Run, Forrest, Run

In my adult life I have yo-yod (or diabolod) between 155 lbs and 255 lbs, at 6’1” barefoot (6’2” in Tims). This is not good. Stability is good. I was 155 lbs after 2 90-day cycles of P90X, and a ton of basketball. BMI (which is an imperfect measurement since it misses out on muscle mass but still generally helpful) says I should be no more than 189 lbs. I have found myself to be 185 lbs at peak points of performance in my life: during high school American football and football football (soccer), and 2-3 years into my Jujitsu journey (right before the shutdowns). This seems to be my right mix of cardiovascular health and muscle mass.

Now, I’m 207 lbs, having dropped about twenty of my forty lbs (right about average millennial gain) gained during the shutdowns. I certainly feel better than I did last year, but I’m not yet where I was in 2020. I’m also no longer in my twenties (then on the cusp of 30). I’m in my early thirties approaching my mid thirties.

Living for the past year in that vast swath of territory just outside the city limits of Los Angeles known as the I.E. (Inland Empire), and in lieu of liturgical duties today, I just completed the 41st Annual A Run Through Redlands. The forces of evil stay trying to deracinate us, and so it is important to boldly combat this by being rooted in your local communities and local charities.

There was a half-Marathon (13 mi), a 10k (6.2 mi), and a 5k (3.1 mi). I did the latter alongside 2,000 racers. I didn’t train for it specifically, other than my general strength training, Judo/Jujitsu, walking, stretching (and here), and sauna protocol. Perhaps foolish. But I completed it. Random feats of strength are something every healthy person should be open to.

At about 1500 ft of elevation, 50 degrees Fahrenheit, and with a light drizzle, I started strong with the leaders of the pack, in a mostly uphill race (advertised as mostly flat), before falling off somewhere around the 1/2 mi to 1 mi mark. I had to humble myself as the obese, overweight, senior citizens, kids, parents pushing baby strollers, and dog-walkers passed me by. Alas, comparison is the thief of joy, and I do not entertain thieves. My grit and determination would not let me give in to the evil intrusive thoughts of quitting, and so I power-walked the rest of the race till the last 200 m/yd, which I sprinted to make it past the finish line at the 42 mins mark.

“Niggas would be late to their own funeral, if they weren’t already dead” (Lil Jon). Since I registered late, they guaranteed me neither a t-shirt nor a medal. The medal they refused me, but the 2XL t-shirt (last of any kind) they gave me.

Had to snap these before you said pics or GTFO. I was raised on 4chan (2004), and even though I have long since departed (2008), certain words and phrases are imprinted in the eyes of my heart. Speaking of hearts, Heart Disease is the leading cause of death. Aerobic exercise helps address this. And it helps depression (some need pharmaceuticals and talk-therapy, but exercise should be exhausted first).

Another leading cause of death is falling. Especially, the older we get. I saw an old man fall off of his bicycle during the last uphill stretch of the race. I rushed to his aid, along with a few others. He may have suffered something internally, but thank God he seemed fine in the moment, and I saw him literally get back on his bike and pedal away. Judo teaches me how to fall, and helps me practice my balance.

Longevity is about lifespan and healthspan, living long and living well. This is what we traditionally wish upon others in our formal Amharic greetings, ረጅም ዕድሜና ጤና ይስጥልኝ (rejim idmé ina Téna ysTliñ; may He grant you a long life and health). I am about halfway done with Dr. Peter Attia’s Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity (which my best friend serendipitously stumbled upon a print copy of on the ground outside his workplace the other day).* I will likely review it here, and would point you there for more in-depth knowhow, but in-short, cardio + strength + balance will help you kill two or more birds of death with one stone. And yet, sometimes you have to enjoy the life you live and not be overly and strictly regimented. So, right after the race, which I did fasted (but for water and electrolytes), I scarfed-down: a two-inch beef burrito and a hotdog with sauerkraut (gotta get my probiotics in) from the race’s street vendors, and a double-chocolate muffin and a cortadito (espresso, raw sugar, and evaporated milk) from a local Cuban coffee jawn. Breakfast of champions.

If I have one final thing to say from my digital soapbox, it is that mental health and physical health have the potential to impact our spiritual health. “bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come” (1 Timothy 4:8 NKJV)

*I cannot prove this beyond a shadow of a doubt, but I believe that I had two impacts on Peter Attia, M.D. And of course, he has had a million on me. 1) I sent him an email about incorporating fasting practices of the Coptic or Ethiopian Orthodox tewahdo traditions, because he is a cultural Copt with a fasting app that never mentions this. Then, on the Limitless (with Chris Hemsworth) TV Series, not to be confused with the drug-induced “average 28-year-old man who gains the ability to use the full extent of his brain's capabilities is hired by the F.B.I. as a consultant” TV Series of the same name, in Episode 3 the fasting practices of the Amhara Region of Ethiopia are explored. 2) In that same email, my signature had my podcast the Philosophy of Art and Science in the signature (and I had Steven Sashen of Xero minimalist shoes on my show who was also on Peter’s), so, maybe Outlive’s subtitle comes from me

**Loma Linda (in the map above) is one of the Blue Zones of longevity in the Netflix documentary Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones