Anyway, I ran 11 km, 10 of which was measured. I ran the 10 km with a 6:28 pace which put me at 1:04:47 or so in terms of time. The additional km is just for warm up and cool down. The actual total distance is around 11.75 km. Anyway, the reason why I am laughing is that I seem to be an old man. Today at the track, another man about my age or maybe slightly older commented to me as I ran past him on one of my 50 laps that I ran really fast for an old guy. Well, first of all, I certainly do not run fast compared to my peers. Secondly, this is one of those times where I was caught by surprise at the fact that I am obviously an old man just to look at me.
This got me to thinking about other times when I have been the subject of incredulous amazement from mostly younger people at how I could possibly run 50 laps or do what I do, which is run marathons and do karate. I am beginning to think that young people expect old people to be dead. They certainly do not expect them to be in better shape mentally or physically than they are. In one sense, this is extremely amusing. In another sense it is a tragic reflection on the state of health of the majority of “old people”.
After my indoor run, I always head for the hot tubs with their strong massaging jets so I can unwind and stretch out those muscles. I stretch my IT band and other leg muscles after the run while in the hot tub and one day someone thought I was having a heart attack or something as they inquired if I was all right. (I was bending over really putting the stretch on my IT band). Today, another “old guy” wondered if I was doing tai chi (why, God only knows), and we had a short conversation during which he told me he was completely uninterested in doing any kind of workout whatsoever. Inside, I was shocked. I just could not understand how any person could care so little about their body and their health. And what about the impression of the young re: older people? Is it not based on truth?
I get the impression that most “old people” (and I see a lot of them walking around the indoor track), have no hope and do not believe that they can do anything really significant in terms of exercise for health. Do they think that it’s easy for me because I am somehow specially gifted and did not have to work very hard for it? Many of them come dressed in casual street clothes and even carry their purses with them as they nonchalantly walk around the track. This is not commitment. Others of my age and older are much more committed and they are obviously there to work out. The uncommitted or uncertain see someone like me, who is relatively very fit and can literally run circles around them, and they must think that I am somehow special and have some sort of mysterious talent that they were not born with.
This is all very upsetting to me because I am not special at all. I worked very hard and overcame many obstacles to get where I am today in terms of health and fitness. There is no miracle, no innate talent, just hard work and commitment. I am, in fact, very ordinary and very average. In the activities I do, the people I “compete” with are all elite athletes, at least in terms of averages. In my age group, I am always the slowest person running. And it will always be so because the more I improve, the better my “competitors” become because they also are improving. I will always be the slowest of the slow, the worst of the worst. I am, in fact, pathetic. But compared to those who do nothing but wait to die, I guess I am not so pathetic.
Why do the vast majority of people in my age group (let’s just say between the ages of 50 and death – I will be 57 in May) not do anything to improve their well being? This is incomprehensible to me. What is wrong with this picture? Is it because they are old with many physical problems and if they can’t be the best, why even try? I just don’t get it.
I’ll never be the best. I will never even place in my age group – unless no one else of my age group shows up – but that does not stop me from being the best I can be. Because it’s not about the race. It’s about being healthy and happy. It’s about meeting and being with other people who care about themselves enough to make an effort. If you want to be a certain thing, then you must hang around like minded people or else it just won’t happen.
Remember, whether you run fast and strong or slow and steady, you must realize that your running benefits only one person: Guess who. So why worry about how you place. No one cares. Of course, if I were the fastest, I might care…heh heh.