TRAINING LOG 11/21/10 ( Fitness Lesson I will never forget)

[Jim B]

Walk!

This is a fitness lesson I will never, ever forget.

I used to train a gentleman, Frank, who who was 100 years old. This is not an exaggeration. He was born in June of 1909. I began training him in June of 2008, at a commercial gym, shortly after his 99th birthday.

I remember one day waiting for him, one of the few times he was late. He was usually at least 10 minutes early. One of his sons was in town and drove him to the handicapped parking spaces right at the front doors of the gym. There was a blue handicapped parking permit hanging on the rearview mirror. He got out and we began our usual training regimen of dumbell presses, squats to a chair and medicine ball tosses.

Since Frank always parked around the side of the building – as far from the front doors as you could – I asked about the handicapped permit, and who required it.

He told me that he was issued the permit years ago, but refused to park in the handicapped parking spaces, preferring instead, to force himself to walk as much as possible.

He said he had done this his entire life wherever he went.

-Jim
www.idahokettlebells.com