb. I was the guy offering encouraging words to other riders. I was the guy bombing down the hill at ludicrous speeds. I was the guy who was a “cyclist”. Now I’m the guy apologizing to other riders and telling them not to wait for me. It hurts.

How I got here is not a mystery. A love of tacos, nachos, and adult beverages. I stopped moving. I like napping more than the gym. I also know how to fix it. The problem is that I just… don’t. And I don’t know why.

Well, that’s not true. I do know why. It’s discipline. Specifically, a lack of.

My crazy fit neighbor and I had a conversation about this while riding. He’s recently semi-retired and has an amazing amount of structure to his day. Up at the same time each morning. Trail run at 06:30. Breakfast with the family at 10. Gym workout at 11:30. Mandatory two hour outside adventure with the kids each day. Bike ride or hike for an hour or so late afternoon. Dinner, then family/kid time. Early to bed. Every day, without fail. He’s dropped twenty pounds over the winter and is the fittest he’s ever been. He says the discipline has become addictive and has made him super productive with everything in his life.

My goal is to get out of my sweatpants by 10.

I don’t know why I can’t seem to find the mojo these days. But I will say, riding with those guys yesterday helped. On my own I would have done a shorter, easier route. Being with others and peer pressure helps with motivation. When they asked where I wanted to go and I picked the longer, harder trail. Although I nearly burst my spleen from exertion while climbing, I did not have to stop or walk up the hill. When I got to the top and they gave me fist bumps for my effort, I resolved right there that I never want this feeling again.

I’m going to do what it takes to no longer be the slowest guy in the group. Like putting a picture of yourself in a bathing suit on the fridge to remind yourself not to snack… I got to see just how slow and out of shape I really am. This will not be tolerated any longer. I don’t know if 0630 trail runs are going to happen, but the drift and time wasting stops today.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go ride my bike.

Diet, Health, Motivation

I Used To Be…

We were hanging with friends the other day and one of them said she wanted to do a four-peak hiking challenge this coming year to get back in shape and improve health. She wanted to know if I’d be willing to do it with her so we could motivate each other. It only makes sense that she’d ask me because I am descended from Vikings. I am a Norseman! My ancestors fought in the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, and across the Old West. I come from hearty outdoorsman stock. I am practically Daniel Boone and Davey Crocket, reincarnate.

As a former trail runner who had no problem knocking out an 8-12 mile run in the mountains, I looked at the list of peaks and thought no big deal. Yeah, I’m not in shape at the moment but give me a few weeks and I’ll be back in form. After all, I’m a trail runner/mountain biker/backpacker/motorcyclist who’s comfortable in the mountains. Except that I’m not. I used to be… This year, more than any other, the reality of living in the past has hit me hard. I used to do all kinds of athletic things. I used to be in pretty good shape. I used to run and mountain bike and ski. The reality is that it’s been at least three years since that was true.

I’ve mentioned in previous posts that this has not been my favorite year. Was it challenging because of my weight and fitness? Or did my weight and fitness being in the crapper make the year a struggle? Chicken and egg, I suppose.

It’s hard to admit Father Time has caught up with you. I haven’t bounced back from surgery like I thought I would. I went skiing a few days ago and my legs were destroyed in just a few runs. I’m super sore after workouts – I tell myself it’s because I had surgery, but deep down I know it’s because I haven’t been doing anything for a long time.

It’s clear I’ll never been Davey Crocket again. I don’t know if I’ll ever be a “real” mountain biker or trail runner again. But that doesn’t mean I can’t be massively better than I am now. I’m not sure my joints could take running at this point. But I bet I can be a damn good hiker again. It’s doubtful I’ll ever descend or ride the bike at race pace again, but I bet I can get back to being a good climber and endurance rider for my age.

As we get ready for the new year, I feel good about ’24. For some strange reason, the last time I lost a bunch of weight and got in shape, I decided to start during the holidays. Arguably the worst possible time to try and watch your diet and exercise. When I made it through the holidays and kept up with my diet goals, I felt proud of myself and energized to keep it going.

Oddly, I’ve done the same thing this year. I didn’t mean to, and had forgotten that this was the same timeframe I started the last go ’round. Something snapped in my head after Thanksgiving and I said to myself, we’re done with drinking calories and we’re going to pay attention to diet. I’ve managed to avoid the typical binges during holiday parties so far and feel good.

