Welcome to heydayDo.com
Hi I’m Greg Simon.
Fitness training & nutrition researching since 1982. ISSN (International Society of Sports Nutrition) Pro Member. MBA, B.Sc.
Author. Surfer. Organic food grower. Congenital heart disease survivor (so far).
heydayDo.com is my wellness blog that’s about encouraging a healthy lifestyle as we age.
I share my fitness training experience as well as the sports science research I’ve done on the many benefits strength building, exercise, & good eating habits offer us.
I also write review articles after product testing and evaluating home gym equipment & fitness supplements.
My hope is that you’ll find useful or encouraging information here on my website that will benefit your unique fitness journey.
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I’ve had multiple open heart surgeries and lots of cardiac-related hospitalizations & procedures since I was born.
Every day of our lives has its own set of challenges, doesn’t it?
🙂
I’m certain the only earthly reason I’m still here is due to my decades-long commitment & passion (is that love?) for fitness & healthy nutrition, and here on heydayDo I share a little of that good energy & enthusiasm.
The 62 year-old version of me.
What “Fitness After 50” is like for me
My body’s not in peak athletic condition by any means, but I figure I’m in pretty good shape for my age, all things considered.
I simply try to stay as fit as I can given the cards I’ve been dealt.
STRENGTH TRAINING BY LIFTING WEIGHTS
The main form of structured exercise I do is weightlifting. I’ve been regularly doing that for 40 years now, except a few times when serious heart trouble has shut me down.
My strength training workouts are a lot shorter & a LOT less intense than they were a couple of decades ago as you might imagine.
I vary my workout schedule throughout the year, and am usually weightlifting 3, 4, or 5 days a week depending on the daily training volume (the number of sets & reps) I’m doing.
Every year I create a handful of weight training routines. These days I’ll stick with each one for 6-10 weeks at a time — depending on how my body feels — slowly increasing the intensity** of the workout over the course of the cycle.
(** – To me, intensity in this case refers to either my training volume or the amount of weight I’m lifting for a particular exercise.)
Then I’ll chill out on the lifting for several days before firing it back up again.
THE IMPORTANCE OF RECOVERY
I usually take a week off from weightlifting in between those training blocks, sometimes less, or sometimes a little longer if I’m feeling run down or have a muscle or joint tweak somewhere.
I’m a huge believer in recovering sufficiently between my daily workouts & recovering almost completely between my weightlifting cycles…so a week off is a real good idea for me at my age.
I also ease off my structured workouts for the whole month of December.
This is so I can:
* really recover from any nagging joint or muscle discomforts that have accumulated over the course of the year;
* recharge both my mental & physical engines so that I’ll feel rested & rejuvenated for the new year;
* reward myself for being a good boy most of the year & enjoy eating a few of the things I love that I tend to avoid January through November.
CARDIO WORKOUTS
I don’t do a lot of structured cardio workouts, I just work it in a few times a week around my weightlifting schedule.
The only aerobic exercise I’ll do nowadays is low impact cardio, which is great for my joints & my back.
I do my cardio workouts either in our swim spa with a tether or on my hydraulic mini-stepper.
I don’t want to spend a lot of time working out, so I usually go for brief HIIT-type workouts.
Low-impact HIIT: Me on my Xiser mini-stepper…
…or doing HIIT sprints in the water.
Activities outside the gym…
Below are a few of the ‘non-workout’ ways I like to spend my physically active time.
I surf…
…every chance I get.
I’ve gone surfing somewhere between 4,000 & 5,000 times in my life, and I’ve probably ridden around 50,000 waves.
I am still totally stoked to catch the Pacific’s waves, so I’m going to keep paddling out as long as I can, whenever I can.
I hike
I trek a ton of miles per year with my Rotties on the mountainside where I live.
I farm
I grow hundreds of pounds of organic vegetables & fruit each year, and maintain a wine vineyard – working my land by hand.
There’s no way I could accomplish any of those things without staying true to that 3-part principle of mine – good nutrition, strength training, & maintaining a physically active lifestyle.
