Turning 65 in May; "If you want to change some things in your life, you're gonna have to change some things in your life" ***UPDATED 7-31-23***

[jonsnow]

7-31-23 update:

Some of you are aware I experienced a series of mild strokes earlier this year. So since I started this post a lot of things have changed in my life, most of which have not been of my choosing. I'm now taking blood thinner, blood pressure medication, a statin for cholesterol & a low dose aspirin daily. My right carotid artery is completely occluded & the vascular surgeon feels it is too risky to attempt to clean it out or put a stent in so the plan is to manage the blood flow I've got through the left carotid & associated vessels through medication, diet & exercise. So far it seems to be working; I seem to be stabilized now & regaining the strength in my left side. My balance is still compromised so it's affected my swing pretty noticeably but I went to the practice tee last Saturday & hit a lot of shots I actually recognized & felt like golf shots again. They're not going the distance yet they were before all this started but I'm hopeful again. 

 

Still tobacco free.

 

Have lost 25 pounds. I'm trying to follow the Mediterranean diet. Little to no red meat, fish regularly, lots of fruit, vegetables & nuts. Drinking about 100 ounces of water daily.

 

Doing a lot of pushups & planks daily. Need to get back to strength training (squats, dead lifts primarily). Think I'm at a point where I can do so safely at relatively light weights (my PCP agrees). Weekly physical therapy has helped A LOT. Those therapy bands can kick your butt!

 

Still have periods of mental "fuzziness"; I spent a couple of days with a neuropsychologist last week being tested & evaluated to determine how much cognitive damage I've experienced & how to address it. Won't have the results for a month or so. They sent me a bunch of questionnaires & assessments to complete & return before the appointments & it was an unbelievable amount of information they collected.

 

I have continued to work although a bit slower than previously. My wife has been a saint; I get impatient & frustrated more easily than she is used to so it hasn't been easy on her. Thankfully I'm starting to feel more like myself again.

 

If anybody has any suggestions for improving my balance I'd appreciate them. The PT's focus is more on getting clients walking better, comfortable with steps & preventing falls (non of them play golf) so trying to explain what a golf swing requires in terms of balance is a little tough. 

 

It's not exactly what I envisioned turning 65 would be like but I'm thankful it wasn't any worse. 

Edited July 31, 2023 by jonsnow

[glk]

I simply do one leg stands for balance.    when i first started 10 sec was good and i would hop around a bit - now i just do anywhere from 30 secs to a minute - my ankles were weak.    Swing that rope too - great for both horizontal and vertical rhythms of the golf swing - if balance sucks then this can be difficult - also can be aerobic depending on how long and how fast one goes - i like to vary speed and vary swing plane.    beside planks and their variation i found wall squats to be a good leg and core workout - not really a squat - keeping back and head against a wall squat down until thighs are parallel to ground then hold for as long as you can - not as easy as one might think.     Getting old sucks but better than the alternative - the days of 10 miles runs has long been over but a good 10 mile bike ride thru some hills is a good substitute. 

 

 I have a good friend and golfing buddy who bikes cross country once a year - he has biked across Australia as well as both islands of New Zealand - and countless trips across the US - at 75 he has shortened the trip but still makes the effort - plans to be out here in Abq after labor day - first day bike up Sandia Peak then bike to Grand Junction, Co - way shorter than when he used to do 2500-3000 miles but he does a lot of serious climbing - he's biked a lot thru Colorado.     If you don't bike should consider taking it up.     A little bit every day.

[jonsnow]

3 hours ago, glk said:

I simply do one leg stands for balance.    when i first started 10 sec was good and i would hop around a bit - now i just do anywhere from 30 secs to a minute - my ankles were weak.    Swing that rope too - great for both horizontal and vertical rhythms of the golf swing - if balance sucks then this can be difficult - also can be aerobic depending on how long and how fast one goes - i like to vary speed and vary swing plane.    beside planks and their variation i found wall squats to be a good leg and core workout - not really a squat - keeping back and head against a wall squat down until thighs are parallel to ground then hold for as long as you can - not as easy as one might think.     Getting old sucks but better than the alternative - the days of 10 miles runs has long been over but a good 10 mile bike ride thru some hills is a good substitute. 

 

 I have a good friend and golfing buddy who bikes cross country once a year - he has biked across Australia as well as both islands of New Zealand - and countless trips across the US - at 75 he has shortened the trip but still makes the effort - plans to be out here in Abq after labor day - first day bike up Sandia Peak then bike to Grand Junction, Co - way shorter than when he used to do 2500-3000 miles but he does a lot of serious climbing - he's biked a lot thru Colorado.     If you don't bike should consider taking it up.     A little bit every day.

