Nothing great to say?

I’ve shared more than once here at Pierini Fitness about my daily practice of reading obituaries in my, now, former hometown newspaper.  I initially shared it over twelve years ago here:

Reading the obits 

Living in a different town in another state, I still read my former hometown obits each morning, but have also started reading them in my hometown weekly newspaper.  Now, however, I don’t occasionally encounter reading about the passing of an old elementary or high school buddy or a former client.

Still, I enjoy reading the obits of those who have passed, learning about the life they lived and the good person they were, even if skeletons in the closet details of lives they lived, or the jerk they were, are omitted. 

Now at the tail end of my middle-age manhood, I’m approaching the timeline in my life where I’ll soon be able to count the years of life I have remaining with the fingers on my hands.  It’s an eerie realization that my date with the Grim Reaper is getting closer by the day.

Another similar math-oriented realization mental exercise is making a wild guess of how many years of life I may have remaining and then adding it to the current age of my four little grandsons.  I did that yesterday while driving to Sunday Mass. 

If, for example, I make it to age 80, my youngest grandson will be 16 years old, the only age during which when I looked in the mirror and truly saw a 16-year-old kid.  If that happened to be my exit planet earth age, I’d miss his high school graduation.

That would be a shame.

If I thrive reading the obits of others, maybe I should grab a paper and pen and compose mine. 

Would I enjoy reading my obit?

What would it say?

Maybe it’ll be like the obituaries I typically read; a wonderful story about a great person who lived a great life.  I’m sure such a fictional composition is within my literary paygrade.

But in a moment of truthful reflection, I ponder what if there’s nothing great to say?

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

Dead butt syndrome

Reflecting on the last 40 years working in the rat race, now that I’m a retired man, I realize that the work I did came with an occupational hazard of sitting for a living.  So much that when people saw me standing while they were sitting, they’d often tell me to have a seat, to which I replied that I sit for a living and, therefore, choose to stand.

Yup, I put a lot of time sitting on my seat that it’s a wonder I didn’t develop bed sore-like outcroppings on my gluteus maximus.  Maybe I did but didn’t know because I couldn’t see them. 

I suppose, maybe, all the fitness training I’d done canceled the damage from all this sitting, not to mention the known health risks.  There’s no shortage of internet articles warning us about the perils of a seated lifestyle.  While sitting, I’d always skip these articles because they didn’t have “preaching to the choir” content of interest.

Now that I’m a retired man, I realize that I still spend time sitting, perhaps more than the average retired man, but honestly, I don’t know for sure.  In the words of an internet fitness brother from a different mother who once shared his thoughts about this subject, “I enjoy a good sit.”

But a recent internet article I skimmed brought to my attention a condition caused from sitting too much.  It’s familiarly coined “dead butt syndrome” but the medical term for this ailment is called gluteus medius tendinopathy, although it’s also often referred to as gluteal amnesia.

Digging a little deeper, while sitting and reading, I learned that this condition results from the gluteal muscles essentially “forgetting” their main purpose: supporting the pelvis and keeping your body in proper alignment.  It’s caused from spending hours a day sitting and not getting up frequently to stand, walk, or otherwise move around.

This new knowledge begged me to answer the question if I might be afflicted with this malady, unbeknownst to me. 

Or maybe the fitness training of high-volume kettlebell swings, Asian Squat holds, burpees and running has given me a protective hedge from this comfortable lifestyle ailment.

Time will tell as I pay more attention to my hindside, hopefully though, not living in fear that I’m sporting a serious case of dead butt syndrome.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

Sit down and shut up!

Last week, my jabbering reflection shared how there’s too much joy I’m experiencing just being rather than doing.  Yesterday, while spending time with my 6-year young grandson, I had an opportunity to suggest he do the same.

He came up to me after suffering from a long one minute from having nothing to do, telling me that he was restless and bored; he wanted to be told of something new to do.  I came to his aid with a suggestion and a great youthful example of being rather than doing.

What was it I suggested to my grandson in response to his wanting something to do?

I suggested something seemingly so simple, but perhaps not so for an energetic 6-year young grandson who has yet to master the joy of stillness being.

I suggested he sit down and shut up!

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

Another amazing sunset

f

February 8, 2021 at 6:21 pm outside the front door
 of the worldwide headquarters of Pierini Fitness 

When announcing to the world - my small personal world – late last year that I was retiring, I got lots of responses, ranging from congratulatory greetings to unsolicited advice and comments.  A common denominator of comments I received was that I would eventually get bored and end up back working at least part-time.  Now that I’m in my sixth month of retirement, it’s as good a time as any to reflect and share if this boredom phenomenon has arisen in my being, either entirely or in part.

Nope!

Yup, as of this moment, I have no desire to jump back in the rat race as a part-time business owner, consultant, or an employee working for someone else.

