Anti-Aging: I’m Bummed

By Coach John Hughes

Yesterday I went to the Y; my first time in a gym since the start of the pandemic. Argh. Despite working out in my home gym I’ve lost strength.  

I’m reminded of the saying, “He who represents himself in court has a client for a fool.” He who coaches  himself …

I’ve invested in multiple dumbbells and a bench I can adjust from flat to two different inclines. I have multiple different full body exercises and depending on the day I do different ones. What happened? Why have I lost strength?

I’ve made a set of life choices. Not bad choices but they were the priorities for my time.

In the fall of 2019 we sold the big house near Boulder, CO, downsized and bought one in Tabernash, CO with great mountain biking, hiking, downhill and cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. But we only have three paved roads: US 40 and two county roads so I mostly ride trails and gravel.

Several months later we were in social isolation. With great outdoor activities here, our cardio actually improved. We also had lots of projects in the new house, which was about 90% finished.  I have a full set of hand and power tools and like doing projects. I did lots of fire mitigation, which I described in this column: Anti-Aging: The Full Body Workout

And of course, I chopped firewood and shoveled snow. But I wasn’t working out as regularly in the gym.  

After I got home from the Y, I started thinking. I couldn’t lift as heavy weights as before, but I’m still fit for activities of daily living like those above.  

My wife and I bought a tandem kayak the summer after moving here and paddle several days a week. We enjoy watching the osprey, raptors who eat fish. They arrive in the spring to their nests high in the trees on the islands. Then the chicks appear, peaking over the edge of the nests. And learn to fly and dive to catch fish. We enjoy our peaceful new activity together. We go on camping trips with friends to state parks with lakes. By kayaking I built upper body endurance, but not strength. 

Then I got the eBike, which I love. I can ride harder trails, still working hard but not suffering quite as much. And I can ride the hilly dirt roads for several hours. But I don’t ride for as much time or as many miles as I rode regularly on my Merlin road bike around Boulder. Historically I’ve climbed passes over 11,000 feet on my Merlin. This year no passes.

I’m also engaging in volunteer activities:

We’ve joined the Grand County Wilderness Group, whose mission is to help people to enjoy the wilderness responsibly. We’re at trailheads on weekends to answer visitors’ questions and advise how to hike and camp in ways that don’t disturb the environment. This past year the group helped 21,000 visitors at Monarch Lake alone. I’m on the Board and we’re working on a strategic plan for the group — important but time consuming.

I lead discussion groups on foreign policy at the library. Next month we’ll discuss the Ukraine — I’m reading the background book now. I enjoy the intellectual discussions and they help keep my brain sharp.

I participate in the Grand County Community of Writers. I’ve been writing and editing non-fiction since the 1980s. These authors bring short stories and progressive chapters of novels. I’m learning about character development and pacing. Fascinating. 

These volunteer activities bring richness to my life but take time away from exercise.

How to reconcile all of this? 

Am I a dilettante, dabbling in different activities? I prefer to think of myself as a Renaissance man.

Reflecting on the last four years since we moved to the mountains, I don’t regret any of the choices I’ve made. I was an excellent ultracycling racer. I liked training 10, 15 and even 20 hours a week. I enjoyed the multi-day events. But all the training started to feel like a job and I’d peaked as an ultra-racer.

Now I’m a pretty good mountain biker and cross-country skier with loads of room to improve in both sports. I feel challenged in ways I didn’t toward the end of my ultra career. 

I’m working on specific weaknesses:

A truck hit me in 1989 on a training ride for the Race Across America. Among other injuries, my right rotator cuff was irreparably torn. It hurt paddling the kayak. A PT taught me exercises with stretchy cords and this past summer I could kayak pain-free.

We had great snow last winter and I cross-country skied 93 days. And developed an overuse injury: I strained my left glute. The PT gave me a set of exercises this summer and I’ve strengthened both of my glutes and the muscles they connect to.

Cross-county skiing involves putting most of my weight on one foot, pushing down and back with that foot against the snow and quickly shifting my weight to the other ski and gliding forward. The more I can transfer my weight from side to side the better I ski, which requires balance. I bought a balance board and I can easily balance four and five minutes. I even stand on it while washing the dishes. Four years ago I thought two minutes was great.

I am improving in ways that are important to me. I don’t have as much pure strength as four years ago but I have better functional strength for the activities I enjoy.

This quote by Hunter S. Thompson sums up my attitude, “Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming ‘Wow! What a Ride!’” ― The Proud Highway: Saga of a Desperate Southern Gentleman, 1955 – 1967 

The temp is up to 20F. Time to put on my woolie long underwear and ski clothes. If I get going very fast descending on my skinny skis, I get scared, sit down and use my butt as a brake. Today I’ll do descending drills and then ski an easy course to build my endurance.

Thanks for reading.