Are you referring to Dr. Kwon's rope drills or the battle ropes I see people working out on?

[ShortGolfer]

Great to hear you lost that weight!

What  I did was to learn a rotational swing with no weight shift.  It is great for playing on wet grass.  Later I added in a small amount of weight shift for more distance.

 

Maybe you need a golf physical  therapist?

Gaylord Physical Therapy's Golf Performance Program will pair you with a Titleist Performance Institute Certified (TPI) physical therapist who can help get you back into the game or improve your golf experience by evaluating  your swing, stance, body posture, and other issues that may be causing pain

[glk]

14 minutes ago, jonsnow said:

Are you referring to Dr. Kwon's rope drills or the battle ropes I see people working out on?

Dr kwon    But hey if you have room for those other ropes go for it - don't know their affect on balance but I think your lungs and body  would get a good workout.    And then there is always the tractor tire flip.    Something I learned from dr kwon was that slower motion is less stable than fast motion - so slow walking like a drunk test is a good balance exercise to challenge your balance - ditto slow riding a bike - I have a 6* sloped hill in my neighborhood and I definitely wiggle by the time I reach the top third of it but it is fun going down!

[jobin]

Iyengar yoga will show you many balance poses. I also suggest mild inversions for your case. 

Light on Yoga the book to buy. A good used copy will serve you till your end days.

Recommend not looking for yoga on UTube as those folks will confuse your mind. Stick with Iyengar's book.

[robdalky]

As a physician I will say this, be patient with yourself post-stroke. It is amazing how much improvement one can make, but it takes a long time. My mother had a stroke a few years back that was so severe she nearly died in her mid 60s. Her carotid was totally occluded. She couldn't walk, barely talk or feed herself, spent a month in the hospital and then many months in a nursing home. Today, she's living with her fiancee, doing great, and spent a lot of time pitching a baseball to my 7 year old over the 4th of July holiday. Hard to believe, but true! Just know that things will gradually get better and better, stay positive, and keep doing what you're doing.

[huskydawg]

On 7/31/2023 at 10:52 PM, jonsnow said:

7-31-23 update:

Some of you are aware I experienced a series of mild strokes earlier this year. So since I started this post a lot of things have changed in my life, most of which have not been of my choosing. I'm now taking blood thinner, blood pressure medication, a statin for cholesterol & a low dose aspirin daily. My right carotid artery is completely occluded & the vascular surgeon feels it is too risky to attempt to clean it out or put a stent in so the plan is to manage the blood flow I've got through the left carotid & associated vessels through medication, diet & exercise. So far it seems to be working; I seem to be stabilized now & regaining the strength in my left side. My balance is still compromised so it's affected my swing pretty noticeably but I went to the practice tee last Saturday & hit a lot of shots I actually recognized & felt like golf shots again. They're not going the distance yet they were before all this started but I'm hopeful again. 

 

Still tobacco free.

 

Have lost 25 pounds. I'm trying to follow the Mediterranean diet. Little to no red meat, fish regularly, lots of fruit, vegetables & nuts. Drinking about 100 ounces of water daily.

 

Doing a lot of pushups & planks daily. Need to get back to strength training (squats, dead lifts primarily). Think I'm at a point where I can do so safely at relatively light weights (my PCP agrees). Weekly physical therapy has helped A LOT. Those therapy bands can kick your butt!

 

Still have periods of mental "fuzziness"; I spent a couple of days with a neuropsychologist last week being tested & evaluated to determine how much cognitive damage I've experienced & how to address it. Won't have the results for a month or so. They sent me a bunch of questionnaires & assessments to complete & return before the appointments & it was an unbelievable amount of information they collected.

 

I have continued to work although a bit slower than previously. My wife has been a saint; I get impatient & frustrated more easily than she is used to so it hasn't been easy on her. Thankfully I'm starting to feel more like myself again.

 

If anybody has any suggestions for improving my balance I'd appreciate them. The PT's focus is more on getting clients walking better, comfortable with steps & preventing falls (non of them play golf) so trying to explain what a golf swing requires in terms of balance is a little tough. 

 

It's not exactly what I envisioned turning 65 would be like but I'm thankful it wasn't any worse. 

Scary stuff, hope you're still doing alright.