Fitness Over Fifty
On January 2nd, 2020 I will turn 50, and I am happier, healthier, and more confident then I have ever been. As someone who found fitness later in life, my perception has been flipped on what it means to be old. I now realize that most everything I had been taught about diet, exercise, and aging was wrong.
The Wrong Path to Fitness
It all began in my early thirties. I felt my best days were behind me. I struggled with my weight, lacked motivation and spent most of my free time on the couch watching TV. I was severely out of shape, and I thought it wasn’t my fault.
It had been drilled into my brain that my metabolism would slow down and my testosterone production would taper off. In my mind, there was nothing I could do about it. These were biological facts, and I had no choice but to accept my new reality of always being tired and lethargic. This thinking went on until my early forties.
I was at an all-time low. I struggled with depression and various addictions. I knew something had to change. I set a goal to run a marathon and gave myself one year to reach it.
My Fitness Journey
Over the next year, my training was very inconsistent, but despite my half-ass commitment, I managed to finish my first marathon painfully. Completing that goal was a pivotal moment in my life. Finishing was hard. I wanted to quit, but I just kept going. I tapped into a part of me I didn’t know existed.
Despite finishing near last, at over six hours, I felt invincible, and I wanted more.
Me at age 49
From that point forward I took my running seriously and promised myself I would run a marathon every year as a way to keep my health in check.
I had read somewhere that running a marathon took a massive toll on the body and recovery takes months. To me, a marathon once a year seemed like a solid goal.
I did this for a few years, until I read “Born to Run” by Christopher McDougall, and it blew my mind.
The real-life characters in the book seemed superhuman. I thought there is no way anyone could run a hundred miles. That’s insane.
I became obsessed with ultrarunning and set a goal of running a 50-mile race. It took a few years, but I did it. Then I ran another and another until finally I decided to attempt the 100-mile distance.
It was a year of intensely focused training, but one month before my forty-seventh birthday I completed the toughest physical and mental challenge of my life.
It had been seven years since I decided to make a change. I had come a long way. And the best part, I feel like I’m just getting started.
The AgeHIGH Mission
Founded on the belief that it is never too late to be your very best, AgeHigh.com will focus on my continuing journey to challenge myself mentally and physically.
AgeHigh is a blog for anyone who refuses to accept the status quo and pushes themselves to live life to the fullest regardless of age.
If I can do it, you can do it!
We are all an experiment of one. AgeHIGH.com is about what works for me. I hope it inspires others to find what works for them. I created the website to help us all be a better version of ourselves and promote the concept of limitless living at any age, and to prove you are never too old to having a meaningful adventure.
