I grabbed my life back and became a Firefighter @56 – you can rebuild your health & fitness too!

Part of me wants to say I had this grand plan to become a Firefighter @56, one more life goal to tick off and “Wow didn’t that work out well?” But it wasn’t quite like that.

Truth is, back in 2013 as my 55th birthday loomed I had the dreaded Middle-Age Spread and my health & fitness were both fading fast. Worse still, as a result of my failing health I was losing everything, even my family.

As I was coming to terms with my failure to take my kids hiking in the mountains as I had promised myself years before, I had another big Wake Up Call, one that really forced me to open my eyes.

My Waist to Height Ratio was now well over 0.5. I was headed into high risk territory for a host of unpleasant diseases like Diabetes, High Blood Pressure, Heart Attack and more.

I knew I had to take action to re-boot my life, change direction and make it stick. And I finally took my bulging waist and the increasing health risks seriously. So I did two things:

    • I set out walking to rebuild my health & fitness
    • I started focussing back on good eating habits to rebuild my diet & nutrition

It did take me a while before I was able to take my kids hiking in the mountains, but in the meantime it certainly felt like I was getting my life back because just 7 months after I started walking again……….

  • I qualified as a Firefighter @56
  • And then I was looking for fun stuff to do to re-connect with my family and reboot my whole life

I say I qualified as a Firefighter, well it was more like the Accidental Firefighter!

How I became an Accidental Firefighter!

I developed my “Walk, Run, Train Plan” over the summer of 2013 and on 1st Nov I set out to get moving again to reclaim my health & fitness.

I was also searching for something to really motivate me. I needed the proverbial boot up the *##**!

It just happened that my local Fire & Rescue Service was recruiting new Firefighters, so I put in my application a few days later. I just thought that would rev me up a bit, force me out of my comfort zone, give me that kick up the *##** I needed.

But I just loved it and I passed out in 2014 when I was 56 years old. Not sure who was more surprised, me or them? It just sort of happened, so you might say I really was an “Accidental Firefighter”.

We had a lot of  field fires in the long, dry summer of 2018. Fanned by the wind, this fire is sweeping towards homes and other buildings

What an experience, heading into burning buildings as well as tackling field fires, road traffic accidents (officially called “collisions”), floods and yes even rescuing cats up trees! And sometimes we even have to break in to get to the fire!

Yep, breaking in! But we’re on it!

I was right back on life’s journey and had a bit of adventure back as well. Honestly, if I could do this then anyone can.

That was just the start and now I’M BACK!

Making Firefighter? Well that was just a start. I served as an active Firefighter until I was 62. Along the way I got my health back and I’m fitter now than I was in my 30s.

But something else changed. It just crept up on me, that feeling that I was back on life’s journey, with a few adventures thrown in too. And feeling Like I was re-connecting with my family in ways I thought I had lost for good.

One day I realised that life felt different. I looked around and realised that I felt like:

I’M BACK

I’m back to being me again. I’m back with the family, back in the middle of things. I’m back on the rollercoaster of life in a good way.

And I was having a bit of fun again so started posting a few picies up on Instagram and now I am just starting my Blog to add a bit more detail on some events I’m taking part in like RatRace, activities like hiking or climbing, little challenges I set myself and all the stuff I use to keep healthy and fit.

Look, if I can grab my life back then anyone can. I’m not some super athlete, just a regular Dad who decided to go for it. I’ve had a lot of fun doing this and maybe, just maybe some of the solutions I found could help you re-boot your life too…

I got my life back in so many ways and with a few adventures thrown in.

So let me ask you a question.

If you set off walking and rebuilt your fitness & health over the next 3-4 months, where could that take you?

Where could you be? Back with your family, back in the gym, back with your team, back in the mountains, back in the boat?

I want you to know, you really can do any of these things.

Stepping out of my comfort zone!

When I set out walking to fix my waist and sorting my diet again, I was also hunting around for some big ambitious goal to “sorta” aim for, some sort of crazy goal that would challenge and inspire me.

The goal to become a Firefighter was exactly what I needed, a challenge to take me right outside my comfort zone.

And I went on to do some things I didn’t think I would do again, some things I had always wanted to do but just hadn’t got around to and some things I had always wanted to try.

  • I got back in a Racing Eight to race the Vets Head
  • I finally mastered the Pull Up which I could never do even when I was racing fit in my youth
  • I took up Obstacle Course Racing which is just a hoot
  • I’ve taken up cross country half marathons, just because
  • I’ve been off to Hike one of the great outdoor trails
  • And I’ve got another planned for next year
  • And I’ve been hiking in the mountains with the kids, well quite a few times

I set out with a really simple goal, to get moving and build exercise back into my life. And I did want to lose the first inch from my waist as well. I wanted to get rid of that bulging waist.

I wasn’t sure what lay ahead, but once I got going things just happened, like the Firefighter thing which took me right out of my comfort zone. That just seems to be how things work!

So whatever you do, set yourself some small achievable goals and just start!

Who knows where you will end up, but for the moment….

….feel free to join me on my journey and share some of the adventures along the way… :

The Fun Stuff – All about the fun activities, challenges & events along the way

Wrapping it Up – Getting back on top of the world

So there you have it. There will be some sort of order to my posts even if they are added all higgledy-piggledy.

The subjects and topics vary from:

  • the joys of Deadlift Day to Pavel’s Simple & Sinister Kettlebell Programme
  • doing my first Pull Up to taking on the Muscle Up
  • staggering around my first Tough Mudder to racing my next RatRace
  • family events like hiking the mountains
  • different exercises and training protocols I have used at different times or am using right now.

Dip into whatever grabs your attention and join me on top of the world!

Back on top of the world. The Scafells aren’t the biggest mountains in the world but they are just a bit special to me anyway

And look, I just want you to know – Anyone can do this

When I started my journey I was a real mess. All I could manage was a brisk walk. So I set out walking, then started adding little sprints. And as I got a little fitter I looked for all sorts of ways to make little gains. I hope I can encourage you to just start, then who knows where your journey will take you…

I still have to pinch myself when I realise that all of this started when I set out to…

Walk | Run | Train

…and if you set out walking too – do let me know how your journey goes.