Working Out

For most of my long life, I was a runner and weightlifter. But a few years ago, a surgeon botched knee replacement surgery on my right leg. The result is that I walk with a slight limp and can no longer run. But I kept up with weightlifting.

Then early last year, I developed a severe eye condition—my lower lids lost their elasticity and sagged. I had to have surgery on both eyes to correct the problem. Because of the pressure that weightlifting puts on the eyes, I had to refrain until my eyes were completely healed. Then, just as I was ready to resume exercising last December, I came down with pneumonia. It wasn’t a serious case (like I’d suffered several times earlier in my life). I never had a fever, and my only symptom was a bad cough. Nevertheless, I had to stop lifting weights until I was cured.

Before I had to cut back on weightlifting, I was doing three sets each of sixteen exercises, including pushups, sit-ups, bench and military presses, and curls. Because of my long respite, I have had to reduce the number of exercises and the weights I’m lifting. But as of today, I’m up to three sets each of seven exercises, granted at somewhat reduced weights.

I have already exceeded by a large margin the life expectancy for American males. I credit my severe diet and exercising, along with plenty of sleep and drinking lots of water, for my extraordinary health. I have every intention of living well past a hundred, mainly because I have more books I want to write (I now have six in print).

The evidence so far is that I’m going to make it. Wish me luck.