Good health at 50

There will be a point in one’s life when they will be looking at turning the big 50. When that comes will you be physically ready? Lately I have been asked by many people how it is that I can be as “old” as I am and still look and have the physical numbers as I do and I think it is time that I write this all out so that those that are older than I and younger than I can understand. Now please note, I am not bragging nor am I saying that I have all the answers. I can only go by my own experiences and what I have seen that has gotten me this far in my young life.

On January 2014 I went to my doctor like I do every year for my annual physical. A few hours later I received an email from him with my results and I was really surprised at where my numbers stood. I won’t bore you with all the details but I will highlight a few of them.

Weight 180

Height 5’10”

Cholesterol 155 (Last year it was 110 don’t know what happened)

HDL >39.9 54.6

LDL <130 121 Triglycerides <150 60 PSA 0.0-4.0 0.28 Testosterone 280-800 970 Resting Pulse rate 51 When I look at my Red blood cells and White blood cells they were in excellent standing. Now the question so many have asked me is how I am able to get such numbers and here is what I believe is my formula. I believe that it is quite simple, do those things that are beneficial to the body and those things that are not, well, just don’t do them. 1) I try and get 6 to 8 hours of sleep a night. Now that always doesn’t happen but then I will find myself a few minutes during the day when I can close my eyes and relax. It is amazing what 30 minutes can do when you are tired in the middle of the day.

2) I eat 3 square meals a day. That’s right Breakfast, lunch and dinner. My biggest meal of the day is Lunch followed by breakfast and then dinner is very small. I never stuff myself at night. I don’t see the point. Why fuel my body to just sit down afterwards and fall asleep. Most people have a very small breakfast practically no lunch and then find themselves really dragging in the middle to the end of their day and then go home and devour the fridge.

3) Alcohol has not touch these lips since first year of college and that was 30 years ago. I just don’t see the point of drinking until you feel weird. Some people call it “putting a buzz on” but what they are really doing is destroying their brain cells and making their bodies work harder than they should. This also goes for cigarette smoking. Never, never, never. I have seen what it does to so many and I just don’t see where my body will benefit from it.

4) I exercise every day. Once a day I get a good 30 minutes of exercise in. Did I say every day? Yes every day even when I go away on VACATION. What better time to really get your body in really good shape but on vacation when you really have nothing else to do but enjoy and relax. There is no better relaxation then when you finish a workout and know that you accomplished something good for your body.

Now some of you are going to say that I really don’t understand how busy you are. You may be right but just take this into consideration, I start seeing people at 5am and don’t finish seeing people until 8pm from Monday to Friday and then on Saturday I see people from 5:30am till 2pm and at 7:30am I teach an aerobic class. Also, I am married with 3 children (18, 15, 13) and the 13 year old is a girl… shall I say more on that subject. Once a week my wife and I still find time to go out and look at each other and in a few weeks we will be married 22 years and I am an active member of the United States of America Track and Field Association and a High School soccer official. I know what it is to be busy but I still find time to do those things that I know in the end will benefit my body.

So many have asked me about how I am able to look and feel the way I do. So many want to know my formula and well, now you know it.

(6-8 hours of sleep) + (3 meals) + (no foreign substances in my blood stream) + 2(daily exercise) =
Healthy Life
Try it! It’s never too late.

Short Term verses Long Term work outs

“I spent three hours in the gym today”
“I can’t go to the gym because I just don’t have the time”
Do you hear these excuses? I do and all the time. This is the reason why I believe that people can get what they need to get done in 30-40 minutes and no longer. Yes, this includes cardio work and weight training. There have also been studies that have proven that short term workouts are much better for the average person than long drawn out workouts, even when it comes to building muscle or losing weight.

The following excerpt from an article published in the UK Telegraph, "6 Minutes of Exercise A Week As Good As 6 Hours" by Peter Zimonjic, elaborates on this study.

"Just six minutes of intense exercise a week does as much to improve a person's fitness as a regime of six hours... Moderately healthy men and women could cut their workouts from two hours a day, three times a week, to just two minutes a day and still achieve the same results, claim medical researchers".