So we’re doing better with diet and we have a physical challenge with four peaks to work towards. I feel like 2024 is going to be the change I needed.

As I was talking to my friend about getting ready for hiking, I mentioned how important working on balance was. As I thought about my own advice, I decided I needed a balance goal to work towards. So I decided to learn a new skill for ’24 to challenge myself and work on balance.

It’s a move on the bike called a “manual”. If you’re a kid it’s probably no big deal. At my age, I think it would be a significant achievement. I see some tumbles in my future, but as long as I don’t break a hip it’ll be worth it.

So there we go. We’re going to move on from remembering what I used to be, and instead focus on what I can be. Damn, that’s poetic. Almost T-shirt worthy.

So Merry Christmas, Chanukah, Festivus, or whatever it is you celebrate. Let’s make 2024 a good one!

Cool, Daily Life, Motivation

Take Action

A few days ago I was endlessly scrolling through YouTube. I’ve made several strategic mistakes lately. I made the unfortunate choice to search for some how-to videos related to stove downdraft vents, and an HVAC issue. Oh, and I watched a review of the best non-stick pans. What can I say, I’m a guy of diverse hobbies. Anyway, the end result is that my YouTube feed is now nothing but old guys extolling the virtues of half inch vs quarter inch corrugated pipe for venting and ads for the magic of diamond-copper-silicone infused cookware. Sigh. I need a separate YouTube account for research only so I don’t pollute my main feed.

But one video did make its way through and caught my eye. It was about taking action. Now the specific video was geared toward general preparedness, but the message was universal. Want to make a change? Then you need to take action.

The videos point was that “taking action” didn’t need to be a huge endeavor. Been thinking about putting a first aid kit in your car? Stop what you’re doing right now and go gather some bandaids, medical tape, Tylenol, Ibuprofen, and a few bottles of water and go put it in your trunk. Takes five minutes and is probably stuff you already have in the house. Done. You took action and made progress.

It doesn’t mean you can’t add more or get fancier with your kit later on. What’s important is that you didn’t let analysis paralysis get the better of you. You took action right now and made a change. You now have a rudimentary first aid kit in your car that you didn’t have twenty minutes ago.

Taking action on one small thing is better than doing nothing. So many of us (myself especially) have grand plans for a project or eating better or exercise… yet we never get to it because we’re waiting for it to be perfect. Researching the right gym to join or what the right exercise program is. What diet should I do? I need to do something with that corner of the yard that’s full of weeds, but don’t know what yet.

Just take action. Go pull weeds for ten minutes. Then do it again tomorrow. Stop worrying about what the right exercise program is – go do a 30 minute walk right now. Go pick one cupboard in the pantry right now and throw out all the crap food. Stop what you’re doing and go organize one drawer in your office or kitchen.

All of this takes a minuscule amount of time and accomplishes something. And if you do it again tomorrow, and then next day, and the next… suddenly you’re productive and getting stuff done. Bonus, I bet you’ll feel better about yourself for having done it. And that’s the secret sauce. The reinforcement of positive actions. That tiny little hit of dopamine that makes us want to do that again.

I’m way more likely to do something that takes ten minutes than something I know is going to be most of the afternoon. It’s human nature.

So that’s my new mantra. I’m going to take action on one thing today. Anything else is a bonus. What small thing are you going to take action on today?

Daily Life, Health, Motivation

And The Answer Is…

If you’ve been following along at home, you’ll remember that I recently did something I shouldn’t have done. I thought I was twenty again and spent the day lifting furniture. I figured I’m a dude, so of course I can still do that sort of thing. The problem is that as you age the connective tissue becomes less supple and thinner. Years of slowly becoming deconditioned take their toll. The end result is injury.

In my case it’s a hernia and a separated linea alba. My abdominal muscles pulled apart, allowing the tissue below to bulge out. Yesterday I got the official word – lots of PT and surgery.

Age is a weird thing. It creeps up on you. Mentally I certainly don’t feel old. Up until recently I didn’t feel terribly old physically either. Oh sure, I couldn’t do things to the level I could when I was younger – but I was still out there doing it. I’ve always felt that compared to lots of guys my age I’m doing pretty good.

But this year felt different. Especially this summer. Yes I’ve put on weight before and felt various levels of stronger/weaker throughout the years, but the last six months I just haven’t had the mojo. Body parts just hurt. My eyes changed and I had to get new glasses. My balance is noticeably worse. I’ve had lots of little nagging injuries. And my weight, and the motivation to do anything about it, just hasn’t budged.

