Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Getting Older, Gracelessly

Standing in line last Saturday to register for a 5K run, I overheard a mom talking to her daughter.

“You can’t run in the 14-year-old division yet. You’re not 14,” the mom said earnestly.

“But I’m almost 14,” the girl moaned in that “my parents are stupid they’ll never understand me” voice that only teen-agers know how to use.

As I stood there, joints aching in the early-morning chill and waiting for the Advil to kick in, I had to smile at their conversation. It didn’t seem that long ago I was trying to speed up time so I could drive, go to college, start making money (still waiting for that).

Heck, I even fudged my age to get into a 35-and-over basketball league a few years back. Sure I was 34 years old and not that far under the age minimum, but like that 13-year-old girl at the race last week I just wanted to add a little more life experience to my birth certificate.

Funny how things change. This Saturday I turn 37. And while that’s not necessarily old, it’s certainly older. And that increased age seems to bring more physical limitations.

It takes longer to recover from a game of basketball. It gets harder to lose the weight gained during a pizza binge. I actually have checked my blood sugar and cholesterol levels. I’ve gone to a doctor, even when things weren’t wrong.

Working for a healthcare provider has made me more cognizant of what I should be doing to stay healthy. As 40 closes in, I know that all of the choices I made years ago could come back to haunt me – which makes the choices I make today that much more important.

It’s frustrating not to be able to do what I want to do, when I want to do it, without my body contradicting me. It’s distressing to hear joints crack every time I get out of a chair. It’s maddening to still be carrying around 10 (OK, 15) extra pounds that would’ve been lost a decade ago simply with some strenuous exercise.

But it’s all part of getting older. And it’s certainly better than the alternative.

--Scott Samples
Public Information Coordinator

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Dear old man Scott,

Great blog today!

Stephen from Franklin Street

Anonymous said...

As someone who is also closing in on 40, I too worry about the unhealthy choices I made years ago. And even though I'm old enough to know better, it's difficult to discipline myself now to eat healthy foods, to exercise regularly, etc.

Thanks for the blog Scott - I really enjoy it.

Tacy