Aging & Performance
Questions by Pat Heatherly
Answers by Royn Bartholdi
What do you see as the biggest misconception regarding the effects of aging on athletic performance?
That performance matters! No one cares… Hell, your old, having fun, sailing 60 mph (actually 15), jumping 40 feet (actually 3), and have been on the water all day (actually 30 minutes). Sure, in reality you’re not the superman you used to be, but you sure feel like one. A good dose of disillusionment conquers all effects of aging.
Are you a more cautious sailor now, more mindful of the possibility of injury and resultant recovery time?
It is not so much that I am more cautious but I am less reckless. I still take risks and keep pushing the envelope knowing that injury is possible. After a lifetime of athletics and injuries (I have pretty much injured everything) I have learned to become a manager of injuries. By this I mean I fully accept injury is a way of life for an athlete and not only will they keep your from doing what you love to do, but also set you back and may also permanently alter your athletic life, even terminate. So I weigh in my mind, is the risk of injury worth the action. This is a personal decision for everyone. But I confess, I sometimes go bananas when I am in the moment and do reckless things. Like last year, at the ripe age of 43, I was sailing at the Hatchery and going-off. For some unknown reason, unplanned, I started tossing double forwards. I got hurt and slightly tore my rotator cuff. Man that took a long time to heal. I think there will always be that latent out-of-control-reckless-rebel in me waiting to jump out once in awhile… Danger is kind of fun! Maybe I’ll start a bar fight in a biker bar when I’m 89 years old or something.
At what point in your windsurfing career do you feel you were at your peak physically?
I’d like to think I have not reached my peak in windsurfing yet I do feel physically I have changed over the years. I believe the lifetime athlete has multiple physical peaks, each one being unique with different characteristics, dependent on a variety of factors such as training regimen, wellness, and emotional state. So it is difficult to measure one peak over another. For example, I remember in my late twenties, during the period I was receiving my black belt in Tae Kwon Do, I hit a peak in flexibility and quickness. Then in my early thirties I hit an endurance peak, a time where my focus was on aerobic training. Then later on again, when I was 40, I hit a windsurfing peak, a time where I had been spending my winters in Maui and sailing a ton. Now, I believe a new peak for my windsurfing is right around the corner…maybe even tomorrow. I keep the faith and hope alive (an attitude shared by many windsurfers) and this is one of the beautiful aspects of windsurfing — we believe our peak may be just around the corner and so we are always young at heart.
Can you recall a specific instance where you first became aware of your athletic mortality?
By athletic mortality I believe you mean limitation or capability. I learned to loop when I was 40 and I remember the difficulty in getting the courage to attempt this maneuver. I remember sailing back and forth promising to throw one no matter what; only to go back and forth frustrated, embarrassed, and angry at not overcoming my fear and trying something I said I would. I remember laying in bed at night thinking — I might not be able to do this… Hell, when I was 20 I would have without thinking twice.
Eventually I decided I would rather be hurt for a few months and at peace knowing I tried throwing a loop, than safe, uninjured and frustrated knowing I let myself down. So, full of fear, I charged and threw one with the anticipation of injury and pain: I flipped, landed in the water start position, raised my rig and sailed away. The emotional release was amazing and I screamed in ebullition!
Certainly as we age, slowly our metabolism gears down, our bones weaken, our muscles degenerate. Basically our body falls behind our intent. And I know someday my unbending intent may not be enough and I will not be able to get over the barrier before me. So be it! But windsurfing is more a culmination of feelings, skills, and desire rather than physical prowess. Most of our limitations are in our head…like learning to loop.
Can you contrast the importance of windsurfing in your life now with what it meant to you at 25?
I Started windsurfing when I was 30 and then the sport was just one of those romantic dreams that I think we all have and are most vocal when we are young and our life has the sense of endless possibilities. We dream things like…Someday I will run a marathon…or someday I want to skydive… or someday I am going to join the Peace Corp and work in India… or, someday I am going to write a novel. At least these are the things I dreamed about. Our life unfolds and the cycle of dreaming and doing become manifest. Some of our dreams come true as if the dream was like a seed we planted in the field of our mind. Some things, undreamed, just fall into our head like moisture from heaven. We are blessed to find something we love and the activity sticks with us, slowly pushing out other dreams as we find meaning and fulfillment in what we do. I found windsurfing! First as an idea… a dream… a fun activity to try; now over a decade later (unplanned by me) I am still windsurfing…as not only a lifestyle but also a community and spiritual activity. I continue to love this sport.
