Jack LaLanne, Living and the Rugged Maniac

I remember watching Jack LaLanne as a child and thinking he was the most powerful man I had ever seen. I saw a picture of him last year, when he was 95 and thought “Damn! He is amazing!” At 96, after an incredible, vibrant life he is adventuring on.

There are so many quotes of his that I would love to repeat, but this one reported by the L.A. Times hits home with me:

"The crusade is never off my mind — the exercise I do, the food I eat, the thought I think — all this and how I can help make my profession better-respected. To me, this one thing — physical culture and nutrition — is the salvation of America."

Here are a few of Jack Lalanne’s stunning accomplishments, again reported by the L.A. Times (The entire article is worth the read):

• He performed his first feat in 1954, when he was 40 and wanted to prove he wasn't "over the hill." He swam the length of the Golden Gate Bridge — underwater. (He carried two air tanks.)

• Other feats in his 40s: swimming from Alcatraz to San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf wearing handcuffs; swimming the Golden Gate Channel while towing a 2,500-pound cabin cruiser; pulling a paddleboard 30 miles from the Farallon Islands to the San Francisco shore.

• At age 60, he upped the ante by swimming from Alcatraz to Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco, handcuffed and shackled and towing a 1,000-pound boat.

• The next year, he did a similar feat underwater. And at age 70, he towed 70 boats with 70 people from the Queen's Way Bridge in Long Beach Harbor to the Queen Mary — while handcuffed and shackled.

When I was in Colorado I met a group of wonderful women who were in their 70s and 80s. We saw each other on a moderate hiking trail Wednesday mornings when there was no snow. These ladies had been hiking together every week for almost 10 years and they had no intentions of stopping. I thought to myself, “I want to be them when I am older.”

And I want to be like Jack LaLanne. I was doing a pretty good job of it until I had my son and burned out my adrenal glands in my later 30s for various reasons. Rock climbing, white water rafting, major league hiking, snow shoeing, weight lifting, running, kick boxing (full contact and not the sissy stuff). I could bench press 120 pounds and run 10 miles while eating garbage (like Lean Cuisine). Who knows what my potential would have been if I would have known how to eat.

After a period of serious physical decline my adrenals are strong again (thanks to healing, nutrient dense food and the treatment of my doctor of Oriental medicine, Ken), and I feel great. Ryan, my loving husband and adventure partner, and I are kicking off the next phase of our lives (the mid-40s) with the Rugged Maniac Race in April. I can’t wait! Running, climbing, mud, water obstacles, you name it. It should be a blast. Thanks to the food I eat and the way I have been training, it should be a trip. I am ramping my training up with the Paleo Solution Workout by Robb Wolf. Thanks to my friend Melissa for pointing me in Robb’s direction! After the Rugged Maniac race we are going to do another mud run that is being organized to assist cancer patients with financial challenges.

Some people, like my father and colleagues, thought I was crazy when I was in my late 20s and 30s. Gaining physical and mental strength and clarity seemed like such odd things to do. My colleagues weren’t big on women with muscular definition, and my Dad thought I was too old to kick box or push myself physically in other ways. Now I have gone off the deep end at almost 45. Maybe I have beaten my Dad down and he won’t even roll his eyes this time. I say that all in good fun.

We all have perceptions and expectations about ourselves, and those are the ones that really matter. My perception and expectation is that I will be like the Colorado hiking ladies and Jack LaLanne. We should have as much fun as possible while we are on this planet, and we should use our bodies to our potentials.

I have a dear friend and inspirer who launched me to my better, faster, stronger self. He lived, exemplified and spread those qualities, challenging himself every single day. He was contagious. He died in October 2010 in a two-seater plane crash at the age of 49. He lived every day in amazement of the planet, of his life and of potential. I know he will be with me, laughing all the way as I run the Rugged Maniac.

Comments

[mmc]

Jack L. and the old time strength men had as their mainstay dessicated liver. My research suggests to me that that is how they id the endurance feats that they did. It is very hard for modern Man to achieve this, partly because without liver the base level of nutrition is not there. Send me an email and I'll send you my file on liver. it is pretty interesting. libertyson11@yahoo.com