The first time I met Ecris Williams of the Potomac River Running Elite Race Team, the first thing she said to me was:

?I can?t come see you because you are not a Medicare provider?

We are currently not a Medicare provider, but that is not what blew me away. All I could say was:

?Wait a minute! How old are you!!???

I don?t really know how old Ecris is but I guess she is Medicare age at least. I have mentioned before how inspired my wife was by Ecris, and me as well, as we have taken this journey back into running.

This week happens to be Men?s Health Week. I don?t know if you pay too much attention to the Sport and Spine Rehab Facebook Fan page (and hey if you haven?t ?liked? our page already, get on it!), but there has been some really good info posted on the subject.

I mentioned last week that Kim and I were on vacation in Bethany Beach. If you saw either of the videos I did from the beach you heard me mention the Seashore Striders. Since we have been going to Bethany on vacation, this is the first time we have both been actively running, and as a result, this is the first time we have had a reason to associate with this organization. Great group, very active, very encouraging. And since Delaware is a popular area to retire there are a lot of ?more senior? folks (like me!), and a wide range of ages participate.

The 5K I ran in Rehoboth Beach on June 1st was my first run this year in under 10 minute miles. Eleven out of the nineteen men runners in the age groups older than me, the 60 to over 80 categories, ran that race faster than me. In the 5K I ran in Lewes on June 7th, twenty three out of 36 men in those same categories ran that race faster than me including Jack Huxtable in the 75 to 79 age group who did it in 26 minutes and 15 seconds!

Like the evening I met Ecris, I was again inspired. Most of you reading this blog are probably not too concerned about whether you can run a 5k in 26 minutes when you are 79 years old.

But maybe you should be.

According to the CDC:
? 12.1% of men 18 years and over are in fair or poor health.
? 53.6% of men 18 years and over met the 2008 federal physical activity guidelines for aerobic activity through leisure-time aerobic activity.
? 31.4% of men 18 years and over had 5 or more drinks in 1 day at least once in the past year.
? 21.2% of men 18 years and over currently smoke cigarettes.
? 34.6% of men 20 years and over are obese.
? 31.6% of men 20 years and over have hypertension.

Check out our FB page for a great link on Men?s Health. Lots of good info, much of it I have touched on in this blog as it related to me:
? Get Good Sleep – I wrote about this, do you have sleep apnea too?
? Toss out the Tobacco ? I haven?t smoked since the end of my first marriage?. that is a whole other blog topic?..maybe a book!
? Move More ? that has certainly been a big topic here!
? Eat Healthy ? yup, I admittedly still struggle with this?..
? Tame Stress ? this too?..
? Stay on Top of Your Game, See your doctor or nurse for regular checkups ? mine is coming up!

Just sayin???..

And, in case you didn?t believe the Memorial Day parade-saxophone thing, I added a photo. I am the tall guy in the sax row on the end.

And thanks to the Seashore Striders and all the nice people we met and talked to. Looking forward to September!

And congrats to SSR?s Jessica Russell for completing her first half marathon while we were away!

Oh, and Happy Father?s Day to all the men who are Dads!

Curt Christiansen
Chief Operating Officer
Sport and Spine Rehab
[email protected]