Ed Flanders at 62 Years Old

National and Drug Tested OCB, 2008

Although health and fitness are sometimes presented as dual concepts, they do, in fact, always go hand in hand. There is no true health without fitness and no true fitness without health. Some people don’t seem to understand this, instead focusing only on exercise, whereas others live with an emphasis on diet and nutrition, but do not include regular exercise into their lifestyle. I recall, when just beginning my journey into the raw food world, reading a raw cookbook author’s suggestion that simply eating the unprocessed plant based diet was enough to stay in shape (ripped, was actually the term he used), even by lying on the couch. It goes without saying that some athletes, simply by possessing an extraordinary metabolism, may eat all the junk food they like and still perform and look like champions. Likewise, there are a number of healthy eaters whose rigid dietary habits render appearances that may seem athletic. Eventually, however, an unbalanced approach to living well will show its effects, whether they be physical, mental or otherwise. We are fortunate to have visionaries like Ed Flanders, who are not only talents in their own field, but are able to bring the various elements of healthy living together in a way that balance is achieved.

Bodybuilding was not a tremendously popular sport in Maine when I was growing up, and certainly not in the small town where I lived. The only memories I have of it being present during early childhood was that advertisement where the bully kicked sand in the skinny guy’s face at the beach. The muscular bully got the girl, of course, at least until skinny started hitting the gym.

Ed was a star track and field athlete at Belfast Area High School, the moderately larger town next to the one where I grew up. He held high school records in both the half mile and full mile for 20 years, and discovered bodybuilding as a means to enhance his athletic performance.  When I met him in the early 1980’s, he was a science teacher in Belfast, and operated a small gym in his garage that he’d opened a few years earlier, in 1975. Although not large in scale, it was very well equipped and functional – albeit a bit cold during the winters, you’d need gloves or your hands would be sticking to the steel bars on some of those icy mornings. The small, but dedicated, group of members were a serious and determined group whose passion for fitness caught on and the membership expanded.

In 1983, Ed moved his gym (and renamed it Bay Area Fitness from its unofficial former name “Ed’s Gym”). He now has one of the most, if not the most, well equipped gym in the state. The gym houses a unique combination of free weights, nautilus, Med X and Superslow machines, as well as numerous others.  Some are from the old days and are both interesting and effective.

Since going on to bodybuilding and weight training, Ed has garnered numerous awards, including the Maine State Light-Heavy Weight Olympic Lifting Champion in 1971, Mr. Maine in 1975 and numerous placements in New England, Nationals and Masters events over the years. He currently holds 4 masters records in the world for strict curls. He is and has always been 100% natural and still competes regularly. As is evidenced by his photos, he is extraordinarily fit nearly 35 years after first winning Mr. Maine, now at age 62.

Where Ed’s philosophy truly stands out is in his sustainable approach to training. He has been following the Pritikin Diet for 25 years, and it has a lot to do with his ability to remain competitive and to retain lean muscle mass. Pritikin is known for its very low fat approach, its inclusion of many servings of grains and vegetables, and for its avoidance of limiting consumption like so many other diets. Following his example, I first experimented with Pritikin in high school and again in college and learned a great deal about diet and health in the process. When other athletes either leave their diets behind after many years in sports, or change them, Ed has stayed the course and it has kept him healthy and competitive, even as he addressed different competitive targets.

The image of bodybuilding is sometimes seen as one where heavy weights are thrown around and a lot of noises are made. In fact, what is most interesting about Ed’s approach is his embrace of the Superslow method of training, which focuses on very controlled, deliberate, resistance driven repetitions which provide a constant force of muscle tension and ultimately prevents most injuries. The superslow machines, which I demonstrate below, are fluid, comfortable and actually, very pleasant to work with. But don’t make the mistake of confusing superslow with super-easy- the philosophy behind it mandates training until absolute failure and that can be a painful proposition.

I have always believed that intense weight training is directly related to the maintenance of cardiovascular and bone and muscle health. As much as I love yoga and even outdoor running, I could not imagine a life without weight training. For athletic and health longevity, top form and a truly effective training result, Ed has shown how his scientific and instinctual approach pays off.

Bay Area Fitness

192 Searsport Avenue

Belfast, Maine  04915

207-338-3567

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1. A Smalltown Version of a National Challenge

Recently, the New York Times published an article with the headline Weight Drives the Young to Adult Pills, Data Says, about the rapidly growing numbers of children taking adult medication for weight related medical problems, including Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and acid reflux. The numbers are staggering, showing increases of well over 100% in many categories, and estimating that several hundred thousand children are now on adult medications as a result.

The last two words of that headline should perhaps be carefully noted, as to where said “data” originated from, but one thing is clear, and that is that much of the controversy around the subject is driven from not only the numbers themselves, but a recent statement issued by the American Academy of Pediatrics, which recommended that more children, as young as 8 years old, should be given adult medication to reduce cholesterol. More alarming is the rate at which the medications are being prescribed, which by some estimates shows an increase of more than 100% in the past five years.

The larger issues of these prescriptions are the illnesses themselves, and the fact that the adult medications may have not been properly studied for usage among children. Some Doctors defend the practice, explaining that lifestyle is ‘so difficult’ that there are no other options. The Food and Drug Administration does publish a list of drugs for which pediatric versions are needed, but the market is still too small for it to be profitable for drug pharmaceutical companies to make formulas specifically for children, although at the rate of this change, that is certain to be a reality in the near future.

