Why Work For It If Your Body Can’t Do It?

Last week I was skiing in Livigno with a group of friends. Blue skies. Perfect snow. One of those trips where you feel blessed just to be there.

We’d only booked two days, so we wanted to ski all day, both days 

We started with five of us. One had to leave early for work, so four of us were left.

Three of us skied both days. Top to bottom. All day. Everywhere. Brilliant. But the fourth didn’t last an hour.

This wasn’t a beginner skier. He just didn’t trust his body. He wasn’t confident he could stop properly. He felt unstable on his skis. At one point he said he was worried he might break his leg.

So he stopped.

And spent the rest of the trip at the bottom of the mountain.

Now skiing isn’t cheap. Flights, accommodation, lift passes… it adds up. But it's not just the money. The real cost is not being able to do the thing you came there to do.

This Is Happening To A Lot Of Men In Their 40s

You work hard. You build the career. You build the family life. You build the lifestyle.

Then when the moment arrives to enjoy it…Your body isn’t up for it

So you watch instead of doing do the thing, or you never booked the thing in the first place.

An article that really hit home last week 

Last week I read a brilliant article about midlife. It argued that midlife isn’t actually a crisis. It’s more of a transition.

You’re trying to build the next version of yourself, while letting go of the old one, which can be really hard, because you are leaving the version of yourself, the younger version, behind 

That resonated with me. Because a lot of the things I used to enjoy don’t appeal anymore.

Late nights.Festivals Big drinking days. Lads holidays built around chaos.

These days I prefer something different.

Training. Swimming. Boxing. Lifting weights.

Enjoying the dinner over the Apres ski.

Generally feeling good most of the time and having the physical capacity to do whatever I want when I want.

Including skiing..... And frankly the more time goes on the more I'm going to lean towards these things, but that doesn't make it any easier to admit those days are gone. The article is linked below.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/why-capable-adults-feel-stuck-midlife-jenni-nicholls-gmbpss-fcmgr-gtlje/?trackingId=%2BKohAuMRRn2W52zETxFGwg%3D%3D

We need some freedom, and the time really is now . 

We’re heading into the best time of the year. Summer’s coming. Running. Swimming. Cycling. Tennis. Events. Outdoor adventures. But here’s the question:

Do you actually have the capacity to do those things anymore?

Because if you don’t…What’s the point?

The Problem Most men face. 

I speak to men every week who say the same things: Work is busy. The house needs renovating. The kids take priority.... And that's fine 

But if those things stay the priority for too long, your athletic ability disappears

And once that gap gets big enough, it becomes very hard to get back 

Training In Your 40s Is Different

When you're 20, you can train almost any way and improve. When you're 40 with old injuries and more wear and tear.... Things are different.

You need

• Smarter, more targeted programming • Strength training that's specific to you • Progressive loading • Injury management.

Because The Goal Isn't Just To Train

The goal is to live well do the things you want to do

To ski all day. To run with your kids.To sign up for events.To feel confident in your body again.

Not just pop to the gym

We’re now in March. Which means summer is roughly three months away.That’s enough time to make a meaningful change. Enough time to rebuild strength. Enough time to close the gap between where you are now and what you want to be able to do.

So ask yourself..

“Does the new version of me want these things?" and then ask... “Is my body actually ready for them?”

So if you’re reading this and thinking: “Yeah… my body probably isn’t ready for the things I want to do.” Then it might be worth taking a proper look at where you’re actually at.

Every week I speak to people who feel exactly like this. Usually it only takes 30 minutes to figure out what’s really going on, where the weak points are, and what needs fixing first.

That’s why I offer a free 30-minute training audit to anyone who reads this newsletter.

No sales pitch. Just a proper conversation about your training, your injuries, and what the smartest next step might be.

Because sometimes the difference between watching from the bottom of the mountain… and skiing all day… is just having a better plan.

Until next week

Andy