Yes, it’s been a minute since my last post – which claimed that I want to continue blogging. I do! I just haven’t entirely figured out how to be a full-time pastor and have an unrelated hobby or two. The last six months have been especially out of control, for some reason. But I’m trying to rein it back in by establishing or re-establishing a few sanity-keeping rituals. My weight-lifting workouts had dropped to about 1/week, and my cardio workouts were almost exclusively limited to dog walks. While dog walks are better than nothing, it’s not the kind of sustained aerobic work I prefer, especially when one dog (Peter, pictured at right) is still learning good “citizenship” on trails and in parks and we’re stopping frequently to clean-up, or practice obedience, or rest for a minute (hiking, for a front-leg amputee doberboy, is hard work!). I also got into the terrible habit of sitting up in bed scrolling news and doing NYT puzzles on my phone from 5:30 a.m. until 6 or so, which had been my prime weight-lifting time for several months. I told myself I apparently needed the extra “rest,” but it wasn’t all that restful – and just let me squeeze healthier activities out of the morning.
So I’ve once again hit my “reset” button. Once I rise to let the dogs out first thing in the morning, I don’t get to go back to sit up in bed. I start tea water (as I try AGAIN to reduce the grotesque amounts of Diet Coke I consume), and pick a workout: rowing machine or treadmill, weights, or a short meditation ritual. Two evenings a week, I’ll be learning tai chi, in hopes of getting myself a little more grounded and “balanced.” Lunches and snacks were starting to get a little ultra-processed and carb-heavy, again, too. A daily check-in with the scale should nip that in the bud.
Now, let me share a few article links to get back in the swing…
This one is a couple of years old, but it’s good to be reminded that the single best exercise for older adults is the SQUAT. Squats improve overall health and safety, and have even been found to slow cognitive aging. Talk about bang for your buck!
And here’s still more evidence that strength-training lengthens lives (and improves the quality of those longer lives!).
Lastly, look what’s coming to Cleveland! (My current habitat.) The Pan-American Masters Games! You can bet I’ll be attending a few of these events.
