A year ago I decided I absolutely had to do something to build strength and improve balance. I knew (from research and personal experience with several nasty falls) that as we age, the ratio of muscle to fat goes in the wrong direction. I don’t need to spell it out for you, I’m sure.
So I found a young woman to work with one-on-one. I’ve been doing this for almost a year now and have found it so helpful that I asked the family as my holiday gift–and got it!– for two sessions a week. I figure that more of a time commitment can only benefit me.
Yes, it’s more expensive than a group class, but having individual attention has taught me how little I am in my body. I still can’t feel when I’m lying or standing “crooked,” head tilted to one side or shoulders and hips out of alignment. Fortunately, my teacher has an eagle eye.
I admire people who have the self discipline to go to the gym regularly or set up their own DVD exercise programs at home. Or others, like my friends who tap dance or square dance their way to health, or ski, or seriously bike ride and hike. Actually, I did some of those things when I was younger, but I had spent too many years sitting and listening to people for a living and hadn’t put aside enough time for strenuous physical activity.
So I swallowed my pride and obeyed my own precepts as a coach: I sought out expert assistance rather than do nothing!
Now that I’m looking at the milestone of 70 coming up this very year, I’m thankful that I had the foresight to make this decision a year ago. I actually have some abdominal muscles I can feel. I also am aware of the many parts of my body that still need work. I can’t walk like an Indian, for instance, heel to toe, without falling over. That’s a sign of poor balance, according to Jane Brody.
It’s embarrassing to discover how much flexibility I’ve lost–something I always took for granted, like low blood pressure. Having to face the reality of these losses is the down side. The up side is that I’m discovering I can still do quite a bit to improve things, if I’m willing to put in the effort.
I’ve recently made a 5 year plan that includes becoming more proactive about my health. I can’t control everything in life, but I don’t want to abdicate responsibility for myself either. And if the day comes that I can’t afford a trainer, I hope by then to have developed the ability to keep going on my own. While I have this gift, I will enjoy it to the full.
One interesting benefit: making this decision and implementing it seems to have energized me in surprising ways. For instance, I’m also working on other parts of my 5 year plan with an unexpected sense of ease and confidence. Has anyone else experienced this kind of synergistic connection between different spheres of life?
PS I am using synergy here in both its root and spiritual meanings: that is, (root) working together, as well as (spiritual) the idea that regeneration is effected by a combination of human will and divine grace. I kind of like that image. It suggests creating a vision of a healthy life rather than just a mechanical plan.
-Lynne Berrett
