Lane 8.org

Celebrating 50th Birthday in Finland

You know how children like to write to Santa each year to ask for stuff?  It’s no different for adults. Here’s my version.

Dear Dr. Weinberger,

I’ve been a good boy all year.  Have focused on diet and exercise, just like you said to do.

This year’s wish list includes some old standbys and some new things too.

1. Full menu of blood work
2. Colonoscopy script (never used last year’s script)
3. Stress Test
4. Body scan/MRI
5. Check skin
6. Check neck
7. Anything else a 51 year old man should have

My BMI, blood pressure, and resting heart rate all on in line.  Still treating Plantar fasciitis. If you are able to surprise me with any additional tests or recommendations that an especially health-conscious midlife male would like, that would be great.

Have enjoyed the past 27 years as your loyal and attentive patient.

Special Moments Happen Unnoticed

Last night, while watching the Super Bowl, did some blog surfing and found this Lane 8 healthy blog post from last April.

It’s a story about a Father and a Son having a casual conversation that was as significant, as it was insignificant.

These are the small, often unnoticed moments that make life exciting.

You have one you’d like to share?

If your goal isn’t impossible, you’re not reaching high enough.

Hang in there if you are struggling.  Odds are, you are.

I know I sure am. Ran once last week. Once! How is that possible?

So here we are, another week.  Yesterday, I swore there would be time for a run. After delivering four keynote speeches yesterday, each to a different audience, exhaustion took on a whole new meaning. No run.

Today is another day…. for all of us.  Good luck.  Do not give up!

Yesterday I shared the favorite motivation tip:

• Find a million ways

Today, a second favorite:

• Pay attention

In August, I had the privilege to watch a 70-year old man do the equivalent of Roger Bannister breaking the four-minute mile barrier (1956).  Do you trust me enough to click here?

Please know up front that clicking will take you to an August 2009 Lane 8 blog post, which includes my You Tube video of a world record being broken.

Here’s a third motivation tip, as a bonus:

• You must find time and reason to do things you don’t what to do

Blah, blah, blah….hurts like hell. Still.  My foot hurts.  A lot.

If you’re new to Lane 8, welcome.  Earlier this year, there were quite a few Lane 8 blog posts discussing my foot pain and whether or not I could travel to Finland for the Master’s Track & Field World Championships.

And yesterday, after writing the post, “43rd”, it caused me to do several things:

• Be amazingly thankful
• Become more confident
• To feel like a victor, rather than a victim
• Pray for others to overcome their own struggles

The last one in particular is the one that seems most important.

When the going gets tough, the tough get going.

Fall down seven times, get up eight.

If you’re goal isn’t impossible, you’re not reaching high enough.

Carpe diem.  It’s completely up to you. You are the CEO of YOU, Inc.

Yep, it’s gonna hurt like hell to reach your big dreams.  Nothing worthwhile is ever easy. Once you realize that hard work is the way, the way gets easier.  It doesn’t become easy, simply easier.

Okay, so it’s about 4PM on Friday afternoon.  Spent the day working through some serious, and hopefully short-term, sickness.

So of course, this puts Lane 8 behind schedule.  No worries though. Lane 8 is just getting to today’s post and realized that yesterday’s Lane 8 post was about New Year’s Resolutions.

However, had to smile (which felt really good) because the Lane 8 blog post was intended for jeffnoel.org

“Should I move yesterday’s Lane 8 blog post, or maybe delete it?”

“Nope, leave it like it is.” Why?

Because it’s who I am.  I am close to God – through hard work. Many of you can relate. For anyone else, please don’t take offense.  Never intend to sound “preachy”.

Anyway, let’s learn from this.  Physical well being is only one piece of what makes us human.

If you don’t feel healthy and vibrant, guess who moved?

If you’re planning on getting in shape for your New Year’s resolution, now is the time to start thinking about what you are going to do differently – differently than past wellness thoughts and wellness attempts.

Now is the time, not later.  Now. Ya with me?

Everyday Health provides email articles, if you subscribe, on a comprehensive list of Health and Wellness topics.  Yesterday was The Top Ten Wellness Tips

May I summarize what they said with ten tips, and be so bold as to say there is really only one tip?

BE THE ROLE MODEL

Be the model of great health and wellness. Show the people you love, your Family, that great health isn’t a myth, isn’t something reserved for athletes, or good genes.

And be honest too.  You will have to work very hard at it your entire life.  And if you are the model, how can people say it can’t be done?

Can’t explain how my brain works, all I can tell you is that it is constantly turning, churning and burning.  So, this morning, like every morning after the initial routine is done, the process of writing five daily blogs begins.

Lane 8 is third in the order in which I write the five daily blogs. Stay with me, there’s a point to this.

Arriving at the WordPress Blog admin page, I create “a blank sheet of paper“.  Then I pause, think about what to write and get started.  Usually, something from the day before, or something from today’s agenda, is where the inspiration comes from.

Today is a bit more unusual. Click here to see what inspired today’s post.  Make it a GREAT day. It’s completely up to you, isn’t it?

I don’t even know where to begin, sitting in my car here at Gold’s Gym, this morning.

What do you do?  When you’re really busy and you desperately want to workout, but your schedule and all your other life commitments are clamoring for your attention.  What do you do?

This is one of life’s truth’s – life is hard.

And one more – an object at rest tends to stay at rest and an object in motion tends to stay in motion.

Anyway, none of you will have the guts courage to comment on the question here.  But I still love ya.

Seriously, without you, Lane 8 doesn’t matter that much, does it?

Actually, it makes all the difference in the world to my Family.  And if they are the only one’s who are helped by Lane 8, that’ll be enough.

PS.  Why the stronger tone this morning?  Because, sitting here in the car, listening to ZRadio, I’m actually trying to kick my own ass butt.

Great physical health doesn’t happen by wishing.  It happens by doing it.  Find a million ways to get and stay motivated, or you’re doomed.  Carpe diem.

Sure felt good to go for a short run and work out at Gold’s Gym yesterday.

Why?  Because it’s been nearly a week.  Why?  Because I’ve been traveling and working hard.

Got home (from Anchorage, Alaska) about 1AM Thursday morning, got a few hours sleep and taught all day Thursday. Then taught all day yesterday (Friday).

But I refused to let another day go by without exercising.  Sure, I had to get up at 4AM to run and the run wasn’t even half of my usual distance, due to time constraints.  And yes, I was very tired on a Friday afternoon (from travel and a six-day work week).  Did I feel like changing clothes and driving to Gold’s Gym?  Nope.

So what motivated me to go the extra mile?

Simply this.  I’ll be darned if I’m going to give up a decade’s work of life changing health habits because my schedule continues to be challenging.  Here’s a no-brainer: our efforts to get healthy do not matter if we don’t fight hard to win the battle to STAY healthy. Ya with me?