Inspire The Olympian Within You!

The Rio 2016 Summer Olympics have come and gone and athletes from around the world have returned home after demonstrating their best talents and skills. It was amazing to witness such incredible athleticism and sportsmanship. As a Chiropractor, it was amazing to see how capable the human body is; and with the right training and determination the many abilities it can accomplish.

Our body is an incredible machine. And although we may no longer be in our twenties and at the prime of our health, our body is still capable of amazing accomplishments! Take the following examples:

• A Winnipegger, Jaring Timmerman was setting swimming records at the age of 104(1).
• A British 101-year-old marathon runner with a personal best time of 6 hours and 2 minutes(2).
• The oldest olympian to ever compete is Hiroshi Hoketsu of Japan who competed in horse jumping in the 2008 and 2012 olympics at the age of 70(3). 

With such incredible examples the question arises, where is the olympian within us? We may not be able to run a 100m race in under 10 seconds like our good friend Andre De Grasse (9.91s), but we can try to adopt the same attitude when trying to improve our own personal health.

It all starts with a plan. Small steps like taking a 30 minute walk during lunch can set the tone. Once the rhythm is set, trying to learn a new sport like tennis can go a long way to help improve our quality of life. Social sports like playing golf, or yoga in the park can not only improve our muscle strength and coordination, but can also help with conditions such as depression and anxiety (4).

As the olympics wrap us, let us take this opportunity to be inspired by the athletes of the world and use that inspiration to coach our own personal olympic journey.

Wishing you all good health!

1. http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/Winnipegs-Jaring-Timmerman-swimming-world-record-holder-dies-at-105-281694661.html
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fauja_Singh
3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hiroshi_Hoketsu
4. http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/depression/in-depth/depression-and-exercise/art-20046495