CATCH ME IF YOU CAN!

It was a nice ride on the North County trail one recent Saturday morning. You can be me or more than me if you make the move. Age is never a barrier. Now this is some small talk to inspire you to start moving again.

I was riding my bicycle when suddenly a young man passed me on a bicycle shouting "I got you, catch me if you can" said he.

I was to happy to keep my steady pace as I learned it the hard way from several years of marathon running.  As I kept riding I saw that the young man who was far away from me was slowing his pace and I was getting nearer.  After five miles I caught up with him.  We rode together for a few miles and then I informed him I was forging ahead.  He was wondering how I, almost three times his age could bicycle at over 15 MPH on the flat surface.  Well, I had to explain that I was not a weekend worrier like he was (that is exercising only once a week) and that I exercise on a daily basis diversifying between cycling, swimming and walking.

Well let us look at it this way.  If you have a headache and the doctor asks you to take one pill a day for five days, I doubt you could take all five pills on a single day and expect the same result.

So, to stay fit and healthier, exercise frequently, meaning a few days a week and try to do different activities so that you do not stress the same joints repeatedly.  Now the great news is that some current day marathon runners, simply run three to four days a week and fill the other days with bicycling, swimming, rowing, etc., and yet get top running times.

And if you think you are too old to make a start, think again. Some people have been recent converts to the athletic field, sitting on their couches in their 50s and 60s.  Of course, sitting on the couch may be a sport to some, but it is certainly not a form of exercise.  Nevertheless, some of these couch potatoes who - fed up with, or frightened by, their physical condition - began exercising.  Not only that, some of these folks are competing at the U.S. senior Olympics in Louisville.

Real people going from off the couch as serious senior Olympics athletes are Carol Yuner, age 60; Erich Hubach 73, Stephen Johnson 52, and William Camperlino 59. Erich Hubach, at 65 was sporting the couch. His weight was up and so was his blood pressure. In 2005 when he climbed into a local pool he could not do more than a few laps (of course he was a swimmer in college) after years of staying idle. Now he swims 150 laps in training today. Just last Tuesday (5/22/2007) I attempted a 55-mile ride on the North County trail in Westchester and completed it in 4 hours and 7 minutes. My longest ride since my fatal bicycle accident of 6/28/2005 was limited to 40 miles on the longest ride. Yet, the extra 15 miles reminded me that it is always better to grow into the distance.  It is always better to grow into time than distance, like a 60 minute goal of walking instead of a 5-mile goal of walking. Sometimes, you got to experience it yourself to tell others (Dale Carnergie: "If you experienced it, you have a right to speak of it.").

If you like something, go do it, I mean something that will make you move. Consider taking part in sports events at the local and state level.  You do not have to be a master supreme, there are events for all stages of competence.  Even take up dancing. But you got to establish a goal, and then aim to reach it and be a regular at it.

As for competition, I stay out of the big meets these days. I like to ride and swim without any pressure. What's great about solo sports like running, swimming, bicycling, cross-country skiing is that you can compete with yourself by trying to better your previous time and do it on your time. And most of all, its good to have some time to oneself. And some time for peace and tranquility .

Most important is that if you have lived a sedentary life, it would be smart to get a good physical check-up from your family doctor to make sure it is okay for you to start an exercise regimen. And as you progress, experts recommend that you not increase the duration of your exercise program more than 10% per week until you reach your comfort zone. Suppose, say I bicycle for 30 minutes and has a goal to increase it to 60 minutes per ride, I would wait until 7 days before I increase it to 33 minutes.  Then I would gradually increase the duration by 3-4 minutes per week until I reach 60 minutes. However, all people are different, some may be able to increase their exercise times by more than 10% a week and others by less than that amount. The better judge is you - always listen to your body and you may not go wrong.

Now get up and move and catch me if you can.

JUST ON THE SIDE:The Great Hunger Memorial is one of my meditation stops on the South County Trail ride - A section of V.E. Macy Park in Ardsley has been renamed so that the history of the Irish who fled to Westchester in the 1840s to escape poverty and famine will never be forgotten. See picture above. The other picture is a beautiful scenic stop I make on one of the many other trails I ride.  As you see when you go out and are part of the environment, in addition to getting exercise you meet people, breathe the fresh air and view some great scenes in your very own backyard. Sometimes, we spend thousands of dollars to do the same things in distant lands.