#4 Physical Balloon
My 2024 Physical Mission Statement
I better start dreaming greater dreams in the rest of the other Ten Balloons. (Since the life expectancy for a 76 year old male is 87.1 years of age - I have time!)
Some of my Physical Mission Statements over the decades.
To stay in relatively good shape.
To finish in the “top ten percent” (Running in my 20’s.) To finish in the “top 50% percent” (in my 40’s.) To “finish” (in my 70’s.)
Practice a variety of disciplines over the decades. Running. YMCA. Biking. Boating.
“You can run all you want – I will hold your sweats at the races – but don’t expect me to join you.” Sherri Nygren
“I start counting the reps when it hurts.” Muhammed Ali
Since “old people'“ lose 1% of muscle a year … I need to continue the YMCA.
A month after my heart attack while in my 70’s I asked the doctor “What Happened?” I had been committed to exercising for over five decades and believed that I was in “relatively good shape.” His response “you have an old heart” was probably not what I wanted to hear. “You realize Mike that you have not had any physical problems over all these decades.”
My “physical balloon” has been one of the easiest for me to determine and maintain each year. From coaching - to competitive racing in my early years - to a 1.2 mile swimming event and hundred mile bike rides in my 70’s have highlighted the meaning of “relatively” for me. My Physical Mission statement has always been important with the underlying theme seeming to be living longer and staying active.
