Last night I found out that one of my online friends died of a heart attack…..2 months ago. He was only 47 years old. He stopped posting on the forums months beforehand so nobody thought anything of it. Eventually someone noticed his obituary and confirmed it was in fact him. I had the chance to meet him in person about a year ago with some other online pals and I’m a better man for having done so. It did give me cause to rethink some of the choices I’ve made regarding exercise. Many of my friends are weightlifters and as such are mostly concerned with their outer appearance and raw strength. They hate cardio and only do it when they have to. Now that I’m advancing in years I can’t afford to be this narrowly focused. I’ll take a 50bpm resting heart rate over 19″ arms any day of the week. There’s no practicality in being able to bench press 400 lbs whereas a strong heart helps me every day when I walk up the 8 flights of steps to my apartment. I’m going to concern myself with inner health from now – monitoring my blood pressure, keeping cholesterol in check, getting/keeping my weight below 215 lbs and keeping my body fat around 10-12%. I plan to start a family in a few years and I want to be around to see my son suit up for the University of Georgia football team. Carpe diem!