Well, it has been about 12 years or so, but I finally got around to joining a gym again. I went in for an "age assessment" test over the weekend and the results were neither good, nor surprising.
Although I am only 43, my test came back saying that I have the body of a 47 year old. The test breakdown was very interesting. My flexibility score was the worst. I rate in the bottom 20% of men my age. I can hardly bend over and tie my own shoes.
My cardio score was also terrible, dwelling in the bottom 25%. Even though I am a frequent hiker, that one can be credited to hard living. One word for you on that one: cigars. Eliminating that alone should get me back to my actual age within a couple of months. I have been pretty good lately and with joining a club, I am pretty confident to see positive results.
The other results were surprising. I only have 21% body fat. So outside of my beer gut, my body is pretty normal. And my strength rating was in the top 30%. I guess guys my age are all a bunch of wimps, because I haven't lifted anything more than a pint at a time for over a decade.
I am only about 10 lbs over my fighting weight, so that is not a big concern either. But, it was nice to find out that I can take in over 2300 calories a day (without exercise) and not gain weight. More nachos, please.
The results weren't great, but at least now I have a starting point. If I improve my cardio and flexibility results to average and drop my body fat to around 15%, my trainer says I can realistically expect to get my body age ranking down to 36. Actually, I will be happy getting back to my actual age. Except in the strength rating of course. I need to be able to beat Darin and Randy up the next time I see them.
My next test is in two months. Good thing, because I don't expect to run into Darin or Randy until at least June.
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5 comments:
hey dane,
i think you can take randy and darin. old age and treachery usually trumps youth and inexperience.
i found myself in a similar situation a few years ago. i ended up losing about 40 lbs and getting back into fairly good shape. i took up running and mostly eating healthier but i think the big thing was portion control on the eating end of it.
never thought i'd be a runner much less enjoy it but it seems to agree with me. i have to kinda cram it in when i can these days with the kids and work and all but i seem to be able to get it done more days than not. my oldest goes with me about once a week now so that has been kinda nice to have some one on one time with her.
i heard one of the best sports quotes ever from a runner late last summer. an aussie runner outkicked american alan webb at a meet in new york to win the mile. he was being interviewed post race and this gal asks him why he thought he was able to outkick webb and win, was it better training, nutrition, coaching, she asked. he kinda looks at her like she is daft and says, " i reckon at that point its about who has more fuzz on their balls."
it was on nbc live and apparently no delay, laughed my ass off.
http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/94/open_change-or-die.html
the above is an interesting article about making changes. kinda food for thought.
later,
ming
Dane, I am proud to be the 7th person reading your blog. But I got one word for you: if you give up beer and cigars, we can no longer be friends. It won't matter much how old you are when you die...what will matter most is what you did while you were alive. And somkin and drinkin is part of being alive. Btw: 7 habits, while a leftover from the 80's, is a fabulous, life-changing book. See you at Dos Gringos next week - I'll bring the cubans. bw
Coronas yes, Cohibas no. Beer good, but as far as cigars are concerned, I will have to start living vicariously in a cloud of second-hand smoke.
Hey, I'm 60 years old and my doc says I have the body of a 40 year old. Only thing is, the 40 year old she is talking about is 50 lbs. overweight, sicker than a dog, and can't walk across the street with sitting down to rest.
This could be fun, but I am getting too old for all of these passwords. Can't remember what it was last time I commented, so I need a new one each time I come around.
I'm a 3-4 time a week gym user after a while it becomes a habit. My problem is sometimes I forget that I'm 41 and try to keep up with the young bucks and my old back pays the price. Keep at it Dane it gets easier.
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