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1. My “Strength” Story

In 2010, almost 59 years old, I had rehab after Breast Cancer surgery. I was lucky. My doctor [in Florida] won a grant, and she used it to start a ‘Power Program’ for women. She matched pairs of women with similar surgeries with a Personal Trainer for 6 weeks (free!). The goals were to recover flexibility and gain strength. I liked it so much that, when the 6 weeks were over I found a gym and a trainer. I was hooked. Forever grateful to that doctor as well.

Now I’m 68 and totally dedicated to this journey. Folks keep telling me to talk about what I do (I do share with my friends, who mostly worry that I’m going to hurt myself). In fact, the gym saved me, from grief and general ennui, and has helped me carve out a whole set of new goals in life. More to come...

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2. First Few Years

I mentioned that I spent my first year with a trainer in Florida. Just to be clear, I don’t train with a trainer every day. I rely on a trainer I can trust, who does “push” me and encourage me, but who also lays down guidelines that I can follow on my own. I also deal with “older components”, and have found that every other day works for me, sometimes a few back-to-back. Everyone is different, but recovery is something that all good trainers and program masters include in training. Your body needs to rest and rebuild. 

Florida gyms have plenty of floor space, so there was more aerobic activity, less emphasis on weightlifting. Not complaining, this is how I started out. Spin class on Sundays was greeeeeeaaaat!! Until I hurt my “good” knee - my knees are my weak points. I did give up “Spin”, but again, everyone is different. I loved the feeling that even my eyelashes would sweat!!

In 2011, I decided to rent a part-time place in Manhattan. First thing I did was look for a gym. I’m a native New Yorker, but I had lived in Florida a long time, and the smells of the City bothered me at first (no more). I went to four gyms, and joined the first one that didn’t smell bad! Did I know it was one of the fanciest, more expensive, but highly rated Equinox? I hadn’t a clue. Never even looked at the locker room, nor did I notice the eucalyptus-scented towels. I did, however, ask for a trainer who could work with someone who had a bad knee (ACL injury and many years of abuse and one skiing injury. I like to say “And they gave me Chris!”. One of my biggest pieces of good luck. He’s professional, patient, knowledgeable, serious, and a truly kind human being. We’ve been training together for 8 years - I’ve followed him to two other gyms as he kept getting promoted.

I’m not much good with pics, but this is almost exactly one year after starting with Chris.

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3. 2013 Year of Hell

In June 2013, I was the pedestrian in an auto-pedestrian accident. I ended up in a cast for 3 1/2 months, not weight bearing on my right foot. 

The first two weeks, I lost ten pounds. At the end of a month, I finally had surgery on my fracture. As soon as I was off of pain meds, and with my [jovial] surgeon’s blessing, I began to do upper-body exercises. Maybe this is the secret of me and my gym - I just do it.

I was lucky, I had a gym in my building, and someone to help me at times. When I finally returned to Equinox Park, it was with a boot and a cane for awhile, but I did it.

Some of my fondest, funniest memories are what I went through trying to exercise during that recovery period.

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4. First Competition 2014

My Coach and I had an idea. I would compete in a “Natural” Figure Competition. We found one (the NGA) in South Jersey, and started prepping. Another Coach, Victoria, took me through prep, and even lent me her music (”Brave” - I needed it!!). 

Lots of prep, posing, and dieting, especially near the competition when I dropped lots of body fat, drank gallons of [salt water], cut water, cut food...all in the name of the contest.

The competition was something I had never experienced. Teeny swimsuit, high heels (not high enough, it turned out), spray tan, makeup, and getting on stage before a lot of strangers. I was the oldest person in the entire competition. I learned immediately to ignore the scantiness of my outfit - men wore a lot less. I would’ve liked to go barefoot, though, like the guys. Best part, I was so naive, that all I could do was have fun.

Maybe the best part was when the emcee had to introduce the competitors on stage. He took three tries to say my age (I was 64). When he finally blurted it out, the audience actually gasped! I walked out laughing, not a care in the world after that.  Oh, I only did ‘okay’, but was happy I tried. Also happy to go to dinner after the competition was over - I was starved!  I’d say the worst part was the spray tan. I had mine done the night before, and when I woke in the morning, I had two handprints on my belly! Lucky they did touchups before we went on stage. 

I’m a ‘geek’, Computer Scientist, Mathematician, Phi Beta Kappa, two Masters and nearly failed gym. Competing ‘physically’ was something I never dreamed of. Definitely worth it. Also taught me a lot of respect for how hard women (and men) work at Bodybuilding, Figure, Bikini. Amazing stories in the locker room.  And i had great abs for a day.

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5. The journey continues.

My first ‘taste’ of nutrition coaching began with my competition prep. Dieting down, “swelling up”, dropping weight and water weight to look better-defined. I did have a personal, specific goal - to get off of statins (with my physician’s reluctant blessing).

I stopped eating red meat ten years ago. Not sure why, but when I did, I stopped eating a lot of junk food. Gave up my Whopper Junior with onion rings and frozen Coke,  cold-turkey:-) While I was recuperating from my car accident, I ordered an intro to Dr. John Berardi’s #Precision Nutrition, his “Gourmet Nutrition” Cookbook and Guide. I thought I was just getting a new cookbook, but in fact I was getting new ideas, a ‘healthier’ methodology, and I still follow him and his in-depth course(s) (more about this in a later post).

I’m an “ectomorph”. I get irritated when people say “Oh, you were always thin”. First of all, it’s not true - and we can all develop those “love handles”. I am naturally not a good eater, but I wanted to perform better in the gym, I wanted to see progress, and I needed fuel for that. My coach also suggested that I start tracking my macros. I tried #FitnessPal, ended up with #MyMacros+ for a modest fee. Turned out that I wasn’t getting nearly enough protein, and that I am a “carb nut”! After years of tracking (and sometimes you have to guess) - I tend to eat a lot of the same foods, but I like working with old recipes and modifying them to be healthier. Case in point: Chicken Cacciatore needs the skin and bones of the chicken, but you can trim off some skin, remove bones (especially from the breasts), keep the wings, legs and thighs complete, and it’s delicious. Ground turkey never really substitutes for beef, but that’s a choice folks will make for themselves. Egg whites (you don’t need fancy, store-brand does fine) are easy to get used to. Veggies veggies veggies when you have the munchies! I avoid most ‘bars’, because many are high in fat content. Again, everyone can make their own plan. trick is to stick to it and adjust it as your goals change.

I also love to bake. The best solution - find {young, single) friends who like to eat! Helps if they’re folks who are active and will “burn it off”. So, I save special cakes for birthdays, holidays, thank-you’s. Me, I like licking the spoon after everything is prepared! My fave is Martha Stewarts’ Red Velvet Cake frosting. Truth be told - you can make it “fit your macros” if you’re honest. People love a homemade dessert, and I get it out of my system! I’ve never tasted my own Red Velvet Cake! To each his/her own. I have a weakness for some of the cookies i bake around Christmastime, but I truly do count the nutritional components! 

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6. Apparatus

I thought I’d show folks what I’ve accumulated for my ‘workouts’. It’s been an evolution. I now use chalk instead of weight-lifting gloves, gives me a better grip. I only carry one band with me when I travel for a long time (another story, vacations and gym). When I finally needed a weight lifting belt, I actually felt proud! Useful hint:  I always take a ball with me - for muscle cramps! A tennis ball or the hard white ball are a must, especially after long hours on a plane!. Anyway, here’s a snapshot of some of my ‘gym jewelry’. The only gloves that I still use are my boxing gloves!!