No, I think this is a bit extreme but I understand where he is going with this. So let me put my little spin on this. Studies have been done through several Universities that, in their final assessment they found that with short term work outs (less than 1 hour) your caloric burn can stay with you up to 2 days whereas with long workouts, (more than 1 hour) when you are ready to leave and go home, your body is pretty much back to normal. They have shown that your caloric burn has stopped by the time you get out to your car.

Look at it this way, you should be trying to make working out part of your life, not your life and if you are going to spend hours at the gym, it is no longer a small part of your life but it has become a large part of your daily life. I can see how this can drive people away, especially since our lives are so busy in so many other important areas.

I believe that 30 to 40 minutes of working out is sufficient for Joe Public because, face it we are not trying to become Olympic athletes, but we are only trying to get ourselves in much better shape and maintain it over the rest of our life. How can you do everything in 30-40 minutes? It’s easy. When you get to the gym already have your workout in mind and plotted out so that once you are off the treadmill (only 10 minutes) you can immediately get right to work. Now because you are only going to be working out for 30 to 40 minutes, the usual 10 minute water breaks are not necessary. Once you finish with one exercise immediately move to the next exercise and continue this until you get everything done. Then at that time get some water and get ready to leave.

Now for your Olympic athletes and those that are sports specific this idea will not work because there is so much more that goes into understanding the training necessary to be on the top of your game for that particular sport. However for Joe public just wanting to get fit and stay in shape, 30– 40 minutes daily is just fine.

You need motivation?

I love my wife and I know she loves me. I am confident that regardless of what happens to me she will always love me. But does that give me the right to not give her my very best in all that I am and all I do?

I love my wife so much that I want to give her my all at all times. I want to be the best I can be, not so I can brag about who I am and what I can do but so that I make her even more proud of me. I know that regardless of what happens to me she will love me, but should I not try and give her even more reasons to love me? I keep my body in good condition not just for my own edification but so that when she is out in the public she can really feel proud of what I look like and who I am. Just as my love is unconditional towards her and her love is the same for me, because of that it makes me want to give her more than my very best.

This last week I had a conversation with a few members about this one subject. I asked them a really stupid question, “Does your spouse love you?” I knew the answer because I knew each one of their spouses but I was trying to make a point, understanding that, why would you not want to give them your very best. Their problem was motivation. They just can’t seem to get motivated long enough to make a difference in their physical lives as they tell me. My next question was if they love their spouses and their resounding response was “of course”. My next statement was, “then how could you not find motivation in just that?” the room went silent.

So what is it going to take America for us to finally wake up and see that we need to improve on our health? One day when your spouse or significant other tells us that they are seeing someone else and when we see that other person they look like “a knock out”? Or when our doctor tells us that we have a major illness that could have been avoided if we had been in better shape? Or when you finally lose a limb because of the diabetes we contracted due to weight and diet issues? What is it going to take before we wake up and get yourself in better shape? We have all the excuses on why we shouldn’t get up and get going but in the end are we really showing our spouse or significant other how much they really mean to us? Or are we being selfish and resting on the fact that our spouse loves us enough to have to take care of us when we are down.

What more motivation does a person need then the unconditional love of their partner? It is truly selfish to receive love without giving it back tenfold. Do we want or need motivation? Look at our partners and ask yourself a question, are we really giving our partners the very best we can give them? If the answer is no or maybe, then what more motivation do we need. Enjoy your day.

To be or not to be...and then why not

Are you out of shape? Can you stand to lose some pounds? What real long term or short term benefit is there in being out of shape? I can’t think of one however, I can think of many benefits to being in shape. But I am not going to write to you the obvious, but ask you a few questions.

1) When you look in the mirror do you like what you see?
2) Do you feel uncomfortable going to a beach or pool?
3) Can you run a mile if you had to?
4) Could you walk a mile if you had to?
5) Do you have to shop in the big and tall stores and not because your 6’5” or taller?
6) When you are around other people do they look like they feel sorry for you?
7) Do you get out of breath easy?
8) Can you walk up two flights of stairs without stopping and not getting out of breath?
9) Can you walk up one flight of steps without getting out of breath?
10) Do you need to take medications just to get going in the morning?
11) What if you stopped taking your medications, what would happen?
12) Do you spend more than $10 a month of medications?
13) Are your cloths fitting tighter than they use too?
14) Do your friends think that you are older than you truly are?
15) If your kids wanted you to play an active aerobic game, could you for more than 10 minutes?
16) Can people look at you and say to themselves that they want to be like you?
17) Can people look at you and say that they want to do what you do?
18) When you go to the doctor, are you ever nervous about your physical results?
19) Is you general physician your best friend because of all the health issues you may have?
20) Are you tired of having to take so much medication just to get going?

