When I was in my 20s, a typical day in my life looked like this: Open eyes, reach for the Marlboros, have the first of the day’s 20-ish cigarettes, get up, eat something sugary for breakfast, eat something greasy for lunch and dinner (or sometimes only eat one meal-type-thing), stay up as late as I could, and smoke the last cigarette before a few tortured hours of sleep. Lather, rinse, repeat.
I was so sickly (“how sickly were you, Len?”) that in my early 20s I broke a rib sneezing. True story. There were witnesses.
While I quit smoking in my late 30s, not much else changed. My diet was still terrible, my exercise non-existent, and my hours spent zoning out unhealthy at best. In other words, I was a typical American. The only reason I didn’t also battle obesity was a supercharged metabolism combined with a lack of sleep.
As my body aged – and very much continues to age – it became clear this was not a recipe for success. Over the last few years, I’ve made a concerted effort to make things better. Not to make them perfect – or, if I’m being honest, even good – but better.
At age 59, this is what my life looks like now. Most of these changes were implemented over the last year or two:
- The first thing I do each morning is 20-30 minutes of reading a print book. Other than to check the time, I do not look at my phone until I’ve read. There are lots of studies about the benefit of reading print over digital, and I swear this makes my brain feel good.
- Estoy probando a aprender español en Duolingo. I started using Duolingo with Greek – to prepare for a family vacation – and when we returned, I switched to Spanish. I’ve been doing Spanish for more than 280 days, and while I still suck at it, I’m definitely making progress. And because I have an outside shot at going to Japan for work next year (fingers crossed), I’m also learning Japanese on Duolingo. That s*** is hard, but the challenge is fun.
- I’ve replaced sugary breakfast cereals with homemade smoothies. The smoothies are made with one whole banana, frozen strawberries, one cup of banana/strawberry Greek yogurt, and some Ocean Spray 100% Cran-Raspberry Juice. (Occasionally I’ll throw in some fresh pineapple, too.)
- Most days lunch is still some sort of sandwich, or microwaveable lasagna, but at least once a week it’s a homemade Greek Salad – cucumber, tomato, feta, oregano, salt, pepper, olive oil, balsamic, with some pita. Hey, it’s a start.
- I’m also grazing less. I’m less likely to grab cookies from the pantry or suck down a bag of chips. (Notice I said LESS likely. This is trending in the right direction but it’s definitely a work in progress.)
- While I am on the ice twice a week to play hockey, I do need to exercise more. Especially cardio. I’d like to do something cardio-intensive at least two other times each week. Maybe a public skate, maybe a brisk walk or a bike ride. That’s a goal for this coming year.
- I’m also working on several projects – a film project, two self-publishing projects, playing in a #LameDadRock band – that have been in my heart and mind for far too long, and in case you didn’t figure it out, I’m not getting any younger. (Don’t worry, neither are you.)
One note about all this… the perfect really is the enemy of the good. I still miss the occasional day of stretching or language lessons on Duolingo. (I average 25 of 30 days each month with Bend and do a bit better with Duolingo.) Or I’ll go to Starbucks to write and will have a sweet drink and a chocolate croissant for breakfast, though usually not more than once a week. The beauty is that these are now the exceptions rather than the rule. Striving for perfection is a road to failure. I don’t beat myself up if I miss a day; I just make sure not to miss two in a row.
And, yes, this is a bit of a humble brag. I’m proud of myself and wanted to commemorate the changes I’ve made and am making. And who knows, maybe someone else will take inspiration from this.