Keeping Fit and Healthy

Keeping fit and healthy is a critical formula in being happy. A simple headache or backache will not make one fully oneself to perform the daily challenging chores that one has to perform as an employee, a husband, a father, a driver, chairman at meetings and the many roles that we have to perform. Recognising the importance of being healthy and fit, I have, over the years got involved in one exercise or another and tried to follow a reasonable diet.In the secondary school, my exercises were mainly playing such games as football, table-tennis and hockey. In the colleges, besides the three games I played rugby and tennis. At the initial phase of my working career I rotated squash and jogging and much later picked up golf. However, squash fizzled out as partners interested in the game are few and getting someone with the same standard is not easy to get. So squash was out of the regular exercise regime. I regard golf as a social game but have no strong interest in it as I find the game needs partners to play, it is time consuming as playing an 18-hole game, would need at least four-and-half to five hours and on top of it, getting exposed to too much of the sun. It is also expensive.Jogging remains the key exercise that I continued to do at this ripe age. I find jogging a very convenient way of working one's muscle. No partner and elaborate and expensive equipments are needed. One needs a T-shirt, running shorts, a good pair of shoes and then proceed jogging on the playing fields, town parks, roads in housing schemes, recreational forests, beaches etc. I started swimming early. Being an island boy, frolicking in the water was a natural thing and the swimming was with the head jutting above water and the strokes was clumsy. It was not until the mid-forties that I learnt the proper way of swimming with head under water and only putting it up when air is needed and gracefully put the strokes and the body glides through the water. I subsequently became a strong swimmer and swam long distances whenever I am in a pool.Some time in 1996 I came with a crazy idea to participate in a triathlon when my age was approaching sixty. I had to pick up cycling to fulfil the tri-games requirement. My strategy in participating in a triathlon was to ensure that I continue doing my exercises in a regular manner and it was a challenge. I participated at the Sabah International Triathlon in 1997 and completed the Race made up of swimming 1.5 km, cycling 40 km and running 10 km in just about four hours. Since then my weekly exercise regime is made up of running around six km(on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday), swimming for 30 laps in an Olympic sized pool of 50 m length (Saturday) and cycling for around 24 km on Sunday. Monday and Thursday are my fasting days to clean up my alimentary system where from around about 4.00 am till sunset (7.20pm) I abstain from food and liquids.This exercise schedule has kept me in good healthand happy.