If you honestly answer these questions and any or all of them are answered yes, then what are you doing to change your situation? Just complaining about your situation does nothing. Telling your friends who may be in the same situation as you does nothing to improve your situation. Just praying about it without any action does nothing. Getting depressed and feeling sorry for oneself does nothing. However putting a systematic plan together and finding a person to help you and keep you accountable will yield you positive and long lasting results. Now get off the couch and do it. If you need help, every morning I post an exercise on my FB page Parkers Place Total Fitness. Like us on that page and enjoy the benefits of a good practical workout. Enjoy…

Living in the past

What do you do when your life goes into turmoil? What do you do when everything seems to be going wrong? You have tried to change and maybe for years you have been able to make the necessary changes you needed to, but all of a sudden, like a car blind siding you, life throws you a big curve ball.

Maybe it‘s a divorce that you didn’t think would happen or an illness that surprised you. Maybe it is an economic situation that you have been fighting for years that has now seemed to rear its ugly head again. Maybe you have been in a ten year cycle that you can’t seem to break. What do you do when you’re in the midst of the problem?

Most people, unfortunately, revert back to many of their old ways regardless if those ways are harmful to them or not. Some psychologists think that this is because there is security in the past and fear when it comes to trying to understand our future. We find comfort in what we use to do because we have an idea of the responses or results we may get. Gamblers may go back to gambling even though in that past life they may have lost their shirt but in every occasion they were able to rebound in some way. Smokers may go back to smoking and even when they know the harm that cigarettes will cause; it is the comforting element of reliving a past that in some way makes you feel you can handle it, again.

I personally believe that when we make positive life changes that life will have a way of testing us. Are we truly who we now say we are or are we just going to cave in when times get tough? Most of us, including myself, want to quit and give in but is that really the right thing to do? Of course the answer is no, but in reality when life gets hard and you so desperately need a break from the fight and there is no one that can truly help you nor understands you or your situation is it that easy to stay the course? No it isn’t and in most cases darn near impossible. Or it may at least seem that way.

In life I believe that we all go thru a maturation process that eventually leads us down a path of understanding what the true meaning of life is. When we go thru these struggles that life brings us and we question our purpose of being it is easier, much easier to quit than to stay the course. However by staying to course, this strengthens your resolve to solidify our new way of thinking and acting. I believe that problems and stresses are meant to strengthen us and teach us. I believe that when we go thru those times in our life when our world is turned upside down, we need to stay focused and believe in the changes we made and not look back into our past. Resolving the problems and then going forward will always bring a positive outlook. Quitting and reverting back to past habits will only bring about negative results.

With that stated, let’s stay focused on our new formed positive habits and stop dwelling in the past or feeling sorry for ourselves when we go thru problems. Let’s remember that problems are temporary but how we resolve those life issues will be permanent.

Selfless or Selfish that is the question...

When you really think about it, being in good physical condition is the most selfless act one could ever do. Shocking? It should be. Look at it this way, if you are in shape;

1) You will be able to physically fend for yourself even at older ages
2) You will always be ready, at a moment’s notice, to respond or be ready for anything
3) Your friends and family will have the confidence in your ability to take care of yourself
4) You are not a burden to anyone, quite the opposite on so many levels you will be an asset
5) You will motivate others to physically be the best they can be
6) You are a slave to no one (besides your spouse of course)
7) You are not a slave to medications of any type

If you don’t believe me then think about the opposite. Imagine if you are really out of shape. Imagine if you have ailments that need attending to. Well…

