Twelve years ago this past month, I was on a trip with my family, and we had to run a great distance to get to our airplane gate. We did get there, but not before they closed the doors. It took me 45 minutes to recover from my run that felt like hundreds of kilometres but was probably closer to one and a half kilometres (the gates are very far apart in Frankfurt!).
As I sat there — red faced, sweaty, lungs exhausted by the effort — I made a resolution. I had, over the years, run 10-mile races, rowed in regattas, walked trails, swam lengths, played field and floor hockey, and lobbed balls of all sorts, with a decent amount of enjoyment. But back in 2013, I was out of shape, and I felt it.
It was past time to take my fitness seriously again. A good friend had been powerlifting for a while and was loving it. I found a trainer and began. My first visits to the gym were painful. There was so much I found difficult and awkward. The muscle aches the day after weren’t great either.
Somehow, I kept going. I signed up for ten-session blocks and did that for more than a year. I settled into a routine. I kept going back. Again and again.
Things got less awkward. I learned how to use the tools. I learned to listen to my body, to push it, and then push some more. If I skipped a session due to illness or holidays, I missed it. I never thought I would feel the absence of hard physical effort keenly, but I was there.
So 12 years on, what have I learned? It takes patience and persistence, along with a good bit of bloody-mindedness. It’s consistency, curiosity and commitment. I won’t break any world records because the only person I am competing against is me, but every day I move forward, I am more confident in my strength, more comfortable with my body’s ability to do the things I want and need it to do.
This month, I approached the midpoint of my 60s, almost a decade past my initial vow of Fitat55. I am looking forward to the next decade with excitement: what will I take on next in my continuing goal of functional fitness? I can’t wait to find out.
