The legend of Sisyphus

From my memory of stories read in school, the legend of Sisyphus from Greek myths comes alive for me now in my senior years. He was condemned to rolling a huge rock up a mountain, but every time he was almost at the top, the rock would come hurtling down. What is the connection, you ask? Let me explain.

As the doctors keep explaining to us ‘twilighters,’ all our bodily and mental ills are what they call “age-related.” So as we experience aches, pains, and discomforts from head to foot, the only panacea seems to be “exercise”. This can take many forms. For those who can’t do much on their own, there are women, men, and machines who can twist your body into contortions worthy of the best body-beautiful pictures. But if you are someone who wants to go it on your own, you are given a day-long regimen of simple exercises.

When you listen to the instructions, they seem simple enough. A rolled-up towel, a flat bed, and a warm and willing body; each exercise to be done 20 times. But when you hear the last bit, “Do this about 5 to 6 times a day,” your heart begins to sink and your spirits to flag. It becomes clear that either you do nothing else in life bar the exercises or get into Einstein’s mind and blur time and space to your convenience.

Mind you, having been a dedicated sportsperson since the age of 12, the need for discipline to be regular and sustained in an exercise routine is familiar and logical. But when I hear of near and dear ones who throw in the towel after just a day but seem none the worse for it, how do I keep my resolve intact?

Walking is a much more pleasant form of exercise. It is a universally acknowledged truth that a daily walk works wonders and more. Unlike exercise, walking has other possibilities. There are unfamiliar lanes to discover, unexpected meetings, and camaraderie with walkers of different strokes and styles. There is also a heady whiff of competition. As I walk close behind another senior citizen, the adrenaline surfaces, and I want to overtake this person. Can I do it?

A burst of speed, and I have gone past, my stick cheering me on. What a sense of achievement! So what if I am puffing like the train from Coonoor to Ooty? Like the little train in the story, I knew I could, I knew I could!

Sunday was a day of rest in my younger sports playing days. Dare I take a day off now? Did Sisyphus? I doubt that. The rock he was pushing would have hurtled down, and the task would have begun all over again. So here I go..counting, bending, lifting...up...down..up...down. The result?

That comes after a considerable time when your doctor says, “Your bone density has improved. For your age, the muscles are in good shape.” And you receive that accolade with as much joy as the trophy you won years ago.

And if Hercules could manage
a dozen challenging tasks, surely I
can pull off half that number in my
exercise routines?