When in the rat race, however, I’d regularly say that when I retire, my legacy career would be working as a bagger at Trader Joe’s, a store where we shop for groceries.  Over many years shopping there, I’d watched their various employees doing their jobs.  They all had smiles on their faces and looked like they thoroughly enjoyed their jobs.  I would always think that maybe I would want some of that.  I envisioned myself bagging groceries or restocking shelves while moving around the store with some bouncy energy in my swift movement from here to there. 

It seemed so free of the highly technical nature of the work I did in my career where I was constantly using my brain and knowledge to serve clients needing my skills.

Truth be told, I currently have no desire to do anything like this, and I don’t need the money.  I’m still in the honeymoon stage of being a middle-age man retired person. 

How long will it last? 

Who knows, but I’m having strong beliefs that it’ll last longer for me than it does for others who are retired.

I think what separates me from them is that I have a lazy gene with which I was born.

Even though I worked my tail off for over 40 years, behind that external hard-working self-employed businessperson character resided an inherently lazy man.  Now that I’m retired, this lazy man is front and center and my new external character; I see him every morning when looking in my bathroom mirror.

This lazy gene protects me from the boredom others experience of not having anything to do.  I’ll never suffer from performance addiction as a retired person.  There’s too much joy just being rather than doing. 

To count my blessings and smell the roses – or maybe cactus, while looking forward to another late afternoon to view the beauty, outside my home front door, of another amazing sunset.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

A pancake I didn't like

Thanks to my grandmother, I grew up developing a joy of eating pancakes.  She would make them for me for breakfast whenever I visited her which was often.  I have fond memories of feeding myself full as a young boy and, later, as a teenager.  There was no better feeling than that of feeling full after eating a good stack of pancakes, topped with butter and maple syrup.

This joy carried over into my adulthood and still lasts today as a middle-age man.  I like pancakes and eat them often.

And the tradition of being a grandson eating pancakes also continues because now I regularly make them for my grandsons who live two houses away; they like them too.  I make breakfast pancakes for them often, as often as they like which is often.  I take great delight doing because of the joy on their faces eating my pancakes and the fond memories of my grandmother making them for me and the delight on her face from the joy of making them for me.  I hope one day down the road, when I obviously won’t be around, that this ritual will continue with my older adult grandsons making pancakes for their grandsons, or granddaughters.

Aside from keeping this familial ritual alive, I also take great delight in eating pancakes when going to a restaurant for breakfast.  Mrs. Pierini Fitness oftentimes can’t believe that I’m ordering pancakes again for breakfast, rather than scrambled eggs, hash browns and toast like she does.  Only a pancake-eating middle-age man would understand why my breakfast choice seldom changes.  I’ll do a waffle or French toast every now and then, but good old-fashioned buttermilk pancakes are my preference.

In the new town where I live, there’s a popular restaurant that always has a full house for early morning breakfast.  About one month ago, I went there for the first time with my wife and lo and behold, pancakes were on the breakfast menu.  The menu warned to only order one because they’re very big.  There was an option of ordering two which had me scratching my head because I think of a full-stack consisting of three good-size pancakes and about right for a starving middle-age man. 

When placing my order, the waitress confirmed that their pancakes were very large and that they generally talk most people out of ordering more than one.  My first reaction was that this waitress knew not of my pancake-eating legend.  I was inclined to order two pancakes but at the last minute, submitted to her recommendation ordering just one.

I’m glad I did because the pancake she brought me was huge, as in manhole size huge!

I only ate one pancake at the Horseshow Cafe

I managed to eat that one giant pancake, but it took some work which left me surprised because I was hungry.  I took a picture of this pancake before eating it and sent it to some friends in a text message with this comment: “My wife and I went out for breakfast. I wasn’t that hungry, so I only ordered one pancake.”

I’ve never met a pancake I didn’t like.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

My middle-age man fitness, health, and wellness journey

Jumping for joy, I made it to age 66!

First some ancient history.

When I was a kid, today, February 22^nd was Washington’s Birthday, a national holiday, and a no-school day.  We kids loved it.  Ten days earlier, February 12^th, was Lincoln’s Birthday, also a national holiday and a no-school day.  We kids loved it too.  Somewhere and sometime later, the powers to be came up with a change and created President’s Day, honoring both George Washington and Abraham Lincoln.  Now, on with today’s reflection.

Pierini Fitness recently had a birthday and is now a 66-year young middle-age man.  The countdown advances for my entry into old manhood which I’ve defined as age 70 years.  I’m trying to make the best of my middle-age man years that I have left.  How time flies when you’re having fun.

Speaking of time flying, my 65^th year did just that – flew by fast and was full of action and change.  One year ago, I never thought in my wildest dreams that I would have done all that I did this past year.

