Looking Out My Back Window #402

Originally posted on Facebook HERE

We are home. This week I’ve been thinking a lot about life, like I usually do I guess. More specifically as it relates to the past and the future. At 65 years old, and turning 66 later this year… the past that has been written can’t be changed. Unless I live to be over 130 – the bulk of my life has already been lived. It’s a weird place to be. I was journaling today about what I’d like to do, to be, and maybe to change, to create the best future for myself. In twenty years I’ll be 85 if I make it. Eighty-five is only twenty years away. And right away, the number one goal became painfully clear: do everything I can do to stay healthy. Physically and mentally healthy. It’s priority one. I’m fairly healthy I guess, but my job is basically sitting all day. It does not get easier to workout as you age, either. I’m a vegetarian, which certainly has some health benefits – but, it also means a lot of carbs (rice, pasta, breads, etc) – and my sugar and salt intakes are probably not the greatest. I’m mainly worried about my cardio, though. The older you get, the more important it is to move – every day. EVERY DAY. In some fashion. But it’s also way easier to not move, to let it slide, to have that extra helping for dinner, to skip the run, than it is to have the discipline to just do something every day. And I’ve found over the years that if I set a goal like “run 2+ miles every day” – nothing about speed or anything, just get to two miles however long it takes… and I string together a few days in a row, it starts to become a habit. It works its way into my daily routine. The longer I do it, the more I don’t want to break the streak. And I’ve also found in the past that the more I workout and do cardio, the less I’m attracted to eating anything that isn’t healthy. Or overeating. I know all this, and I’ve known it for years. Am I doing any of it at this time? Nope. I workout at least three times a week, but not every day. It’s a never ending wave for me – the ups and downs of maintaining physical health. I get disgusted with myself, then get to work. I maintain a decent daily routine for a long time (last one was 292 days in a row), then I start to ease off a bit, and a few years later – I’m disgusted again. But looking at it today, at my age – there is a newfound sense of urgency, I think. Because ages 45-65 blew by. And 85 isn’t that far away. We can only control what we can control when it comes to our health, but we can control how much and how intense we work at maintaining our physical and mental health. I, for one – need to step it up a couple notches. Starting today. Because the future just called and said “it’s incredible here – if you can make it this far”. Get serious or suffer the consequences. No time like the present.