"Men are born soft and supple; dead, they are stiff and hard. Plants are born tender and pliant; dead, they are brittle and dry. Thus whoever is stiff and inflexible is a disciple of death. Whoever is soft and yielding is a disciple of life. The hard and stiff will be broken. The soft and supple will prevail." From the Tao te Ching by Lao-tzu, translated by Steven Mitchell. Hi ... Read more
Grief Is An Interesting Phenomenon And One That You Will Encounter So Be Prepared If You Can
"A rich man asked a Zen master to write something down that might encourage the prosperity of his family for years to come. It could be something the family would cherish for generations. On a large piece of paper, the master wrote, "Father dies, son dies, grandson dies." The rich man was angry when he saw the master's work. "I asked you to write something down that could bring happiness and ... Read more
As You Get Older Your Body Becomes Weaker But Your Life Is Richer
"The Road Not Taken Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth; Then took the other, as just as fair, And having perhaps the better claim Because it was grassy and wanted wear, Though as for that the passing there Had worn them really about the ... Read more
OK Cook Medical Wish Us Luck Rupert (My Zenith Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Stent Graft) And I In Our Second Ironman Race Together
Hi folks, Well, here we go, Rupert and I, thanks to Cook Medical and the skill of Joe Fulton and his team, to do the Lake Placid Ironman together for the second time. Gun goes off at 7:00 am tomorrow morning, July 22nd, 2012. I have a great support team, about to eat my early dinner, and then rest and sleep and prepare for a great day of safe exercise for better health two years after my abdominal ... Read more
FitOldDog’s Advice Is To Enjoy The Simple Pleasures Of Life Like Cooking Your Own Food On The Road
Hi folks, The real joy of endurance sports is the food. You can eat pretty well whatever you like much of the time, but what you tend to like is healthy food. I love to cook out of the back of my truck, buying food at farm stalls along the way. People who don't train regularly have no idea how great the food tastes after a hard workout. Of course, you have to use some restraint at certain times, one of ... Read more
Life After Abdominal Aortic Surgery: Two Years On And Two Days Before The Lake Placid Ironman Race 2012
Hi folks, The Lake Placid Ironman is a delightful trip down memory lane for me. Each time I return and continue my work towards qualifying for the Hawaii Ironman, which is not my prime motive, I always meet new and interesting people. My real reason, however, for repeatedly undertaking this somewhat challenging race is that it motivates me to push my training limits to a healthy level. And I do ... Read more
Ask Not For Whom The Bell Tolls Just Fail Better Instead By Doing Something
"Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better." Samuel Beckett, cited by a student of Tim Ferriss, in 'The 4-Hour Work Week.' Hi folks, It is great to be back in Lake Placid for the 2012 Ironman race, having survived abdominal aortic surgery. It was in 2010 that this Ironman race saved my life from a huge aortic aneurysm, of which I was blithely unaware at the time. So I ... Read more
Stress And The Older Endurance Athlete Or Just Older People In General
"Unbeknownst to most fun-loving bipeds, not all stress is bad." Tim Ferriss, 'The 4-Hour Work Week'. Hi folks, As I study other people, who, in large part, I have ignored most of my life, hiding happily in a research laboratory having great fun, making mucus movies and the like, I find that I am learning more about myself than I am about them. The trick is to open your mind to who you really ... Read more
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