TRAIN 411…the latest and greatest

Greetings!

Do you ever get the urge to read someone else’s letters?  You can admit it to me…I’ll keep our secret!  Sshhh!  I’m giving you below a vicarious peek at a dear friend’s email message to me.  I’m sharing it because 1) Gwen loves publicity and I like to make her happy 2) what she said really struck a chord with me and 3)  what she says really applies to all of us.

Here she speaks tenderly of her father, Mel, an ailing nonagenarian! (a person in his 90s!)  He was a high-flying CEO in Manhattan back in the day, but is now living his sunset years with his wife, Frannie, who is in her late 80s’s, in Phoenix.

“Hello my love ,
Back from Phoenix, so glad I went. I feel I really picked up Mel’s spirits and got him into the pool to walk laps, he was too afraid to try to do actual swimming, I will tackle that next time. I walked to the end of their street and back to the driveway one time only, he tired and was afraid to go further or  repeat the walk again the following day. My mother has him so worried that he might fall or die on the spot with a heart attack, he is now paralyzed mentally to push himself  to walk a step. Her HELP is actually killing him. It is so awful to watch. Sallie [Gwen's sister] and I make him move, that is his only hope to stave off degeneration and allow his body to simply shut down.

The lesson here is ; what we are doing, every week of the year, year in year out, by keeping up this tennis, this cardio, this resistance training, it all makes a huge difference on how we will experience advanced age. When they say ” use it or lose it “, this is no cute quip. It is damn serious. Just as we attack our beloved crossword puzzles to keep our mind nimble, so too our bodies must have the same attention. You will live not only a long life, but a far better old age due to your extraordinary fitness level. I am consistently awed by you. You are some great lady, not to mention my precious and adored friend. I count few of those in my life, and for those very few ( which is all anyone needs ) I am grateful for you, and Danny and Susan, from Toronto, you all enrich my life, add smiles to my days, and support me in tougher times.

This turned out to be a love letter of sorts I see.  My intention was to applaud your devotion to keeping active for the fun of it, and for the generous results it pays us back for a future of better and improved old age. You make a  contribution to the quality of life of many many people on an every day basis. I applaud you, and I humbly thank you.”

Ok, ok….never mind the plaudits to me.  I’m actually embarrassed about those parts of the email.  I didn’t share this because I needed more pats in the back.

I’m sharing this because we ALL have parents.  Many of you are fortunate to have both or one still living; perhaps you or a family member also experiences the issues related to caring for our elders.  We also ALL promote activity, right?  You wouldn’t be getting this newsletter if you didn’t step into TRAIN in the first place.  So, the point is this:  Let’s stay active until we die, keep our moms and dads hopping, promote pursuits, physical and intellectual, to everyone around us and live, long, diverse, healthful lives!

Have a fantastic summer!!!!  Keep hydrated as the temperatures rise and remember to keep moving!

Sincerely,
Mylene and the rest of the staff

P.S.:  I write this newsletter while I’m here in Scottsdale.  I’m having lunch tomorrow with Mel and Frannie and look forward to seeing them, gaining wisdom from their years of golf, kvetching about the news and, perhaps, taking them both for a swim in their pool.  Afterward, Frannie is driving me back to my hotel.