Precerpt from Grandma Ninja's Training Diary: 🥋 Grandma Ninja vs. The Chair: Why Getting Up Gets Harder After 50 — And Why It Hasn’t Happened to Me

 

People love to say, “After 50, getting up from a chair gets harder every year.”

That’s the hook for every joint supplement ad on the internet.

But here’s the truth:
It only gets harder if you stop doing the things that make it easy.

I’m 76, and I get up from chairs, floors, ladders, and the ground without thinking.
Not because I’m lucky.
Not because of supplements.
Because of how I live.

🧠 Why Most People Struggle — The Real Physiology

Standing up from a chair requires:

• Strong quads
• Strong glutes
• Good balance
• Good proprioception
• Confidence

Most people lose these because they stop using them.
I never stopped.

🥋 What I Do Right (The Grandma Ninja Method)

🟣 1. I live on the floor — literally

I’m on the floor multiple times a day:

• Retrieving my son’s shoes (he can’t bend safely)
• Doing glute bridges, Russian twists, and other calisthenics
• Playing with ten cats (they are much shorter than I am)
• Cleaning floors the old Maine way — on hands and knees
• Cleaning litterboxes (kneeling, squatting, sitting — depends on the mess)

Most people avoid the floor because they’re afraid they won’t get back up.
I get on the floor so often that getting up is just another movement, not an event.

Floor work is the single best anti-aging strength routine no one talks about.

🟣 2. I lift heavy things — with purpose

I lift my 125‑pound daughter between chairs, into and out of the car, and through daily life.
That’s functional strength training with a heartbeat.

I leg press 160–200 pounds — not to show off, but to protect my joints.
My massage-therapist sister was right:
Moderate, consistent load builds strength without grinding cartilage.

🟣 3. I move all day long

I don’t “exercise.”
I live in motion.

Feeding ten cats.
Carrying laundry.
Climbing stairs.
Sweeping floors.
Cooking.
Typing.
Playing piano.
Running errands.
Caring for family.

Movement is my baseline, not my hobby.

🟣 4. I climb ladders like a short ninja

Being short means one thing:
If it’s above the bottom shelf, I’m climbing something.

Today alone I:

• Hung four new curtains on the catio
• Added several new pictures high on the wall
• Climbed the ladder to reach cupboard shelves

Ladder climbing is phenomenal for balance, proprioception, and leg strength.
It’s also a built-in confidence booster.

🟣 5. I practice daily calisthenics

Planks, pushups, bridges, twists — the basics.
The things that keep the body honest.

These aren’t “workouts.”
They’re maintenance.
Like brushing teeth, but for muscles.

🟣 6. I drink tart cherry because I like it

Does it help?
Maybe.
It has mild anti-inflammatory properties.
But it’s not the reason my joints work.

The reason my joints work is because I use them.

🛑 What I Avoid (To Stay a Ninja, Not a Statistic)

• I don’t load my spine with heavy compression
• I don’t do sudden, ballistic twisting
• I don’t rely on brute strength when body mechanics will do
• I don’t let other people’s limitations define my expectations

I respect my body, but I don’t baby it.

🟢 Why Getting Up From a Chair Isn’t Hard for Me

Because I never stopped doing the things that make it easy:

• Squatting
• Kneeling
• Lifting
• Climbing
• Reaching
• Balancing
• Moving
• Living

Most people lose the ability to get up from a chair because they stop practicing the movements that make it possible.

I practice them every day — not in a gym, but in my life.

🥋 Grandma Ninja’s Truth

Aging doesn’t make you weak.
Inactivity does.

I don’t stay strong because I’m exceptional.
I stay strong because I’m consistent.

Grandma’s Ninja Training Diary is the inspiring true story of a septuagenarian grandmother who dared to dream big—by training for American Ninja Warrior. Teaming up with her coach and trainer, she embarks on a three-year journey to build strength, resilience, flexibility, balance, and endurance—starting from scratch.

Told in a dynamic mix of diary entries, coaching insights, and behind-the-scenes reflections, this book chronicles the ups and downs of late-in-life athletic training. From gym workouts to rock climbing, yoga to injury recovery, sleep to mindset—every aspect of the transformation is explored with honesty and humor.

Grandma shares what she’s learning; her coach explains why she’s right—or wrong. Together, they offer a realistic, encouraging look at what it takes to pursue an extraordinary goal at any age.

Part training manual, part motivational memoir, Grandma’s Ninja Training Diary is packed with practical tips for readers over 50 who want to improve their fitness, health, and confidence. You’ll also get insider insights into the world of American Ninja Warrior, strategies for balancing real life with ambitious goals, and hard-won wisdom about success, failure, and the joy of simply showing up.

To read more precerpts from Grandma's Ninja Training Diary, click HERE.

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