STEVE'S DORM ROOM

Well, I'm on vacation this week. We drove from Colorado to Michigan, first to spend a few days at my wife's folks' house (West side of the state), then to see my folks (East side of the state). While at my in-laws', we went to a beach in Muskegon. One thing I love about beaches on Lake Michigan is the sand dunes. All along the Eastern shore, the dunes go up several hundred feet from the beach. Most are covered with trees, but a few are sandy. There was a nice sandy one where we were and we'd trudge up it, then run down as fast as we could go. My son would FLY! However, I couldn't go that fast because I was afraid I'd end up tumbling down head-over-heels and break my neck! Anyway, going up that dune was one of the best workouts I've had recently. It really works the leg muscles and it got me breathing harder than I can remember doing before. Then I got the great idea of giving my teenage daughter a piggyback ride up the thing. I carried her about half way up and had to pause... I was just dead! Then, she got off and my teenage son got on (he's younger and a little lighter) and I carried him up most of the rest of the way. I don't know how close I came to having a heart attack, but I've never pushed myself that hard in my life! When I got to the top I sat on a fallen tree for a few minutes, then ran down one last time. It would be great to be able to do that kind of workout regularly, I'm sure I'd be in GREAT shape if I did that. This experience reminded me of the mythological story of the first bodybuilder, a Greek athlete who began carrying his bull calf around to get stronger. As the calf grew, he continued to carry it, even until it became full grown. He got stronger and stronger carrying the growing bull, just like we get stronger as we lift heavier and heavier weights. The lesson: Fathers should give their kids piggy-back rides even into their late teens (or beyond?) to develop those leg muscles and cardiovascular fitness. :-)