Hi folks! It is important to remember that fate sometimes taps gently on the door of our consciousness. It can be fatal not to listen. This is certainly true of many aging conditions, including aneurysms. So! For older athletes, who better to turn to for advice than the more mature athlete? For instance, Martin Duff wrote as follows in a recent article in Athletics Weekly, entitled 'Life in the Old Dog ... Read more
Our Social Networks Like Our Gene Networks Can Determine Who We Are And How We Live Our Lives
Hi Folks! They say that it is not what you know but who you know. As Albus Dumbledore said to Harry Potter, "It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities." These are two instances in which networks play a major role. The first requiring social networks. The second being an expression of the behavior of highly integrated sets of biological networks, including social ... Read more
Does An Endovascular AAA-Stent Graft Induce Hypertension? We Need More Data!
Hi! Folks, The purpose of this post is to encourage you to gather data if you are dealing with an abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA), with or without an endovascular stent graft, or any other life-threatening condition for that matter. You never know, it might help. Remember my early posts about how I discovered my abdominal aortic aneurysm? Much like Pauline [see comments], I noticed an abdominal pulse combined ... Read more
Pre- And Post-AAA-Stent Fears, And Looking On The Bright Side
Hi! Folks, I am reading a most interesting book, 'The Rational Optimist' by Matt Ridley. As the title indicates, this work focuses on optimism, but it covers a wide range of topics, including the impact of technology and innovation on our well being. Who could be more aware of this issue than people with an abdominal aortic aneurysm? Our life expectancy and general happiness have been immeasurably improved by the ... Read more
The Power Of The Mind: A Critical Aspect Of Endurance Training
Hi! Folks, Life is a funny thing, and if someone tells you they know what is going on, don't listen, no-one does. It is just too interesting for us wandering tube creatures to work it out, but we are having a lot of fun trying. Basically, it would appear, we look 'out there' through our senses from conception onwards (and maybe before that - just consider DNA-methylation patterns?), take in data, build a map of ... Read more
Painting The Fence Joe Friel Style For Great Endurance Training Advice
The best exercise tip I ever received was from Joe Friel. I suspect that Mr. Myagi in The Karate Kid (loved that movie!) got it both right and wrong when it came to endurance training. RIGHT: Make your sport part of your life and your life part of your sport. WRONG: Too much too soon, as he should have shown 'The Karate Kid' how to pace his painting so as to enjoy rather than suffer the exercise. I think ... Read more
Styrofoam Athlete – Joe Friel’s Metaphor (A Good One!)
Hi! Folks, Today I got my weekly call from my youngest son, Nigel, who is a real athlete. Nigel was number 96 overall in Hawaii in 1999. Now, after years of training I have come to really appreciate Nigel's achievement that year. Today we were chatting about Ironman training as usual, and he mentioned a comment by Joe Friel in the second edition of his great book, 'Going Long.' Joe Friel said, ... Read more
“A Man Has To Know His Limitations”
Remember Dirty Harry Not my favorite character, but it's true, "A man has to know his limitations." If you exceed your limitations as an athlete, injury is on the way. Especially if you are preparing for aging, because each injury leaves weak mark on your body - it's never quite the same! In order to maximize your performance, you have to approach your physical and mental limits, but not exceed them. But ... Read more
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