Spring training

By John Hanc | Special to Newsday

1:30 PM EDT, April 11, 2008

"You feel it, don't you?" former Mr. Universe Dave Draper wrote on his blog recently.

"It's like a stir of fresh air in a still room, a dash of sunshine piercing drawn shades ... the bracing fragrance of life revived," Draper continued. "Is that a heartbeat ... and another ... a breath ... a deep inhalation? Might I once again lift weights with purpose and might, diligence and joy? Can it be ... am I dreaming ... is it spring?"

At 66, Draper, originally from New Jersey and now California, can still resonate with boyish enthusiasm about his training; his spring training.

He's not alone. While few can express it as poetically as this bodybuilder-turned-bard, older adults can feel the reinvigorating effects of this season, just as much as their children and grandchildren. But while the kids go out and play, what will you do? Stay in and stay sedentary as the world blooms around you? Not a good idea for your physical or mental health.

On the other hand, trying to run five miles or last a hard seven innings with the local softball team might not be the wisest strategy, either.

"That's where older people get in trouble," says Hank Williford, a professor of physical education and exercise science at Alabama's Auburn University-Montgomery. "The first nice day, they go out and overdo it. The body isn't accustomed to those intensity levels and they can get injured."

Instead, approach your spring training the way baseball teams once did: as a time to condition the body after a winter's layoff. (Modern baseball players tend to work out through the off-season, so today, spring training is less about basic conditioning than sharpening the skills.)

"If you haven't been outside all winter, you need to build up to the fitness levels you were at last year," Williford says. But, cautions the professor (himself a competitive triathlete at age 61), "it may take a while. It normally takes at least 6 to 8 weeks before you start to see some big improvements in cardiovascular fitness or muscular strength."

Last year, the American College of Sports Medicine and the American Heart Association issued, for the first time, physical activity guidelines for seniors. These differ from the general guidelines in that they specifically recommend weight training two times a week, and regular flexibility and balance exercises, in addition to the 30 minutes of moderate cardiovascular activity (walking, bicycling, jogging, etc.) that adults of all ages should be doing at least five days a week.

Why the addition of senior-specific guidelines? "From 1995, when the last guidelines were released, to the early 2000s, there was a lot more research done about older adults and physical activity," said Dr. William Haskell, an exercise physiologist at the Stanford University School of Medicine, and one of the authors of the new guidelines. "And a lot of that research has shown that it's absolutely critical for maintaining physical function."

In other words, get active now, and you may still be able to get yourself out of a tub in years to come; or climb a set of stairs.

Besides, it's spring. As Draper says, the season calls us to action.

For inspiration and ideas on how to develop your own program, meet four Long Islanders who are active participants in warm-weather sports. These Spring Chickens are able to enjoy their spring and summer sports and pastimes, in large part because they work at it all year round.

Nancy Lipira,

Ironman Triathlete

Hometown: Huntington Station

Age: 52

Training for: Four long-distance, swim-bike-run competitions over the summer and early fall, culminating with her eighth Ironman tri -- a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike, 26.2-mile run competition being held in Panama City, Fla., on Nov. 1.

Training log: At this time of year, she says, "I work more on endurance, building up a base to prepare for the more intense training that will come later in the spring." Lipira trains six days a week, often twice a day. Her current weekly volume is 20 to 25 miles of running a week, 3,000 to 6,000 yards swimming, 100 to 125 miles biking, plus strength- training session and yoga classes 2 to 3 times a week.

How she keeps a spring in her step: "This is my 24th year of triathlon competition. When we started, it was all so new. The plan was just to go hard, go fast. Now, the goal is to maintain overall fitness, so that your body can handle these long distances. I stretch more, get massage, and weight training is very important. I always take my nutrition and sleep more seriously. I can't get away with four hours of sleep anymore."