This appeared first on LinkedIn.
Until I hit the big 5-0, I thought I was doing pretty well for my age. I could run, lift, climb, work late into the night without feeling like a truck had hit me the next morning, and bounce back from workouts faster than most of my peers. My health numbers? Spotless. Blood sugar, cholesterol, blood pressure, liver function, uric acid, haemoglobin, every test result a smug little pat on my back. My doctor friends were intrigued that a man with so many divorces and bankruptcies could be so… happily healthy.
As for fitness, I had my sports phase with squash, boxing, circuit training, and aerobics. Then my adventure phase with golf, paragliding, and motorcycling (which I still indulge in). And my legendary claim to fame. 800 Indian-style pushups a day in college. A fact my friends are sick of hearing.
Of course, I was not all virtue. I enjoyed my drinks (still do). Smoked like a chimney for 28 years. But I quit seven years ago, so please, feel free to be impressed. And I spent enough time in reflection, reading, consuming content, riding, and walking to keep my mental fitness in check, because, as we all know, it is not enough to be physically fit if you are not also a profound thinker who contemplates the mysteries of life while doing squats.
Even today, at 52, I have stuck to my daily 10 to 20-kilometre walks and my 8:30 PM sleep, 4 AM wake-up routine because why just be fit when you can also be shit-eatingly self-satisfied about it?
Then, last year, the slowdown began. My knees now negotiate before stairs. Recovery takes forever. I only start jogging if I see another runner coming up ahead, and that too, just enough to overtake them. Because, ego. The 800 pushups guy is now the “Let me sit for a minute” guy.
So, tell me. How does an Indian man in his fifties measure fitness? How many pushups should I be doing? How much should I be able to lift? How fast should I run? Who made these standards? And how scientific are they? Any answers?
And yes, I know I could tie this to “What my fitness journey taught me about leadership,” but I live in mortal fear of being featured on LinkedIn Lunatics. So, let us not go there.
But I’d love to know about you. What keeps you moving? Or are you, like me, just trying to outrun the inevitable, while holding onto the illusion that you are still a force of nature and not just another ageing uncle in the park doing questionable ‘exercise’ that involves clapping your hands vigorously and breathing rather aggressively at no one in particular?
P.S.: Did I mention I used to do 800 push-ups daily in college?
Photo from my 51st birthday (I think).
