05/29/2024
What do you do when youโre 55 and have a whole long weekend free?
If youโre me, you trek out to the backcountry with friends ten years your junior and go on gruelling, hours-long hikes with 11kg of gear and food on your back, through often thorny and swampy paths, over beaver dams, and grabbing saplings to hoist yourself up craggy, 75ยฐ inclines. All so you can finally land in a secluded spot next to a pristine, clear lake, where there are no other people and the only sounds are those of the local fauna โ crows, owls, frogs, the occasional splash of a fish surfacing to dine.
Why? For me, it's so that hopefully, 10, 15 and 20 years from now, I can continue to do the same thing.
Maintaining strength, mobility, balance, resilience, and endurance is hard work, and truth be told, it does get harder as you get older. Fortunately, regardless of your age, the effort is equally rewarding.
The best way to mitigate this is to make health and fitness a priority early in life - something that is not imparted nearly enough in our largely desk, car, and couch-bound society. Barring that, the next best way is to start from where you are now.
Itโs now going on fifteen years since I started helping people of all ages with their health and fitness, and I am always looking for more effective ways to do this.
In June, I head out to Salt Spring Island in B.C. to work with Shira Yaziv and Sebastian Grubb at Spiral Camp, a week-long movement study intensive. I plan on returning with a bagful of new options and fresh perspectives.
When I get back, I will be hosting a workshop on Saturday, July 13 at Conquer Fitness Bloor West Village - โThe Science of Breathingโ. Learning to breathe well gives us control over nervous activity, and when we have that in our pocket, everything else tends to flow more smoothly. The workshop will be open to gym members and non-members alike.
Lastly, I am also working on a rebranding of my services. Many of my clients want to focus on getting stronger, and while I have resistance bands and kettlebells to assist with that, some people will quickly graduate from that equipment, and will do well to move on a more diverse training system. Fortunately, I have a space where there are free weights, cardio equipment, a running track, as well as a room for movement study and yoga practice โ the aforementioned Conquer Fitness.
Bespoke personal training, coming soon โ stay tuned for details. ๐ช๐ฝ
