Dad Lesson: Fitness and Longevity
Dad and me…here he is a mere 71. Such a youngster:)
Last Saturday I met my parents for some pool walking. They are 88 years old. We walked in a lazy river type of pool which helps with buoyancy as well as propelling one forward. I kept thinking that I was so happy that they had found this form of exercise!
They go three times/week for one hour. They have it all figured out. They even have the shoes. They were worried about my not having the shoes. I assured them that I was fine. They go 6 laps together and then Dad rests. Mom goes faster on her solo lap and returns to Dad where he awaits on the steps having chatted up the cute, young lifeguard. They then do another six and yet another. They thought their route was 1 mile. My Garmin recorded 2.
I posted a pic in a few FB groups that I am in and was overwhelmed with the comments and reactions. I realized that my parents and their longevity and full life may be something that I have taken for granted, at times. Don’t get me wrong; I thank God every day for this blessing!
I have learned a lot from my parents (understatement of all time!) re: fitness and longevity, particularly from my Dad. They have both been active their whole lives and by that I mean planned, regular exercise multiple times a week for as long as I can remember.
My Dad’s favorite mode of exercise was running with skiing being a close second (but that can’t be done year round…even here in snow-filled Utah). For years, I remember my Dad getting up and out on his 6 am runs in the dark so he could get to the office by 8:00 am. He loved running and did so for probably 30+ years until his knees would no longer allow him to do so. He was so disappointed that he had to stop running. But then found…
… biking. He soon became familiar with paved bike trails, and also got into mountain biking on trails up by our cabin. He biked for the next decade or so until he fell on his bike and broke his femur at age 82. Despite hours of rehab etc he was not able to regain the strength and balance allowing him to bike again. He was so disappointed. But then he found…
The elliptical at the gym as well as the stationary bike. He cross trained with weights and continued at 82+ to be quite fit.
After his bike accidentl, however, he continued to lose strength and was so disappointed when he had to start using a walker which made trips to the gym more cumbersome. One day when he and mom were walking around the indoor track, they looked down on the pool and discovered…
…pool walking. Dad found that the motion of the water made him more buoyant and therefore more capable to walk unattended (except for the underwater hand holding he does with mom which may or may not be needed for physical stability;).
I would never want to suggest, that this progression of fitness decline has been an easy pill for Dad to swallow. Quite the contrary; each phase has required a grieving of sorts as it has had to be reluctantly placed in the past activities bank. But the point I would like to celebrate is Dad’s ability to continue on the fitness path even when it looked different for him.
He never envisioned himself to be the guy in the walker being passed by ladies on the track. He still longs to be the guy running 6 miles at 6 everyday. The way I see it is the young man who started into the regular fitness routine years ago is the exact man who gets up to poolwalk at age 88.
Sometimes Dad expresses that he never thought he would live this long. I want to say, What did you expect, Dad? You have stayed active, eaten healthy, lived the cleanest life of anyone I have EVER met. You have seven [amazing] kids, 32 grandkids and 42 great grands. What did you expect?
One of Dad’s favorite quotes that I remember him teaching me in my teen-aged years was “If you don’t know where you are going, you will probably end up somewhere else.” Dad has always been an intentional man and fitness is no exception.
I believe that young runner knew exactly where he wanted to end up and here he is: 88 and looking/living great!
