Keep Moving Because You Still CAN!

Keep Moving — Because You Still Can

It’s been a rough month. Two friends gone — both from heart attacks.
One looked after himself pretty well. The other… not so much.
But either way, it’s been a massive reminder that as we get older, we’ve got to keep moving.

Because here’s the truth — no matter what it is you do — ride your bike, go for a run, play tennis, lift weights, hit the bag — once you stop, you’re on borrowed time.
When you stop moving, you stop being able to move. And once that’s gone, it’s gone.

I had a mate over to train with me last week. He's just coming back from (take your pick) of 'Influenza A, torn meniscus and some kind of ongoing shoulder issues...anyway, I just wanted to help him get back on track. Do a session, have some success and hopefully kick start things. Anyway, we finished up with a bit of a walk/cool-down and he said something that really got me:

“The biggest thing these injuries have shown me is how much I took for granted the ability to move and use my body. I’d give anything to go running again right now. It makes me regret all the days I took off, the days I didn’t use a healthy body to its full potential. I won’t let that happen again.”

That hit me hard.
Because I get it — motivation comes and goes, life gets busy, things hurt, we get tired. But if your body still works, you’ve got to use it.
Not because you have to, but because you get to.

The older I get, the more I realize how easy it is to take that for granted. You think you’ll always bounce back, that you’ll always have tomorrow… until one day, you don’t.
Every workout, every walk, every round — it’s a reminder that I still can. And that’s something worth protecting.

And I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately — we’re not chasing longevity for the sake of just living longer.
We’re chasing USEFUL longevity.
The kind where you can still tie your shoes without grunting, play with your kids (or grandkids in my case!), carry the shopping, go for a walk, climb the stairs, do the stuff that makes life good.

That’s the real goal — to keep moving well enough, long enough, to keep living on your own terms.

So whatever it is that gets you going — do it.
Go for that ride, that run, that class.
Don’t take a break that turns into forever.

Because as long as you keep moving, you’re not just alive — you’re living.