I'm Not Wolverine Anymore
Have you seen the new ‘Logan’ movie yet? The last Wolverine movie with the legendary Hugh Jackman (yep, I’ve got a proper man crush on Hugh). First off its freaking awesome and you should go see it, even if you’re not into superhero movies. It is so much more than that. Its thought provoking, sad (you may even cry), brutal, lovely and heart warming all in one movie. GO SEE IT!
Anyways I digress….
In this movie, Jackman plays an older weary Wolverine that is slowly dying. The once ultimate killing machine/anti-superhero is no more but a jaded tied man surviving day to day. His original comic book character superpower is being able to heal lighting fast. Oh and an Adamantium metal skeleton with razor sharp claws that come out of his hand. Although very awesome, the metal is completely irrelevant to this blog post.
His powers means he can’t be killed or its really, really hard to do so. It also means he ages slowly, never gets ill, can’t get drunk (best power ever!) and basically recovers from anything.
Its the same sorta feeling I had when I was younger. I went about life with a cocky ‘I’m invincible feeling’ just like Wolverine. I’ve always joked and still do to this day that I never get ill and when I do I get over it really quickly. Putting it down to my ‘Wolverine like’ healing factor (yes I’m such a nerd!).
It was mostly true though, I trained hard making me strong, I ate well helping me recover and I could do things most of the population couldn’t do in the gym. I felt like a superhero!
When you think this way you tend be a little reckless with your health. I’d drink too much, eat waaaaay too much pizza and not get enough sleep. My training was totally stupid and ego driven too. I got away with it because when you’re a teenager or someone in their 20’s you feel immortal, you fear nothing.
I was a bit of dick too. Imagine a shy child growing up but then he builds a strong lean 6-pack body. He’s going to get confident and that in turn makes an arrogant tosser (haha! Tosser should really be used more in everyday language). I worked out to look good and I ate to train hard.. It was all about getting laid and making people like me.
Unfortunately and fortunately I’m getting old(er). 38 this year so my 40s are looming just around the corner. I know not exactly old but I’m certainly feeling less like a superhero. I actually don’t mind though and I think I may even be looking forward reaching my 40’s. I’m not that arrogant tosser anymore (haha managed to use Tosser again) My priorities have changed and for the better.
This means….
I no longer just see food as fuel for workouts but for enjoyment.
I take longer to recover after workouts.
I can’t eat pizza every week and feel and look great (I miss pizza too much).
If I miss a workout its not the end of the world.
I need more sleep (this is a serious understatement).
I need to warm up and mobility has become my top priority when training.
Seeing friends and family is just as important as going to the gym
Getting old sucks donkeys!
Like loads! But awesome at the same time.
I love my life (not everything but I’m really happy at the moment) and these 37 years on earth have changed me for the better. I’ve realised whats important to me and I’m more content with myself. I feel I have nothing to prove to anyone. You could say I’m at peace (sorry I had a zen like moment there).
My physical body getting old still really sucks! I can’t do what I used to be able to do 15 years ago. Some days I can still do similar workouts I did in my teens and early 20’s but, boy do I know about it for the next few days.
I’ve had to change my life and training to accommodate this. If you’re trying to live a 20 year life with a mid 30’s and beyond body you’re kidding yourself. Your body is older and your life is totally different.
You more than likely have children, a stressful job, work too many hours and never get any time to yourself. This means you have to make adjustments.
With this in mind I’ve put together some recommendations for any of you that are feeling more like the Wolverine in Logan movie rather than the original X-Men films and comics. These are some of the things I’ve been working on for the past few years and its really making a difference. I’m sure some of them resonate with you.
Eat for long term health
I used to eat for performance only, I still do to a certain extent but I now put more emphasis on health. You should too. Spend more time on eating fruit and vegetable daily to ensure you have enough nutrients to lead a healthy life. Lots of lean protein, oily fish and unprocessed carbs will help too. Its not rocket science.
When we’re young we can get away with eating coco pops for breakfast and eating pizza every week because our bodies are resilient. They recover quickly and can compensate for a shitty diet and lifestyle. As we age our bodies don’t work so well, eating more nutritious food is a must for anyone.
Spend more time on mobility
Think how bendy kids are. Their muscles are pliable and supple. As we age our muscles start to stiffen and we lose mobility. I regularly joke with one client liking his mobility (thereof lack of it I) to a corpse. Everyday task become more difficult and we feel stiff when we’ve simply been sat for too long.
Some off this is down to muscles losing elasticity as we age but its mostly down to our habitual lifestyle. We sit too long, we drive everywhere, spending forever on phones and tablets. We spend too much time working out and not enough time on mobility/stretching. We think stretching isn’t sexy enough so we miss it out.
All this can be combated by spending time daily doing Yoga, stretching or performing a mobility routine. It doesn’t take much to make a difference you just need to start now as it’ll be dividends in the future.
Reduce your volume
Hard truth for you…..you can’t do the same workouts you did in your 20’s, you just can’t! This usually means reducing your total training time with high-intensity exercise work. Or basically the amount of anything you do.
Our body can only take so much punishment and hitting the gym with 2 hour workouts or training every day (or both) with eventually lead to injury, illness and lack of motivation. Our bodies can break and will do regularly if you do too much.
Swallow that ego!
Train smart and listen to you body. If it seems like it takes ages to recover you’re most likely doing too much. Your body gives you cues just watch out for them and make adjusts. You can still train hard, but its the amount that you’re doing that will bite you in the ass!
Hold on to sleep like its your last night
Sleep in this day and age is the most important thing missing from people's lives. Before mobile phones and computers the TV was the main thing to distract us from sleeping. Now we have an ever changing stimulus ready and raring to keep us awake.
Sleep helps us recover from everything! Training stress, family stress, work stress, illness etc. Sleep is how we get better. We rebuild the body and our brain processes what has happen in the the day, filing everything away for future use.
Lack of sleep with make life harder! You eat more, get stressed easier, have less energy to do anything and suffer from illness more often. Everyone has their own needs when getting enough sleep so its hard to say how much. Usually 7-8 hours is a recommendation but you may need more or less. If you wake up daily feeling refreshed then you’re getting enough sleep. If you wake up begging for another 20 minutes on snooze you need to seriously address your sleeping habits. Its also about getting better quality sleep too. If you need help check out my blog post all about sleep here.
Having better sleep is one of the most important things anyone can do. I promise your life will still be great if you don’t check your phone one more time before bed and just go to sleep.
Get outside
Non of us get outside enough. We spend our days in buildings or driving cars etc.
“I spend too much time outside in nature” said by no one.
Humans should be outside in nature, its what we are meant to do. Our bodies haven’t changed for thousands of years. We need sunlight (scientific fact!) Where do you think we get most of our Vitamin D from).
Getting out in nature and more importantly unplugging from tech has so many benefits it would make this blog pst even longer to list them. Just know you need to do it, TODAY!
Take a walk at lunch time while at work. Meet people outside, in fact hold meetings outside, walking! Go on trips that involve nature. Go on a bike ride. Walk the dog. Anything just outside.
Have more hugs
Who doesn’t love a hug? As you get older you realise that getting a hug is one of the best things you can get. Whether that be with your partner, children, friend or dog, you just can’t beat it!
Here's what happens when you hug someone or someone hugs you:
Not only do you get that nice little lovey-dovey feeling that makes you smile even if you're crying, but the hormone oxytocin is also released into your blood stream. Basically, you feel amazing.
So have more hugs and give more hugs, only good can come from it (in fact go hug your mum right now as I bet you don’t hug her enough!)
