What do I do myself?

After writing about why Nordic Wolves came into being and what I believe happens to many men after the age of fifty, the natural question is:

“But what do you do yourself?”

I am no different from the men I am writing to.

I have not found the magic solution, and I have just as many good days and bad days as everyone else. But there are a number of things that I have gradually adopted over the years and that I believe have made a difference.

Although I have exercised regularly all my life, I have become more sensible about it.

When you are thirty or forty, you sometimes think that more is always better, but I no longer believe that.

Today I try to combine strength training, cardiovascular exercise and flexibility. Not so that I can stand in front of a mirror admiring myself, but so that I can continue living an ordinary life with full strength for as long as possible.

I have never been the kind of man who counts calories. Instead, I try to keep my diet balanced and limit my carbohydrate intake. Then there are days when everything is allowed. Otherwise, life becomes unbearably boring and monotonous.

Years ago, I usually slept no more than five or six hours a night and almost regarded it as a badge of honour. I was so busy working, trying to succeed and getting things done that sleep was always sacrificed. In fact, I sometimes thought sleep was a waste of time and that I could always sleep when I was dead.

Today I try to get at least seven hours of sleep, and I notice the difference immediately whenever I get less.

I also began paying attention to my hormone levels and received appropriate treatment.

It is remarkable how many men are willing to change the tyres on their car, repair the roof on their house and service the lawnmower, yet have very little interest in finding out how well their own engine is running.

I also make a point of spending as much time in nature as possible, where I enjoy the company of my dog. He has never asked me whether I have reached ten thousand steps that day. He is simply happy that we are together.

Over the years I have met many people, but today I would rather have a few good friends whom I can trust. There is little point in collecting friends if you have nobody you can really talk to when life becomes difficult.

I have also spent time learning about different health technologies and have tried some of them with good results. Some have genuinely surprised me, while others have gone straight into the category called, “I don't need to spend any more time on that.”

I keep up with science because I am a trained physician, but science on its own has never fascinated me. There is also a great deal of practical wisdom that should not be dismissed.

Some people regard medicine as a science.

I regard medicine as a humanistic profession that makes use of science, and there is a fundamental difference.

In my opinion, you are a dangerous doctor if your primary approach to patients is that of a scientist. You must be able to talk to them, and just as importantly, you must listen to what they have to say.

I also make a point of reading books regularly. I grew up at a time when the outside world did not swallow your attention with noise the moment you woke up and continue shouting until you fell asleep again. Sadly, that seems to be becoming increasingly rare, as social media occupies people's minds from morning until night.

I listen to a great deal of music, usually music from my own generation.

Not necessarily because it is better than today's music, but because the lyrics often had greater meaning and said more about life itself. Those songs have inspired me throughout my life, and they still do.

I also continue looking for new adventures.

One of the principles I try to live by is that a man in his nineties should still plant trees, even though they may not reach full maturity for another thirty years.

I think that is a beautiful thought.

Perhaps because it is really about hope.

The truth is that I am still trying to discover what I want to be when I grow up, and I do not think there is anything unusual about that.

Nordic Wolves is therefore not a self-help movement, not a traditional health website and certainly not another fitness site. Nor is it my intention to preach to men or tell them how they should live.

Nordic Wolves is a place for ideas.

A state of mind.

A journey.

And hopefully a community guided by curiosity.

I believe the time has come to create a place where older men can meet again.

A place where they can share their experiences, their mistakes, ask questions and discuss ideas without someone claiming to have found the one right answer.

If we succeed, I hope men will reconnect with themselves, wiser because of their experience.

Other than that, I do not know where this journey of mine will lead, but I do know that I have set out.

That is the only thing that matters.