How do the personal rewards differ today?
To some extent the shift has been away from the arena of accomplishments, success, personal mastery, and external measurements; and more towards the arena of personal integrity, fulfillment, community, and contribution. When you’re younger the praise goes a long way; when you become older the sharing goes a long way. I remember a phrase: when you’re younger your try to be somebody and when you’re older you try to be nobody. All said, as we get older our ego dissipates.
Why? I am not sure. Perhaps as we age we seek some spiritual connection that draws us away from the focus on our self. Perhaps, on a subconscious level we know our time is limited on this planet and becoming shorter so we do not want to waste our time impressing other people or being something we are not. Or perhaps, on an innate level we are programmed this way as a means to improve and propagate the survival of our species.
Can you describe the mental and emotional adjustment an athlete faces at that first realization that he may no longer be at the top of his game?
Learning to let go and accept change. I believe this is the training ground for our ultimate letting go — that of life.
In what ways do increased maturity and years of experience compensate for losses in sheer physical ability?
As we get older we shift our competitive strategy from the tactical realm, relying on the physical dimension, to the strategic realm, relying on psychological dimension. For example, we may try different methodologies to achieve our goals rather than brute force. We exercise our patience and self-knowledge to become more expedient in our endeavors rather than reacting impatiently to our internal desires. We are more comprehensive in our approach and realistic about our situation rather than target-fixated and too idealistic. That is not to say we are not optimistic, because we are extremely hopeful and optimistic.
What have you discovered about maintaining your skills, athletic endurance and longevity in the sport as you’ve aged that you wish you’d understood in your twenties?
When I was younger I was like a race horse with blinders. I looked straight ahead and charged as fast as I could, in everything, everyday, all the time. Raised in a blue collar family I was taught the way to improve or succeed in athletics — or anything for that matter — was to keep pushing…and pushing… till exhaustion. The key to success was to work harder than everyone else. Thank god this is 90 percent true. Hard work goes a long way for sure and I am grateful my parents instilled this attribute in my character. However, now I use my head more, take rests when my body tells me so… try to eat and sleep well. I have learned to be a smarter and more patient athlete. Athletics to an athlete is for life so I make decisions with the bigger picture in mind.
What aspects of your performance have improved with age? In what ways, if any, have you lost ground?
I think defining performance in windsurfing is difficult unless you’re keeping a scorecard of competitive results or some other measurement. Even then, I think it would be difficult to actually link a causal relationship between aging with performance since so much of windsurfing performance is dependent on other factors: such as (1) having access to a favorable environment , which usually means in a place like the Gorge or Maui where you have wind and water; and (2) acquiring the necessary skills to compete, which usually means having the time to train; and (3) having the financial backing to afford windsurfing, which usually means having sponsorship or a subsidy like your parents pockets.
I will confess though, I have noticed some of the classical aging phenomenon in my own body that has tainted my capability to perform. First and foremost is the accumulated affects of all the injuries. For example, I have a torn ACL from soccer which I did not have surgically repaired and so my knee pops out once in awhile and swells up. Needless to say I am usually off the water for at least a few days. Also, I have lower back pain ever since I herniated a disk while training for triathlons. Then there is my shoulder, which has never fully recovered from a torn rotator cuff while white river kayaking. Beyond the injuries, I do not feel quite as fast as I used to be, but I am no slow-poke, I might be a little weaker, though I am not a pansy, and my endurance has faltered.
Most of these drawbacks can be offset with some creativity and cheating though. Lifting weights does not only compensate for my weaker muscles but also helps keep my knee more stable and back stronger. Taking a multivitamin and Glucosamine pill has done wonders. Cross training and sleeping well can not be overstated.
The good news is maturity brings definite advantages that younger athletes will have a harder time to acquire. Self-knowledge and awareness helps a mature athlete make better decisions about their training regimen. For example, when I was younger I would go all day without eating only to ravage at night. Now I take better care of myself and I am better aware of not only the way I learn but what I probably can learn. For example, the first time I saw an upwind 360, I knew I could learn the move fast and sure enough I made is on my very first attempt. On the other hand, the push-loop has been a struggle for me for a couple years now. Focus, dedication, and patience are generally the tools a mature athlete. So, these are few advantages of an older athlete.
All said, as we age our body degenerates and the smarter athletes learn to gradually adapt to this change by relying on a different competitive strategy than the younger athletes. To this extent, performance can continue to improve throughout our lives, until, unfortunately, the inevitable trumpets of our mortality are inescapable.