I became a Medicare Man and started realizing big savings in my health insurance costs.

I retired and sold my business.

I relocated to another state and bought a new home.

I did other stuff too, but I won’t bore you with those details.

Age 65 was a good year and one of those birthdays right up there with age 16 (old enough to drive), age 21 (old enough to drink) and age 25 (old enough to start saving in auto insurance premiums.)

Were there other key birthdays along my journey?  I’d say so but it would take some reflection to come up with a list.  Maybe I’ll save that chore for another day and it’ll be another Pierini Fitness reflection.

Thus far, as I enjoy age 66, I continue being blessed with good fitness, health, and wellness.  To be honest, I’m currently not as fit as I was last year, but fitter than most men my age.  Good enough sums it up best.

Am I a better person by other benchmarks?  Who knows; that’ll take some honest reflection.  Maybe I’ll save that chore for another day and it’ll be another Pierini Fitness reflection.

I do know this, I’m thoroughly enjoying being a retired person and have no burning desire to practice my profession on a reduced-scale basis, or to work some part-time job to have something to do. Nor do I have a calling to run out and volunteer for this or that at my church or some local community organization.  I’ve got four little grandsons living two houses away who always are a source of action, entertainment, and responsibility if I need some of that.

So here I am because, wherever I go there I am.  Therefore, it only makes sense to continue marching forward in my middle-age man fitness, health, and wellness journey.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

Hanging around

I’m a middle-age man fitness character who seems to do best if there’s a measurable fitness challenge that I’m chasing.  Recently, I chased a goal I had of doing an Asian Squat for 10 minutes.  I diligently trained to improve the time in the squat, starting off with a modest 2-minute squat and advance to 10 minutes over the course of about six weeks.  I’m still doing Asian Squats because I’ve learned of their value and spillover benefit to other aspects of my life.

But there’s time for a new kid on the block in my fitness challenge world and it is a pull-up bar hang hold for time.

I have a history of doing pull-up bar hang holds for time over my middle-age man fitness training journey.  To the best of my knowledge, the longest I’ve hung before dropping was for 2:08 but that was done a long time ago, exact date unknown.  In 2019, I decided to resurrect this and managed to hang for 2:02 before dropping.  Then, the exact reason unknown, I got distracted or lost interest and made no further progress.

A couple weeks ago, I began hanging for time.  The first time I lasted for 1:30 before dropping.  On my second attempt, I lasted for 1:33.  Last week, I managed to hang for 1:48.  Here’s that effort:

Progress comes slow unless the training is structured which it now is.  I’m taking an interval training approach like what I did for the Asian Squats.  I’m also doing some forearm endurance training using a fitness gadget I recently purchased.  I’ll have more to say about that one in a later blog post.

Pierini Fitness will soon be a 66-year young middle-age man fitness dude and it sure would be nice if before his birthday he’s able to surpass his lifetime best of 2:08.  I’m training with that short-term goal in mind.

So, it’s fair to say that, until further notice, I’m going to be spending time hanging around.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

A good and honest life

It’s something sort of difficult to admit but I will; Pierini Fitness is having a hard time writing new middle-age man reflections about living and dying, gracefully-aging, and trying to live a good and honest life.  It has been my genre for a long time, so I see no need to change it.

At various times in my long blogging journey, I’ve encountered similar “dryness.”  I think it’s something all artists and writers experience from time to time.  Sometimes it’s the result of burnout and other times, it’s the result of lethargy.  I’m not sure which of the two, or something else, that’s fueling my current episode.

Maybe I’m not spending enough time reflecting about the life I’m living but this seems hard to believe.  After all, I’m retired now from the rat race and one could argue I have much more time for pondering that in my past. 

Maybe it’s the new surroundings I’m living; a new home in a new state with none of the familiar outcroppings that for so many years were my life.  I’m not sure that’s an excuse, however, because you’d think that the newness that’s part of my life would create boundless opportunities to think about this and that, to reflect about the life I’ve lived and the life I hope to live for the rest of my life.

Blah, blah, blah, I could ramble on forever and it would not lead me to a light at the end of my dryness tunnel, a passageway I must go through to emerge into a state of being and mindset where and when I start to bang out some homerun written reflections.

If you have anything to add to what I’ve shared that might illuminate the darkness of where I’m at as a blogger, please let me know.

If not, be patient because it’s a matter of time before I’m fully back on my middle-aged man reflective saddle giving you my two cents about living and drying, gracefully-aging, and trying to live a good and honest life.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

My Burpees 2021 Journey

Last week I told you about my Asian Squat Journey that’s currently in progress.  I’m pleased to report I had a good training week and was able to set a new personal best, a 9:00 Asian Squat.  Here’s video proof of my latest proud accomplishment:

As also previously shared, I have a goal of completing an Asian Squat for 10:00 by my 66^th birthday.  I have about five weeks to accomplish this goal and at this point, I’m confident I will.  Check back often for updates. 

