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Lane 8, What’s Next?

Lane 8, “What’s next”?

Face to face questions, as well as emails, ask the same thing, “Are you preparing for any upcoming meets”?

Yes, and no.

YES, there are two big meets in 2010.  The WMA Masters Track & Field Indoor World Championships in early March, in Kamloops, British Columbia.  And there’s the USA Masters Track & Field National Championships, in July, in Sacramento, California.

NO, the left heel pain precludes me from anything remotely intense enough to be considered world class training.

This may be a good thing. If you don’t know, it was never the intent to become a world class Master’s athlete.  But after several years of running and making common sense, common practice, I wanted to see if it could actually be done.

Tomorrow I’ll describe the level of fitness that I didn’t even know I had achieved.  And what it feels like to see it slip away and the thought process on how, and if, I should deal with that.

Skipping Is Easy

Skipping a day of exercise is an easy thing to do.  In fact, it’s actually one of the easiest things to do.  How do I know? Because I did it yesterday.

It was easy.

Just don’t go to the gym.  How hard is that?  It’s not.

However, the intent was to pick up our son at school and head to Gold’s Gym like we commonly do.  The reason I really wanted to go is because I hadn’t been in four days.

Too much time in between workouts does several things:

  • Too much rest negates previous efforts
  • Too much rest makes us lazy
  • Too much rest makes it easier to skip

Skipping a day of exercise is an easy thing to do.  When it comes to taking care of yourself, are you an example or a warning?

Confused?

Confused?  Yes.

In pain?  Yes.

Why?

That’s what is confusing.  Why is the left foot pain returning?

It’s always something isn’t it?  There’s always something that is in front of us that tempts us to want to stop doing what we know we can’t stop doing.

Always has been.  Always will be. Getting so impatient with this that a cortisone shot is looking very tempting – cortisone is something I swore I wouldn’t do.

Yet my podiatrist and I agreed, in March, that we should try one shot.

Now I’m seriously thinking about a second.  Remember, I swore I’d never do a single shot.  Now I’m thinking about a second. Good luck with your temptations today.

Tell Me Again About Lane 8

What is Lane 8?  I’m sort of confused about Lane 8.

Okay, Lane 8 is about the physical gifts we have been given – our body and all the things that make it work.

How we take care of it is our responsibility.  No one else.  Ours!  We own it.  Or not.

At 50, I’ve found that taking care of this “gift” is increasingly more challenging.  As we age, if we get that privilege, we experience things that no one talks about with any decent wisdom.

Part of my vision at Lane 8 is to help people make common sense, common practice.  And, um, oh yes, one other thing – to help people not only get motivated and reach a great health goal – but to stay there.  That’s the key.  Staying healthy.

Still In Pain?

Injuries and pain can make exercising a challenge.  No brainer, right?

Well, I’ve been dealing with injuries for five years now.  Guess you could say, “It’s the cost of doing business”.

I hate to complain, because complaining is fairly unproductive. There is one instance that I’ve discovered where complaining actually is effective.

If it causes you to do something positive about it.  This is a tough one. Misery loves company. Another no brainer, right?

So, saying that to ask you this, “How many times have you exercised this past week”? Carpe diem!