Autobiography - The Galindo Group

Ram Galindo THE MAKING OF AN AMERICAN Page 186
A strong spirit qualifies us to set out in the search to expand the boundaries of our
limitations. Olympic athletes have strong spirits, so do academic and professional
achievers, and certainly the titans of creation such as Thomas Edison, Alexander G.
Bell, the Wright brothers, Henry Ford, Simon Patino, Bill Gates and so many other
Atlases who have lifted the world on their shoulders. We draw on them for inspiration so
that we can lift our own little grains of sand.
A world to explore that is accessible to each and every one of us is our own body. As a
gymnast and diving board diver I always felt that there was another step beyond what I
had already reached. I could attempt a more difficult stunt that shimmered with
temptation but was in an unexplored land, dangerous but beckoning, keeping me awake
at night visualizing how to do it. Attempting to execute it could cause serious injury and
the consequent difficulties that would follow. Nevertheless, the curiosity to find out if I
could do it often prevailed but fortunately never caused me crippling damage. I pushed
the envelope of my abilities to cast the imprint of my will power in my body’s muscular
power. Competitive sports were the crucible where I forged my determination to push
my own envelopes seeking to achieve all that I could achieve. By the time we reach
adulthood, all of us have learned to use the tools to cast the potential of our minds, our
spirits, into the physical potential of our bodies. Except for physical disabilities, the
strength of our spirit will dictate our later development as human beings. The rate at
which we grow our spirit in our youth defines our character and the levels to which we
can push our limits in later life.
A good example of pushing individual physical limits with which many people can relate
is marathon running. As I indicated in Healthy Mind in Healthy Body (Chapter 3), I
started running long distances as a way to heal a broken heart caused by my divorce. In
time I learned that the therapeutic effect went well beyond seeking solace from
psychological trauma. Running, or exercising by other means, to release stress or
emotional pain is a clinically proven fact, as I can vouch without a doubt from my
personal experience.
Slowly other benefits began to be apparent with a consistent routine of running fifty
miles a week or equivalent, I regained some of my weight in the form of lithe and supple
muscle. My bones became more solid, my heart rate dropped to a level that doctors
doubted their measurements, my blood pressure was that of a kid. After recuperation
my countenance was deceiving of my age. My physiological performance was
reinvigorated. I was competing with people twenty years younger and holding my own.
For two decades I was single and worked out virtually every day, as I continue to do
today. During this period girls twenty to thirty years my junior regularly sought my
company unaware of my age. Even today I am routinely judged to be ten to twenty
years younger than my actual age.
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