Moving on to another 2021 fitness training preoccupation I have; it’s with an old friend named burpees.  I’m calling this fitness training preoccupation my Burpees 2021 Journey. 

For 2021, I’m going to complete 100 burpees workouts of at least 100 burpees.  The burpees I do have a pushup and hands-extended overhead jump with each repetition.  The jump makes them harder; at least that’s my story and I’m sticking with it.

Last year around this time, I was knee-deep with my burpees workouts and had a goal of completing 100 burpees in 10:00 or less.  I never achieved this goal but got, sort of, close with a time of 10:37 until distractions and/or burnout arrived. 

Reviewing past training journals, my current time to complete 100 burpees is about what it was last year.  I’ve completed three burpees workouts thus far in my 2021 Burpees Journey and have 97 more workouts to do.  Just hanging in there and showing up will result in progress which’ll be nothing more than reclaiming what I had last year and eventually lost.  Maybe, this year, I’ll finally achieve my goal of completing 100 burpees in 10:00 or less.

Here’s my latest effort, burpees workout number three.  You’ll notice I’m sucking air because I’m not in burpees conditioning shape.  I’ll be back.

I’m asking that you privately cheer for me as I travel down my middle-age man fitness training highway working my 2021 Burpees Journey.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

My Asian Squat Journey

I still have vivid memories from over 46 years ago when I was a young soldier stationed in the Republic of South Korea.  A bunch of us soldiers would regularly spend time in the village outside our military base.  We’d roam here and there, down the main streets and into the meandering alleys where homes were located on both sides. 

I’d notice Koreans in front of the homes engaging in conversations with their neighbors while, for some, smoking their cigarettes.  They weren’t sitting or standing but in a very low squat position known by some as the Asian Squat.  They’d stay in this position for what seemed like forever.

Another Asian Squat memory I have is one day when I witnessed a group of Korean mechanics who were taking a break in front of the garage where they worked.  There must have been a half dozen of them in a circle.  They were smoking cigarettes and talking and laughing while playing a board game.  They stayed in this position their entire break time and then when their break was over, they sprung up like frogs and went back to work. 

This is all an introduction to something I’ve been doing the past month that I’ve named my Asian Squat Journey. I’m spending time perfecting me being in the Asian Squat bottom position, trying to improve the duration of time I can spend before crumbling to my knees and quitting.

The first time I did this, about one month ago, I timed myself and stayed in the squat bottom position for a whopping two minutes.  That was, unbeknownst to be at the time, the beginning of my Asian Squat Journey.  How long will it last and where will it lead me?  Time will tell but thus far, I’m having fun in my journey.

Since progress comes from training and not just by being good looking, I’ve been training and have settled into two workouts.  The first one is a timed hold that I do at least once a week.  Thus far, I’ve been video recording my tests and uploading them on YouTube for my archival benefit so that when I’m an old man sitting in a rocking chair and crapping my pants, I’ll be able to take great delight in thinking about the things I used to do.

Thus far, my best is an 8-minute hold.  Unfortunately, I had video recording technical difficulties of that accomplishment so there’s no video evidence thus far.  But I did upload on YouTube an executive briefing video of my accomplishment.

Here’s a video of my 7-minute Asian Squat hold:

The other training workout I do is called my Asian Squat Interval Training Workout.

It consists of 15 rounds every minute on the minute where I sit in the Asian Squat bottom position for a fixed time interval and then stand and shake it out for recovery.  I believe I started out with 20-second squat holds with 40-seconds recovery and have advanced to 45-second squat holds with 15-seconds recovery. I did try a 50-second squat hold with 10-seconds recovery, but I had a bad day and threw in the towel after completing seven rounds.  I’ll try that workout again, probably this week.

I’ve done another interval training workout during which I superset shorter-duration Asian Squat holds in tandem with rounds of alternating pull-ups and chin-ups done every minute on the minute for 30 minutes.  The goal is to complete 100 repetitions of pull-ups and chin-ups and get some decent squat time in.  For these interval workouts, my squat times have been shorter thus far, ranging from 20-seconds to 25-seconds.  I’ll try 30-seconds my next workout and see how it goes.

In the process of achieving what I have thus far, I announced to myself a short-term goal of a 10-minute Asian Squat which I’d like to achieve by my upcoming birthday in about six weeks.  We’ll see if I do it.  If not, I’ll keep marching forward because I’m liking the benefits this training is giving me.  I’ll have more to say about these benefits in the future.

So, until further notice, I’m having a good time with my Asian Squat Journey.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum