Chapters left to be written

Longevity expert Peter Attia has been making the social media rounds this past week at a higher pace than normal after appearing on the television news program 60 Minutes last Sunday. If his name doesn’t ring your bell, he’s a Canadian American author, physician and researcher known for his work in longevity medicine. He’s one of many peddling to the crowd of those wanting to live forever. 

 

I didn’t view this 60 Minutes segment because I don’t own a television, a luxury for “rich people.” But I was able to read various internet articles and view several videos highlighting his message. I won’t repeat all that he had to say, but there were a couple of soundbites striking a chord with me.  

 

The one hitting me like a hard slap in the face was him talking about the “marginal decade,” defined as the final 10 to 15 years of life when many are plagued with sickness and immobility; when strength, balance, and independence collapse for most.  He explained that at age 75, both men and women fall off a cliff. At this population level, he explains, it’s unmistakable what happens at the age of 75.  That’s what we’re up against. 

 

His longevity ministry evangelizes that the best “drug” to delay physical and cognitive decline is exercise, something he does in large doses.  He personally targets 10 hours of exercise a week and what he does includes cardiovascular training to burn fat and improve his VO2 max (a measure of respiratory fitness) and weightlifting to maintain his strength and muscle mass.  It was reassuring to know that the exercise he advocates for longevity is what Pierini Fitness does daily. And I best continue because I’m less than five years away from falling off this cliff he talks about. 

 

So, I’ll keep doing what I’m doing because it serves me well.  As social media fitness guy Chandler Marchman recently said, “If you always do what you did, you’ll always get what you always got.” I like what I’m doing and what it has got me in my upper percentile fitness, health, and wellness department. 

 

Talking to myself, I’ll keep training knowing that my gracefully aging physical fitness is a success story with chapters left to be written. 

 

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum 

5-year anniversary being a retired man

Five years ago, I became a retired man after 40 years of hard work as a self-employed business owner. How time flies when you're having fun!

Retirement is an honorable profession, and I highly recommend it. Work hard, live an honorable life, and God willing, you'll get your turn if you're not already there. 

Yup, today I’m celebrating my 5-year anniversary of being a retired man.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

 

There’s a law of the vital few named the Pareto Principle; it’s sometimes described as the 80/20 rule. Simply stated, it’s that roughly 80 percent of effects come from 20 percent of the causes.  I’ve heard about it before but never paid much attention to better understanding it.  Today, I decided to read more about it and see where this leads me.

An internet search indicates that in 1941, management consultant Joseph M. Juran, developed the concept in the context of quality control and improvement after reading the works of Italian sociologist and economist Vilfredo Pareto.  Pareto first wrote about the 80/20 connection while teaching at a university.  Pareto noted that approximately 80% of Italy's land was owned by 20% of the population.  

Might the Pareto Principle be relevant to my fitness training?

Absolutely and there’s no shortage of articles on the internet that you can find and read if you’re interested.  There’s no need for me to add my lengthy blabbering to what’s already out there.

For example, fitness training can be measured by its frequency and duration, such as the number of training days per week or the number of hours of fitness training per workout session.  Can I achieve 80 percent of my fitness results with 20 percent of effort?

What do you think?

I think so but I’m going to have to think about this some more and ask the tough question of what’s my 20 percent?

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

Service to our country

How time flies when we’re getting old.  Today I fondly remember my dearly departed Dad on his 99^th birthday.  I privately refer to him as the original, first generation, Pierini Fitness. 

While he has NOW been gone for twelve years, it seems like it was only yesterday when I was with him at our local YMCA weight room and he was explaining to me the nuances of performing barbell exercises correctly and safely.  My joy of fitness training has its origin in many sources but most notably the examples he set. 

He was a member of the “Great Generation” of men, defined as people born from 1901 to 1927.  They were shaped by the Great Depression and were the primary generation composing military forces during World War II. 

They became sailors and soldiers at an age when some had not officially entered manhood, an age that nowadays many are still acting like young boys playing video games in their parent’s basement.  

My Dad and many others answered the call to duty to serve their country during World War II and, today, we live in a better country because of them. 

Rest in peace sailor and thank you for your service to our country.

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

Due every day

 

The perspectives I have as a 70-year-old man are different than ones I had when younger and youthful. Like, there’s no free lunch, even as a retired guy like Pierini Fitness, so I must work every day to earn my gracefully aging fitness, health and wellness “meals.”

This means eating well, but not excessively, exercising smartly and efficiently, not stupidly and strenuously, and being grateful for all my blessings, rather than lamenting about my life burdens or toils.

What would I do better if I could?  My answer is that if I could have done better, I would. 

What I have is what I’ve earned.  My success is never owned, it’s rented, and the rent is due every day. 

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum

Go find less

As a 70-year-old man, I’ve had lots of time to become full of my bloviating self on a large-scale and felonious basis.  I suspect this is also true for most old men, excepting the small crowd of gentle, humble, and kind old men.  It goes with the old man turf, or the old macho man world turf, and we old men, or rather old and cantankerous codgers, can’t help ourselves. 

 

But the good news is that despite being afflicted with this “condition”, along with being annoyingly jaded, loud, rude and anything else you can think of, a caring and kind heart often co-exists deep within our psyche and soul if you’re willing to peel off the layers of thick skin we’ve grown over the years to protect ourselves from the evils of the world to which we’re exposed. It’s as if we’re a macho bipolar codger of the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde kind, capable of sending confusing signals and soundbites, along with threats to all who dare cross us and our paths. 

 

Meanwhile, our wives and significant female others have spent a lifetime trying to change us, taking up this treacherous assignment when they, and we, were young, believing that it was in their power to turn us around to the person they thought they had caught, only to discover the person we really were and are.  They constantly ooze in frustration after many years of futile efforts, and discover that what they got, long ago, is what they still have today. 

 

To our damsels in distress, us older guys can often be heard telling them, “If I’m too much, go find less.” 

Pax Domini sit semper vobiscum