The big five four

I turned 54 a few days ago.

The number itself isn't especially significant, no more so than 53, or 55, or whatever. And yet 54 feels a little different, somehow, as if I'm right on the edge of middle age and will soon begin teetering towards late middle age, or even "old." In that sense, it would be quite possible to see 54 as a finish line, or at least something close to a finish line.

Instead, I choose to see it as a starting line, of sorts. I qualify this with "of sorts," because I am not, at age 54, beginning from scratch the three pursuits to which I am dedicating this blog. But I am working towards some new approaches and new overall goals here, as I will explain below.

As for these three pursuits....

First, I am a runner. Back in 2003 I dropped 100 pounds, primarily through running (with some dietary adjustments), thus solving what had been to that point a more-or-less lifelong obesity problem. To date I have completed 7 full marathons, 16 half marathons, and a number of shorter 10k's and 5k's of various stripes.

Second, I practice the Japanese martial art of kendo (and I have just begun to learn iaido), the "way of the sword," or what might be usefully understood as Japanese fencing, though the two disciplines are in many ways very different. I took up kendo in 2006, following an interest I had nursed in kendo since high school. I have had the great fortune to study kendo at a traditional-style dojo in the Midwest where I live, and to date I hold the rank of nidan (the kendo equivalent of second degree black belt).

Third (and most recently), I have converted to veganism. I did so primarily under the influence of this book by my favorite runner, but as I have grown into and developed my veganism, I have found other ethical and philosophical as well as nutritional reasons for a plant-based diet.

Kendo, running, nutrition: the trifecta of my fitness and health life. I have practiced all three of these things prior to turning 54 last week. But as I turn 54, I find the need to think in terms of a beginning, or at least a rethinking and re-orienting, of all three. Towit:

Running: I have long wished, and repeatedly failed, to complete at least one ultramarathon; by "failed," I do not mean a DNF. I have never, because of injuries, etc. been able to even toe the starting line of an ultra. Preferably I would like to complete more than one, and preferably something longer than the somewhat minimal 50k. In fact, I dream of someday running this iconic race; and while this is utterly unrealistic in the near future, who knows what might happen down the road, literally and figuratively? Meantime, I want to start slowly, and set as my goal, my beginning here at the "starting line," a modest enough 50k, completed at some point in my 54th year. Afterwards...we'll see. 

Kendo: as I have often failed in my attempts to complete an ultra, so I have failed three times to advance in my kendo rank past the nidan level to sandan (3rd degree black belt). The reasons are many, and meticulous, kendo being a highly detail-oriented pursuit. Suffice to say here that my immediate goal, again at some point during my 54th year, to successfully pass the sandan exam. But in a deeper, even somewhat existential sense, my goal is to make necessary changes to my kendo: my mindset, my technique, my very spirit (kiai).

Nutrition: as I write this, my approach is what one might call "mostly vegan." At home, I am pretty much 100% full-on plant-based. When I eat out, I do my best to eat vegan, but in the absence of vegan options (not at all unusual in the Midwest), I go with vegetarianism, or--if need be--fish and seafood. I suppose I could just demand my friends and family and I eat at a vegan-friendly restaurant, but that isn't really my personality. And this mostly vegan approach seems to work reasonably well. 

Still, I would like to get as close to 100% as possible. And I could stand to drop around ten to fifteen pounds, gained while suffering a fairly serious hamstring injury that kept me from running for nearly four months. So, by way of improving my veganism, fueling my running and kendo, and hopefully dropping a few pounds along the way, this particular part of the "starting line" will include a variety of goals: better and a wider variety of recipes, etc. 

So...these are my goals. I'll elaborate as I go along. I blog about these matters mostly for myself; as a writer, I find writing is thinking (and vice versa) and so blogging about these matters will make me more mindful of my goals.