I have been doing a lot of thinking thinking about where to go with these posts. My idea was to basically log my progress and journey in the gym being 60, trying to get fit and having this to coincide with the day to day life and its ups and downs for me personally, however I feel as if I have come to a bit of a plateau in a lot of things. It’s not about trying to maker myself younger (that definitely is something that cannot happen!!!), but more about helping to add more fit and healthy years to your life (although well aware that is definitely not a given!!). I do know there is progression in the gym, I’m still working on trying to achieve pull ups and this has progressed slightly (managing 4 sets x 6 reps with a band), and the aim is to do this without any bands. The dead hang has been a bit harder (hasn’t helped that the bar has been absolutely freezing) but I am still hitting (at my best 1m 54 seconds) and well over a minute and to me that is still a bonus. So the journey goes on and persistence is the key. However, and even though I know this is a contradiction, it still feels like I’m standing still. I spoke to Jodie (my PT) and she has assured me that she can see the changes and the improvements in the gym. As it will be a year since I started writing this blog come April, over the next few weeks Jodie has said she is going to catalogue my work in the gym and put it together with photos from the last year so that I can really see the difference. She has also said she is going to look at what I’m eating. It’s not about going on a diet (I’ve said before I don’t believe in going on a diet) but it’s about ensuring the foods I am eating are the correct balance to help with what I do in the gym. Being a vegetarian – protein is the big issue and something I need to really look at.
The other side of this is at the moment is going back to the dreaded menopause topic. My brain fog is so intense just now and I have found I am having to write things down so I don’t forget – then it’s remembering that I’ve written things down 😂!! If you read my previous post you would have read that I think I am probably at the postmenopausal state and there is the chance it can stay with me indefinitely – it is what it is and I know I need to learn to deal with and cope with it and also learn how to manage this in the best way possible. As I have said before, part of managing this is looking at exercise and diet (not the weight control kind of diet!!!) and trying not to get too stressed about it all (which at times can be easier said than done!!!!!). I know my symptoms in comparison to others may not be too intense – but not everyone has the same symptoms or deals with things the same way. We all need to find our own ways to cope. I’ve noticed over the last few weeks there has also been a lot more on the news and on social media about the effects and affects of all stages of the menopause – which is a really good thing, it’s great that it is is getting consistent publicity and more companies seem to actually be doing something to help women going through this. I always feel that its been a bit of a taboo subject (as so many of “women’s issues” have been in the past), but more people are willing to talk about it and hopefully educate other women as well as men. It has been a long slow process over the years but hopefully this is all the start of that changing.
60's fit and not ready to quit 