For the first time, I honestly feel old.

And now this. The unfortunate part is that the warning signs were flashing neon red. Rapid weight gain. A low back injury last year was the foreshadowing that my transverse abdominals were weak and deconditioned. I skied a bunch last winter, but otherwise didn’t do much physical activity. For a variety of reasons, my usual summer activities (hiking, mountain biking, motorcycle riding, etc…) have been pretty sparse this year. Long story short, there’s been more sitting than moving.

A perfect recipe for injury. An older adult going from the couch to moving furniture, or trying out pickleball, or deciding to take up running again, or even just stepping off an awkward height is just asking for problems. As Dr. Peter Attia writes in his book “Outlive”, once you reach your mid-50’s you’re no longer building muscle and strength – you’re desperately trying to maintain what you have. The moment you stop moving, you start going backwards in terms of physical ability.

Muscles atrophy, connective tissue weakens, tendons and ligaments are no longer supple. The key is to recognize the limitations. Unless you’ve continued to actively train, the days of doing box jumps, hill sprints, and explosive dynamic movements are probably in the rear-view mirror. That doesn’t mean you can’t get back to some form of those things… but you need to go very slow and carefully to avoid injury.

Mentally it’s hard to come to grips with that. In my head I’ve always thought that if I just got motivated for a few months and lost a few pounds, I’d be right back to where I was three or four years ago. Reality has a way of itch-slapping you in the face.

The Dr was pretty blunt. The surgical recovery won’t be too bad. Four weeks of not lifting anything. I should be able to ski in six weeks, although not at 100%. It’ll all be dependent on how motivated I am with PT (Hmm, sounds just like I used to lecture my post–operative patients about. What goes around, comes around).

The good news is that the doc cleared me to do any activities I want leading up to the surgery. I won’t make things any worse at this point. The harder I work now, the better my recovery will be. It looks like I have eight weeks to get ready.

Let’s do this.

Cool, Daily Life, Motivation

I Crashed

I crashed this weekend. I don’t really like the word crash. I prefer “a spontaneous, unplanned, rapid dismount”. More than one of those happened. And I was happy about it. Why? Because it was in training and practice conditions, and I got over the fear of dropping my motorcycle.

I took a three-day adventure motorcycle class this weekend. It’s designed to help develop skills needed to ride these ridiculously large motorcycles in offroad terrain that they probably don’t belong in. I already knew I didn’t know much about proper offroad riding techniques – I just didn’t realize how much I didn’t know. Kind of like the Donald Rumsfeld quote, “there are known knowns, known unknowns, and unknown unknowns”. This weekend gave me a peek into the unknown unknowns.

We spent hours working on slow speed turns, balance drills, weight transfer, and traction management. We then took those skills and (attempted) to apply them to varied terrain. Deep sand, obstacles, and steep hill descents were all thrown at us with varying degrees of success.

The class also reminded me of a truism I’m learning every time I take any sort of lesson. What I think I’m doing and what I’m really doing are rarely the same thing. For example, I was convinced I was leaning and rolling the bike underneath me like a boss in corners. Like, Instagram and magazine photo level form. One of the instructors pulled me aside and helpfully pointed out my lean was approximately 5 millimeters and that I was going to have to be just a tad more aggressive if I wanted to see any improvement. Ego crushed.

It was a good weekend of learning new skills and pushing past fear. I walked away with a few bruises and the realization that dropping the bike wasn’t the end of the world. Assuming I continue to practice what I learned, I’ll be a much more confident rider moving forward.

Everyone needs to push their limits every now and then. Fear is healthy. It (usually) keeps us from doing really stupid things. But unchecked fear can limit learning, or even prevent you from experiencing life. So go out there and find a way to push past whatever your fear is. You’ll come out the other side a better person for it.

A spontaneous, unplanned, rapid dismount every now and then is good for the soul.

Daily Life, Health, Motivation

I Don’t Understand How This Happens

Years ago I had a pretty good crash on the mountain bike. A broken rib and big-time shoulder pain. Being a dude, I never really did anything about it. Eventually (like a year+ later) the pain in my shoulder became unbearable. Every night after dinner I’d have to sit with a heating pad on my shoulder to calm the ache down enough to be able to sleep. Finally, I went in to have it looked at. An MRI confirmed what the doc suspected with his physical examination – a torn supraspinatus (part of the rotator cuff) and subsequent arthritis since I never did anything about the injury when it happened. Side note – the big-ass needle used to inject contrast dye deep into the shoulder hurt way more than the injury itself.

