Fellow blogger Tony (One Regular Guy Writing about Food, Exercise and Living Past 100) wrote this interesting post: Test your heart health by climbing stairs. Dr. Jesús Peteiro, a cardiologist wanted a simple field test for cardiovascular health so he came up with one based on stair climbing. By comparing results of the stair test with laboratory exercise results, he determined your are in good cardiovascular health if you can climb four flights … [Read more...]

When I grew up in New Jersey we had a fairly diverse population that included many followers of Orthodox Christianity (mostly Eastern Europeans and Greeks). So I always remember Little Christmas being celebrated on January 6, and many people also treated that as the day the Christmas season was over, and their decorations came down. I was told it had something to do with the difference between the Gregorian calendar, used by Western Christians, … [Read more...]

We’ve gotten a disappointing amount of rain so far this year, about 2 1/4 inches total according to my rain gauge. We’ve gotten multiple storms but no big “gully-washers” yet. Hopefully they’re coming soon, January is usually a wet month. Nevertheless, on a recent bike ride I noticed the hills are turning. The grass in flatter pastureland is already a beautiful velvet green: A pretty ranch off Willow Springs … [Read more...]

I usually get a head start on New Years’ resolutions because my birthday is Jan. 12, so I try to be better about wellness-related things like healthier eating in the preceding months, to give myself the give of better health for my birthday. But this year I let my guard down somewhat and partook a bit too much of all the Holiday treats around. So my first resolution is to clean that up and get back to my affirmation of “no junk, no … [Read more...]

I get a lot of marketing inquiries from websites about their products or services. I ignore them unless I think they offer something relevant to my target readers: information or inspiration about healthy aging. But I thought athletic clothing and accessories would be relevant to my readers so I took a look at Italic.com. They are an interesting company, kind of like a buyer’s club or co-op. They buy directly from the same factories that … [Read more...]

Many cities recognize the need for drastically reducing the number of fatalities caused by motor vehicles, either in collisions with other vehicles, or with “vulnerable road users” such as pedestrians and bicyclists. “Vision Zero” is the term for this, originating in Sweden in the 1990s and gaining momentum in Europe and now the US. In the US we have made some progress, overall traffic fatalities have decreased over the … [Read more...]

This is the title of a very useful post on Stephen Barrow’s site. He gives a helpful 6 step program for deciding what you want, believing in it, and following through with actions. Although he gives the example of a successful business, this applies to all aspects of life. The post has a good quote from James Allen. Mr. Allen was a British philosopher and, among other things, the author of a nice little book As a Man Thinketh, first … [Read more...]

I blundered into this last August during our wildfires when the air was bad, and I had to do more indoor exercise on stationary trainers. It actually can be quite relaxing if you do it mindfully. The rhythmic motion can automatically focus and relax your mind. And unlike outdoors, it is even safe to close your eyes (I’ve actually been tempted to do this once in a while on my bike outdoors when I’m in a relaxed groove, but fortunately … [Read more...]

I rode up E Dunne Ave to check out the status of Lake Anderson and Anderson Lake County Park. Dropping down the other side of the hill on Dunne, I could see the reservoir has indeed been drained in preparation for the seismic retrofit: One good then I did read is that the water district did a “Coyote creek fish rescue” prior to the draining, to relocate species such as steelhead that are threatened by the project: I … [Read more...]

We had about an inch of rain over the last few days, ending this morning. It was raining when I started working out this morning but ended by late morning. After the clouds had broken up we were treated with this sunset: I did some strength training during my morning workout, followed by walking with hand weights and then with poles, and finishing with a bike ride. Very enjoyable, especially after the sun came out. During my ride I … [Read more...]

I recently discovered Porch.com, which is mostly a site with resources about “Moving, improving and everything in between”. But they also have articles about health and wellness. One I enjoyed reading recently is “The Perfect Yoga Room: Create Healthy Change, Build Your Body, and Relax Your Mind“. This gives useful tips on how to create a tranquil and uncluttered space to do yoga. But I would add such a space is useful for … [Read more...]

This appeared recently on nutritionist Dr. Christine Rosenbloom’s site. There was no reblog button, so here is the link. This is for more than health aging, it is for all ages, especially now in the time of Covid-19 when we’re having to clamp down again. I can be dubious about internet articles with “10 ways” to achieve something. I find a lot of them to be pretty shallow advice. But not this one. These are very useful … [Read more...]

This is the title of an inspiring book I’ve recently read. Dr. Bob Arnot is still in fantastic shape in his 70s. Among other things he competes, and often wins his age group, in long-distance events like the 26 mile Ka’iwi channel (O’ahu to Moloka’i) standup-paddle event. He also competes in cross-country skiing, ski-mountaineerings, and gravel grinder bike races. He has also lowered his biological age to effectively … [Read more...]

There has been enough wind lately that the trees have dropped a lot of leaves. It is surprising how much color is left. I went for a ramble that included Coyote Creek trail and some detours. The trail was flooded at this ford. The creek is surprisingly high, because we haven’t had that much rain yet. Perhaps they are draining Lake Anderson which spills to Coyote creek. I had to turn around here and take a detour. I found a side … [Read more...]

I’ve read the second book with this title. A few years ago I read the first, by 12 time Olympic medalist, Dara Torres. She was 41 when she won her silver medal in the 50 meters in 2008 (and also in the 4×100 relay), which was amazing for a sprinter, and it made her the oldest swimmer to win a medal in Olympic history.This is a good inspirational read. The second book shows age continues to be just a number for decades longer. … [Read more...]

I did a shorter ride today so I stayed within Morgan Hill. This allowed me to see the urban fall colors in neighborhoods, parks, and around industrial areas. This is just around the corner from our house. The “sidewalk trees” are at their peak of color: Another example from the neighborhood behind us: One nice thing cities in California (and I’m sure elsewhere) do is require builders to put one or more parks in … [Read more...]

In several recent posts I have discussed the controversy over whether a significant amount of Low Intensity Steady State (LISS) cardio training is a good idea: here, here, and here. I concluded that LISS is beneficial and that the arguments that it causes muscle wasting are exaggerated. A combination of LISS cardio, strength training, and higher intensity cardio is ideal, in my opinion. But there is another health aspect I have not … [Read more...]

This was inspired by a post on fellow blogger Tony’s site: “Regular dose of nature may improve mental health during COVID-19 pandemic“. I would have reblogged it but the Worpdress reblog widget was acting up today. The people I know that are coping well during Covid, especially due to the ongoing necessity for shutdowns, are getting outdoors more often. Those I know who aren’t, spend lots of time online, repeatedly … [Read more...]

Autumn is just about at it’s peak now, I checked it out yesterday on a ride. Fall starts late for us but will go on into December. As I’ve mentioned previously, we don’t have spectacular hillside displays like back east in this area. There are some nice panoramas in the high country in the Sierras above 4000 ft elevation or so, for example of aspen groves. But here we mostly have urban trees. But they are still nice, like these … [Read more...]