at the airport recently. Pretty common stuff. Just an awkward step. What probably should've been a stumble and a recovery (or one of those falls that are a little embarrassing, but ya hop up and dust yourself off with a little laugh and keep walkin') resulted in an ugly tumble and injuries. Yeah, he's carrying a bunch of extra weight, and I'm not talkin' about suitcases.

Minor falls when you're halfway fit can be a different thing. Your joints are generally more stable. Your bones are probably stronger. You're supported/protected by more muscle. Your balance is likely better. Your reactions tend to be quicker. You mind is sharper. And in very many cases, the outcome will be better - as in lower risk of injury, reduced pain, less down time.

Yeah, a bunch of us who're 45 or 55 or 65 have old injuries and stuff related to aging we have to work with or work around. I've got a long list of those things. But I don't skip my workouts. I modify them. Because - as I've told my kids many times (I'm sure they could repeat my spiel back to me verbatim) - bad things are gonna happen. But you can actually avoid some of them, and you can potentially reduce the impact of others, if you invest a little time in regular training. Life's hard. Suffering of some kind is inevitable. But you actually get to choose the form a fraction of your suffering will take and where it will happen - in the gym or in the hospital.

Typed with love, people. By a wiry middle-aged dude who been through some stuff and believes in the benefits of training.