The doc said that the tear wasn’t large enough justify surgery and prescribed PT. I went for a while. I’ve mentioned before that the gym isn’t my thing so eventually, I abandoned any sort of structured rehab. Fast forward and the end result has been that my shoulder always hurts. Any sort of overhead pulling or pushing motion is a no-go, which has always been my excuse for not doing pullups.

Anyway, over the winter I started using a strength conditioning coach and we worked pretty hard on my shoulder. For the first time I started seeing progress. The pain was going away. My range of motion improved enough that I was able to slowly start working on the pullup motion. Hey, maybe this really was fixable! A pain free shoulder would be amazing.

Well, me being me… I’ve fallen off the workout wagon the last two months. Life, ugly weather, and the previously mentioned hatred of the gym makes it super hard to stay motivated. Yeah, a pitiful excuse I know. It is what it is.

So, three days ago I woke up, rolled over and tried to get out of bed. Intense shooting pain in that shoulder. Unable to even lift my arm type of pain. It’s the exact same spot and exact same pain I had previously. It’s gotten slightly better, but I still can’t lift my arm over my head without pain. It aches all day long.

I have officially reached the age where I manage to hurt myself sleeping. I don’t even understand how this is possible? How in the world do I sleep in a funny position for long enough that it torques my shoulder sufficient enough to re-aggravate an old injury? I mean, seriously? Who hurts themselves sleeping?

To make matters worse, I leave in a week for a three-day offroad motorcycle class. It’s guaranteed there will be multiple crashes and frequent picking up of a 500+ pound motorcycle. I don’t know how this is going to work if my shoulder continues to feel like it does right now.

Currently I’m vacillating between giving in to old age or resolving to spend two hours in the gym every day. Sigh… I’m not going to give in, but man it sure is hard sometimes to remain motivated.

Now I’m afraid to go to sleep for fear of what new injury I’ll wake up to.

Daily Life, Motivation

It’s Not Interesting

It’s been ten days since I posted anything. I’ll admit, I’m in a bit of a creative slump and I’m not sure why. I’ll start to write a few words and then stop and think to myself, this is just stupid – nobody’s interested in that. Same thing with taking pictures or thinking about making a new video. The mojo just isn’t there. The sad part is that I have plenty of things going on in my life that could make an interesting post, picture, or video. For example, here’s what’s happened in just the last ten days:

  • I took a ride in a small plane to tour a mountain lake.
  • We got rid of almost all of our furniture.
  • We had our hardwood floors refinished and new carpet installed in a few rooms.
  • We committed to a vacation that gives me 16 weeks to lose a large amount of weight.
  • Went on the first few mountain bike rides of the season.
  • Had to drive 200 miles to retrieve my mountain bike so I could go on previously mentioned rides.
  • Read a couple of good books.
  • Discovered that I really don’t know how to use my camera (see small plane flight).
  • Newly installed backyard water feature has turned the yard into a bird sanctuary.
  • Rearranged my office workspace for the first time in a decade.
  • Went to two hockey games for the Kelly Cup championship.

I’m clearly not lacking for activity. It’s not like I’m sitting on the couch, playing video games, and wishing something interesting would happen to write about. Even if I was doing that, there’s been a crapload of stuff happening in the news that I could offer my Pulitzer Prize winning observations on. But eh… nobody wants my opinion on world events.

How do you bust out of a creative slump?

Do you just force yourself to write and post something every day, no matter how banal or stupid? Do I walk around and take pictures of bushes and trees in the neighborhood just for the sake of taking pictures? Is the solution to fake it until you make it? Or do you just wait it out until creative inspiration strikes again?

This is my question for the day.

Meanwhile, I’m headed to the golf course to see if I still remember how to hit a ball.

Daily Life, Health, Motivation

The Science Of Giving Up

The snow finally melted, the sun is out, and the trails are dry. Today was the first mountain bike ride since last fall. I loaded up the bike and got an excited dog in the truck and drove to the trailhead. Literally as soon as I got to the parking lot, the skies opened up and it started raining. Crap. I sat in the car for a full minute thinking oh well, guess I’ll have to ride tomorrow. Then I looked at my dogs face and didn’t want to disappoint him. I figured I wasn’t going to melt, so off we went.

