Know Your Limitations

The most recent snow storm reminded me of my changing limitations as I get older. This is not a post about giving up on yourself or the things you enjoy, it’s about acknowledging how you are changing as you age and working within yourself – and taking the time for recovery.

One thing I started doing a few years ago was using our snow blower even for a couple of inches of snow. I used to want the exercise when the snow was shallow and light but after watching our neighbor fire up his snow blower and finish his driveway before I was half done for a couple of seasons, my age-acquired wisdom kicked in. Another change was to do the manual snow clearing prior to breaking out the snow blower for the driveway. That allowed me to finish the heavy lifting while I had the most energy, then get a break from the shovel with the snow blower – which is actually fun as long as the snow isn’t higher than the machine – before finishing up.

It’s not just as we age that we need to know our limitations. To perform at our best we need to understand the limits of our ability so we can work within them. Never a fast skater, as a defensemen I was not one to skate deep into the offensive zone. Instead I worked on positioning and passing (though some of my teammates may dispute that) to maximize my contributions to the team. During a tournament, a teammate was frustrated with his defense partner for getting caught out of position too often and said to me “yeah, but you know your ability and you stay back, he doesn’t”. That summed up perfectly the value of staying within your limitations.

That’s not to say we shouldn’t push ourselves. After all pushing beyond our limits is the only way to grow and learn. We just need to be mindful of the potential consequences of doing that and pick the right situations. More age-acquired wisdom.

Bike rides are one of the activities that allow me to push myself without negative consequences, at least on the loop rides I do around town as I can always cut across the route to shorten the ride home if needed. Riding out-and-back trails is another story as one needs to be mindful that the ride back is just as far as the ride out and legs that feel like another few miles on the outbound trip may not be up for those extra few miles on the way back. Longer breaks at the halfway point and packing a snack for energy can make the difference between a fun ride and a torturous return trip. I’ve had a few of those. Yeah, it took me more than one to learn.

To be our best selves we need to recognize our changing limitation as we age. Again, that doesn’t mean not pushing ourselves, we just need to be smarter about it. Take longer breaks, give yourself more time to recover after heavy exertion, hire someone to do the heavy lifting, or hand-off the task to your kids or grandkids. By adapting as we age we can continue to do the things we enjoy, maybe just scaled back or at a slower pace. Don’t give up on yourself and the things you love to do, roll with your changing body and mind. Adapt what you do and how you do it, and enjoy the ride.

A follow-up from “What’s Your Quest?”:

A few days ago we ran into friends at our local brewery who are avid readers of this blog. The husband told me that he was inspired by a post in 2020 to set a goal to run 3 miles a day every day in 2021. That’s an impressive and imposing quest! Due to hip issues he had to throttle back on the mileage (perfect example of knowing your limitations and adapting) but he managed to run at least 1 mile every day in 2021 to successfully meet his goal and complete his quest. Congratulations Bert!

www.RetiredandInspiredat55.com 2-7-2022