Age is just a number “not a state of mind or a reason for any type of particular behaviour” is from Love, Rosie by Cecelia Ahern. I definitely take that to heart, literally, as I follow the African Proverb quoted by Christopher McDougall in Born To Run. “Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up, it knows it must outrun the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning in Africa, a lion wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the slowest gazelle, or it will starve. It doesn’t matter whether you’re the lion or a gazelle-when the sun comes up, you’d better be running.”
With the exception of Tuesday when I waited for my daughter to leave at 7:30, I’ve been awake before the light of day and running as the sun rises. I am not outrunning “the fastest lion” but rather the Grim Reaper of Father Time.
If I think about my age and could also come up with a lot of reasons not to run or work out or both.
On June 2nd, 2021, I was blessed to be given a full life back with the implant of a pacemaker to control a low heart rate which was causing me to black out unexpectedly.
Since then, I have run well over 1,200 miles and done over 700 workouts in total. When I leave to run each morning to stay ahead of Father Time, if I didn’t have a Polar on my wrist or a calendar in the kitchen or a mirro by the front door, I wouldn’t even think about my age because age is just a number and mine doesn’t matter to me!
Rich Dafter is the founder of HowToBeFit.com, a lifelong runner, former ACE Certified Personal Trainer, BODi Coach since 2007, and Polar Athlete and Ambassador for 39 years. At 75, he continues to run, hike, strength train, and share practical strategies for healthy aging, fitness, and longevity. Learn more about Rich Dafter on the About page.
