One of the hardest parts of growing older
is a body no longer primed to perform at
optimal levels.
A gradual adjustment of expectations
is a prerequisite for aging gracefully:
add a +1 minute per mile
sprinting becomes striding
three miles are the new six
But-
What I wouldn’t give
to blast out of the starting blocks
one more time,
arms pumping, cleats digging
rubber spraying;
to embody that
sun-kissed,
muscle-ripped,
endorphin-high
athlete
from my youth.
The Way I See It 
This is beautiful. It really speaks to me, as I struggle with figuring out what are realistic expectations for my body as I get older. I struggle so much with this line you’ve written: “A gradual adjustment of expectations/is a prerequisite for aging gracefully”…..and I feel that second stanza so strongly as well. Those images in the second stanza are so vivid (as are my memories of what my body should be able to do and what it should feel like).
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Ah, you hit on something we don’t say aloud very often! I like the title, muscle memory. Your description lets your body tell us what it used to do. The indenting two sections really works.
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Oh, how relatable this is! I don’t even know who that girl was who ran a marathon anymore! I LOVE “three miles are the new six”! I joke about this all the time. Sigh. And this, the hardest part:
“A gradual adjustment of expectations
is a prerequisite for aging gracefully…”
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Write it, and the reality is yours. I share your wish to make the fist-pumping, endorphin-high a longtime proposition.
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Your lines, carefully crafted, resonate. The format with indents mirrors the gradual adjustments we must make to accommodate aging muscles. You are a keen observer and word wizard.
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