The American Academy of Pediatrics is a proponent of prescribing these adult medications to children. Their website, in regards to the cholesterol epidemic reads:

“The American Academy of Pediatrics has issued new cholesterol screening and treatment recommendations for children. The policy statement, “Lipid Screening and Cardiovascular Health in Childhood,” recommends cholesterol screening of children and adolescents with a family history of high cholesterol or heart disease. It also recommends screening patients whose family history is unknown or those who have other factors for heart disease including obesity, high blood pressure or diabetes. Screening should take place after age two, but no later than age 10. The best method for testing is a fasting lipid profile. If a child has values within the normal range, testing should be repeated in three to five years. For children who are more than eight years old and who have high LDL concentrations, cholesterol-reducing medications should be considered. Younger patients with elevated cholesterol readings should focus on weight reduction and increased activity while receiving nutritional counseling. The statement also recommends the use of reduced-fat dairy products, such as two percent milk, for children as young as one year of age for whom overweight or obesity is a concern.”

The most interesting, or disturbing, aspect of this statement is that it does not contain the word “exercise”. Nor does it do more than make a half hearted effort to address diet in any way, shape or form. Visiting the website of aap.org is, in fact, a bit of a surreal experience, with photos of smiling children eating ice cream and numerous categories to review. You’ll have to search through a grocery list of medical issues to find the word “exercise”, only to be directed to other random journals and publications which have suggested that exercise is beneficial. Another term that can be found, albeit not on the home page, is “exercise” with a moderately tempered brief paragraph within its link, stating:

“Proper nutrition begins at the supermarket with the foods you buy and continues at home as you prepare and serve meals. Giving your child a healthy start with good eating habits promotes his or her lifelong health. A variety of foods provides the nutrients that young children need to build strong bodies and stay healthy. Food also supplies the energy that children need to grow normally, play, learn, and explore the world around them. The AAP encourages families to think of their nutritional decisions as health decisions.”

It would be interesting to learn which ‘supermarket’ they had in mind. Needless to say, the general message one walks away with is definitely not they should promote exercise, organic foods or farm fresh vegetables for their children.

The issue is such a large, and serious one, that it truly needs attention. While it is difficult to define all of the causes nationwide for the childhood obesity epidemic, there are obvious signs in Maine, where I grew up and spend a great deal of time today. Most startling is the very situation which AAP makes little effort to address and which doctors who advocate these childhood prescriptions claim may not an option: lifestyle (exercise). It is not difficult to understand the reason if the clear signs available to the human eye are similar to what they are here. No less than 20 years ago, when I grew up, there were outdoor communities of children, riding bikes all about town, filling the baseball fields and basketball courts on any given weekend or evening. There were many days when my friends and I, from ages 8 or 9 through grade school, would spend the entire day outside, playing various sports, having snowball fights, or simply helping our parents in the yard or woodpile. I needed to ask a few people, my parents included, to verify that my memory was indeed, accurate, and sure enough, it was confirmed that it is.

Today, those same fields and parks sit mostly empty, with very little sign of life. The local park in town, once a meeting point for a pick up baseball or basketball game, or the town docks, where friends used to swim and ride bikes, are largely devoid of young kids and seeing a bicycle in town is a rarity these days. I often run in the country here, for 6 miles or more. In fact, I recently ran 13 miles, past dozens of cars, hundreds of homes and saw a grand total of 3 people outside, having a water fight. Not a single bicycle, runner, athletic game or even kids on a lawn, and that was a sunny, Sunday afternoon at 3pm.

Diet, of course, is another story entirely and one which most are aware, and most do little about. It has now been well documented, but in continuing the look at my small county in Maine, it may be noteworthy to point out that, although we did have a McDonalds in the next town when I was younger, we now have an additional Dairy Queen, Pizza hut, Wendy’s, Two subways and two Dunkin Donuts.

The local pharmacy has a drive through window, a far cry from the old fashioned one that used to sit downtown, with the soda fountain and penny candy. Trust me, I’m not that old! This is rapid change and its not about modernization.

The problems are so obvious that it is quite painful to watch and it is terribly unfortunate for the children who will suffer as a result of their well being not being looked after, other than by whatever solutions lie in medication. Even if these drugs were problem-solvers, the additional benefits of proper diet and nutrition are entirely lacking – without both of those, the feeling of well being, vitality and of course, youthfulness that is so precious and beautiful, will be lacking in their lives.

In reality, it may appear an easy approach for me to be making these assertions or to imply that there is such a thing as a natural ‘fix’. However, I am a believer, both because I have lived through the transformation, both in a negative and a positive way, and I learned firsthand how much of this is within our control. I was 12 years old – had lived a very active life and spent much of it outdoors, always playing sports, running around in the snow, and just in general being very mobile. Still, I had a penchant for sugar and a very high consumption rate of sweets, chocolate and empty calories. Vegetables were something I hid in my napkin to avoid eating. Despite the activity, I was slowly gaining some weight but it crept up on me.

One winter evening, I went to weekly open swim at the neighboring town – got dressed in the locker room and went to hang out by the pool with a few dozen of my classmates. Without a shirt on, one particularly blunt ‘friend’, walked up and poked me, and made an extremely sarcastic comment about how blubbery I was (I was, and to this day, I clearly recall the moment, what I was wearing and how I looked). That, fortunately, was my wake up call and the last one I ever needed.

The next day, I swore off butter – in fact, I don’t think I had it for many years, at least intentionally. I carefully avoided fats and sugars and began carrying my own lunches to schools, with snacks from a local health food store or whatever I could get my hands on. This discipline carried into sports as well, and I practiced daily, to the point where, a year later, I was unrecognizable; taller, lean and strong, with a very positive energy and a new outlook on life.

Change is never easy. At times, it can seem impossible. There are many times when the resources necessary for change are not present, or other circumstances provide no options. Sadly or fortunately, depending on one’s attitude toward making positive adjustments, there usually are options. They need to be explored.

Related posts:

1. Ed Flanders, Bay Area Fitness