Ooooh boy was I rusty. The balance wasn’t there. And it turns out, ski muscles are not the same as bike muscles. I was going pretty slow. This seemed like more work than I remembered. As I rode along, I started thinking about what route I wanted to take. There is a shorter loop and a longer loop.

I was already tired and being wet from the rain didn’t help my motivation. I started justifying to myself that there was no need to take the long loop my first ride out. It has a couple of steep climbs that I knew would hurt. I should probably get some shorter rides in before tackling the bigger one. Besides, it was the dogs first day out as well. No need to push him.

I got to the trail junction where I had to commit one way or another. I sat there for quite a while trying to decide. I really didn’t want to do those climbs. I watched the dog, trying to see if he seemed tired. What to do, what to do?

I listened to a podcast the other day that had two Navy seals talking about hell week. That’s the culmination of the first evolution trainees go through as prospective seals. A week of no sleep, little food, and nonstop physical training. Carrying logs, paddling boats in the surf, running, and never-ending pushups and pull ups – all while wet and sandy. There’s a massive attrition rate, which is the point of it all. Finding out who’s going to quit when things get really hard.

Anyway, the Navy guys said the interesting thing is that nobody quits during the hard stuff. They quit while on a break or after eating some food. Turns out your brain imagining what’s going to happen next and how you’ll feel is more powerful than enduring an exhausting exercise session. If you give your brain time to think, it’ll do everything it can to convince you to not do something it perceives as potentially unpleasant. I found that fascinating.

Long story short, I took the long loop. The rain stopped and the sun came out. I did ok on the climbs and the hound did just fine. It ended up being a good first ride. I got back to the car and was super happy I didn’t let my brain win the argument. It’s like going to the gym. I hate the gym and will come up with every excuse possible to convince myself to go tomorrow instead. And every single time I do go, I feel better and am happy I went.

So, this weekend – go take the long loop.

Daily Life

Use It Or Lose It

I went on a fun trip this weekend, exploring a part of our state I’d never really been to. With a group of friends, we utilized a travel/photography book that lays out a full day tour of an area and provides lots of quirky sights to see and explore. The book is semi-geared towards photography and makes sure to offer plenty of stops with scenic views or subjects. It was great fun and gave me a reason to dig out the camera again. Looking over the nearly 300 shots I took… the results are mixed. It highlighted how quickly we lose a skill or muscle memory if we don’t continually exercise it.

I think I have a good photographic eye and vision. I’m pretty good at composing a shot that’s interesting and slightly different than a standard cell phone snap. That skill seemed to be the same as it always was (probably because I still take a lot of pictures with the cell phone). What was off was the mechanical skill of photography. Things like trying to remember apertures. What the buttons I’d pre-programmed on the camera did. How to find a particular mode or setting. Because we were with a group, I was rushing a little bit to keep up and didn’t have time to experiment or hunt and peck through menus to find what setting I was looking for. A lot of time I was in spray-and-pray mode. Take a whole bunch of shots at random apertures and hope I got something.

I just assumed I’d remember what to do, so I did zero practice before we left. That lack of practice showed. A couple years of not using the camera and those skills were gone. The same is true of the photo editing software I use. I spent several hours just trying to remember my workflow and how to achieve what I wanted.

It’s a good reminder that you have to keep up with skills if you don’t want them to atrophy. It’s why it takes two or three days on the slopes at the beginning of each ski season to feel comfortable again. We’re at the start of mountain biking season and I haven’t been on the bike since last fall. These first few weeks will be awkward and tentative. I can’t imagine how I’d feel if I hadn’t ridden a bike in years. It would be a frustrating and humbling experience.

On one hand I’m a little disappointed in the photo results. I had a grand vision in my head of how things would turn out. The reality was pretty mediocre. But I did get a few shots I was pleased with. And those few good shots were just enough to get me excited again about photography. I’m now going to spend some time to relearn my camera and do the slow and methodical experimenting to get those skills back.

If you have a skill, a sport, or an activity that you used to do and enjoy – it’s time to shake off the dust and try it again. Don’t forget to tell yourself that if it’s been a while, your initial results aren’t going to be what you remembered. Don’t be frustrated, just keep at it. That muscle memory will kick in before long. It’s never too late to bring back activities you used to enjoy. But the longer you wait, the harder it’ll be.

I wonder if I still remember how to rollerblade?