1) You may not be physically able to fend for yourself at older ages
2) You may never be ready at a moment’s notice to respond or be ready for anything that comes your way
3) People may feel you as a burden and feel as though you need them more than they need you
4) People could consider you a liability and whereas they will take care of you on so many levels they are probably wishing that you were in better physical condition
5) You will motivate people but not the way you think. They will remind themselves of how you are and try not to duplicate it in themselves
6) You will motivate others to be or to stay in shape
7) You could be a slave to the health system

In my many years of being a personal trainer I have noticed that the older one gets the harder it is for them to stay in good condition. I have noticed those who in their 50’s were in real good shape deteriorate over the years but because of their great physical conditioning in their earlier years slowed the aging process down and had a relatively good life at older ages. Whereas the person who came running into their later years and had physical problems tended to really dread their later years and they became slaves to the medical system and the medications that needed to take to stay alive.

Let’s look at this in another way. Say you are the parents and you are always active. The probability of you becoming a burden to your kids may be slim to none. As a matter of fact your relationship with your adult children will be more of good friends than care taker or parent. Whereas if that same parent were in poor health, the kids would feel a sense of responsibility to take care of that parent and now the child may have to become the parent.

I saw this in my own life. When my mother lost her battle (even though I think of it as winning) with cancer, up until her last days she was in the best shape she could be in and because of that she was not a burden to my sister or I. Yes we still did everything we possibly could to be there for her but up till the end she was self sufficient and strong. Then on the other side of the coin, I have a friend who’s parents were really out of shape and for the most of their life they were really kept alive by the medications they took. When they got older I saw a total switch were my friend became the parent and his mother became to child.

My Pastor said something that other day that once I thought about it really made sense, “Most of our blessings come from helping others. If you cannot help yourself then how is it you can really have a great effect on others and help them?” Look at it in another way… Being out of shape and wasting your precious life is selfish on so many levels. There should be no glory in being diabetic or having “self induced” high blood pressure or “self induced” high cholesterol because of lifestyle. In the end you might just become a burden to all. Where is the blessing in that?

Leg Day!!!!

Remember that… Wednesday is LEG DAY!!!! This workout will give your arms and upper body a break for at least a day. Before I get into that a little more I want to discuss one thing that needs to be brought up and it is in the area of rest.
Just recently my son and I were working out and pretty hard. After the workout we were both tired and need a break and I felt good that I was able to keep up with him. That next day we went at it again and once again we both went to total fatigue. This went on for a number of weeks. Then something began to happen, I began to find myself needing more sleep and I was feeling really fatigued most of the time. I was seeing real good gains in his strength but I was feeling as though I was losing whatever strength I had or at least it was getting harder and harder to keep it up.

Everyone was telling me that it was my AGE that was finally showing and I would roll my eyes and think to myself, “Whatever!!!!!” I even consulted some doctors on the subject, and their response to me was that I was just getting older.

Now, I’ll admit that there is truth to the fact that I am getting older. But it still doesn’t answer the question why. Then just the other night I was pondering this question and I began to remember an article I read on a real famous distance runner and the frustration she was going thru as she was trying to keep up with her younger counterparts. She states that at first the workouts were pretty hard but as time went on those same workouts, where she should had been excelling in, she was actually getting slower and feeling weak. “What was the problem”, she thought to herself. Then her coach had a brain storm of an idea, “Let’s not scale your workouts down but let’s not go at it every day like you use to but space them out every other or every third day and let’s make those workouts count.” Well, they did that and what she found was that she began to get her energy back. That coupled with a minor tweak in her diet plan put her back in contention for the Olympics.

I look at her example and I notice one thing, she needed more rest than her younger competitors and the reason was because her body was not recovering as fast as it use to. In a nut shell I have learned that as we age our recovery time slows down and we need more and more time to recover. Our muscles won’t respond as often or as quickly as they once did. Now that doesn’t mean that you are done, but what that means is that what you once took for granted, you can no longer take for granted. As we age, we must be more specific in what we are trying to accomplish. It is still important for us to workout with our younger generation because it keeps us on our toes and keeps them pushing harder. It slows our aging process down and in the end keeps us feeling pretty good.

Now back to Leg day… Today get a good leg workout in. Make sure that it includes Lunges and Squats. Those are the two best exercises one can do for the legs. Now after your workout, enjoy your day…..