We’ve had quite a few older members join us recently, which is amazing because I have felt for the past few years that this was the population that we were underserving – retirees, those who suddenly have more time on their hands for fitness and health and are wondering what the hell to do with it. And I’ve had a few candid conversations with some new members about not reliving “the glory days”, back when you were a gym rat and could squat 500, or you were a competitive rugby player and nothing seemed to hurt the next day. Now, we (and I’ll grudgingly include myself in this category) have consequences for our ego in the gym or our late-night partying. It hurts! And it keeps us out of training the next day, and the day after that. So I have a couple targeted messages for the membership today.
To the aging athletes and former champions: Be Kind to Yourself. Remember and celebrate the amazing athletic accomplishments that you have had. For some of us, it might have even been in the sport of CrossFit, with a sub-4-minute Fran 10 years ago or a 1000-lb Total. By the way, if you don’t know what those mean, you missed out on some fun times.
Now be patient with your body that has very little wiggle room for injury or burnout if we pour ourselves onto the fire too quickly. Embrace the future of consistent training with few setbacks, and the goal of living a great physical life, able to do all the things that you want to outside of the gym.
To those that would say they are “in their prime”, Enjoy It! You know that we did. Now is the time to accomplish your audacious physical goals, and work hard for them. But if others’ shoulder reconstructions and early knee replacements could talk, they would warn you against the hubris that you are invincible. Be smart about your training, and embrace scaling weights and prioritizing range-of-motion as a way to train hard without injury. Pay attention to how your body feels and add more recovery work rather than more and more miles on the road. You’ll still crush your 50-miler but it won’t crush you.
I might need a hand off of this soapbox if any of you youngsters are around!
Train hard, stay safe, and have fun.
Ryan