Every few years, I invite readers and colleagues to contribute guest columns in the series Technology and my Hobby/Passion. Over a hundred contributed in the last decade on their birding, charities, cooking, music, sports and every other passion, and how it keeps evolving with technology. Click here and scroll down to read them all.
This time it is Chris Selland, the CEO of DipJar, a Cambridge, MA based fintech company. He spent most of his career in the enterprise software space, in marketing, business development and sales leadership roles for companies including Vertica (acquired by HP in 2012 and divested to Micro Focus in 2017) and Unifi Software (recently acquired by Dell Boomi), and earlier in his career was a well-known CRM analyst at the Yankee Group and Reservoir Partners, which was later acquired by Aberdeen Group. He lives in the Boston metro area with his wife and 5 grown kids, and still keeps active - here he writes about how active:
Vinnie and I go way back (no I’m not going to give specific dates - to protect him of course…) and I’ve appreciated his ongoing passion for writing. As a fellow Enterprise Irregular he’s been featuring the passions of some of our fellow “EI’s” on his blog, and when I read Jason Busch’s guest post it really struck a nerve.
Like Jason - though not nearly to his level of intensity - I’m passionate about keeping fit, eating well and (increasingly) sleeping well. These times we’re in and my age group have driven home that, as the adage goes, if you’ve got your health, you’ve got a good life.
I’ve been a gym rat since my teen years, but I’ve also participated in my share of road races (including 3 marathons), triathlons and other aerobic activities. I also had a very enjoyable 10 year men’s soccer resurrection in my ‘40’s - picking up a game I hadn’t played since my teens.
Over the last few years, however, my left knee has decided for the rest of my body that high-impact exercises such as running and soccer were not a good idea anymore. Compound meniscus tear to be specific - and not the type that is repairable by surgery. As 2 different doctors suggested, it’s not about if I want a knee replacement, it’s a question of when. Also other joints have become more balky about my former 7 day per week gym habit.
So more and more, variety has become the norm for me. For the last few years in particular I’ve tried to do more low(er) impact exercise - until my gym shut down, I continued to lift weights but more as a 2-3 day/week thing, rather than 6-7. And I had tried mixing in both yoga and spin classes, but found myself negatively motivated by the formats of these exercises. Working out with large groups of people - many of whom are both a different gender and in better shape than me - made it tough. And my continually-varying schedule made scheduled classes a near-impossibility
My wife Deb, however, is another story. She absolutely loves spinning and is on a 7-day-week plan, which she’s done for years. She belonged to a local spin studio and every morning was out the door in the early hours, but also found adapting to the schedules challenging, especially given our respective work and life schedules.
About 18 months ago, we decided to take the plunge and buy a Peloton bike. While it was “for” Deb - and for everyday use - I started using it too, mixing it in with my every-other-day trips to the gym.
Then came the COVID crisis, and the need to improvise and adjust.
I’ve found the Peloton to be a true lifeline - not just the on-demand “classes” but also the community. Even though they’ve shut down their studios so all classes are now recorded during the COVID crisis - there’s still something about seeing and hearing the instructor, the music and of course the leaderboard that is definitely more motivating. It’s not just exercise - but a connection to the outside world (even if everyone else on the leaderboard is stuck in their homes just like we are).
And the instructors are fantastic - see at the bottom how Denis Morton is graciously managing to smile as I sweat all over him, after our visit to their NYC studios last August (pre- social distancing, obviously…)
More recently, I’ve discovered Peloton Yoga - among the variety of classes in their on-demand platform. While I’m still very much a beginner (and you’ll notice zero pictures of me doing any poses, though here’s one of my “studio”) - it’s a nice break from cycling, and what it (so far) lacks in physical exercise I find very emotionally and intellectually relaxing. I feel calmer, and I’m sleeping better - and I’m sure it is related.
And I just recently picked up a kettlebell to round out my home gym. I’m trying to picture the look on the face of the Amazon delivery person (yes it came in a box) - again not a full substitute for a full-scale gym but based on the workout I just finished not bad either. The king of body-hacking Tim Ferris has been preaching the virtues of kettlebells for years, and I’ve picked up a few exercises over time, but I suspect to be using this atrociously-colored (really Amazon?) but well-built tool to be with me for years to come.
Finally, tracking. As a bit of a data nerd, I was one of the first to have the original FitBit, and have been into wearables and stat tracking ever since. While I haven’t yet made the investment in a Whoop like Jason (not that hard-core, despite some of my investor friends also telling me to make the switch), my Apple Watch does a very serviceable job of exercise tracking.
In addition to my watch, my stats get fed by the Sleep Cycle app on my iPhone and my iHealth scale. Neither are necessarily perfect, but both give me at least a sense of how I’m doing day to day.
Last but definitely not least, a critical part of my weekly routine has been the weekend walks I’ve been able to take with Deb & my daughters (yes social distancing always). My watch tracks those too - and they absolutely count both physically and emotionally. Especially on the emotional scale, the walks are my favorite routine of all.
These past few weeks I’ve found that, despite the COVID crisis and all of the stresses caused by it, I’m actually making progress on most measures - and as frustrating as the state of the world is, I am calmer, feel better and in at least some degree of control. As I often remind myself, if every day you make a little progress - even if it doesn’t feel like much - when you look back over the longer-term you’ll find you’ve come a long way.
Give back with MyDataHelps
Oh, and one more thing - and a way that we can all turn all of this data into something that helps all of us. If you have any type of wearable I strongly encourage you to check out and download the MyDataHelps app. It’s a way to both monitor your own data and also contribute it to a larger study, conducted by Scripps Research, of indicators of health (including but not limited to COVID-19).
Thanks Vinnie for giving me a forum to share - obviously there are a lot of product mentions here and I do recommend every one of them, but realize there are alternatives as well. One of my coworkers heard me singing the praises of Peloton but decided to buy an Echelon bike instead and is at least as passionate as me about it (though I’m not sure he’s as passionate as Jason).
What’s most important is doing something - and starting now. Keep it simple, but keep track - and you’ll make progress. You may be amazed by how much. We’ll get through this - and while we do I wish you all good health.
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