Fitness in the Family

A father-son duo co-author their first book on health

By Duane St. Clair

Health is a family matter for New Albany resident Rex Holman and his father, Mike.

Rex, a part-time Upper Arlington firefighter and former champion wrestler at The Ohio State University, follows the lead of his father, a retired lawyer who lives in Jefferson Township.

Since his years in a downtown Columbus law office and raising two athletic sons in Upper Arlington, Mike’s avocation has been physical fitness and workouts. A physically fit specimen at 69, Mike’s fitness and workouts, as well as nutrition, have become his advocacy.

Mike’s sons, Scott and Rex, went on to collegiate wrestling, Scott at Indiana and Rex at OSU. It was then that Mike and his wife, Sherry, moved to the country in eastern Franklin County, first to a five-acre tract and then to a subdivision in the same general area.

Scott, also a lawyer, now lives in Texas, but Rex still is close to home and is a partner in his father’s continued all-out efforts to stay physically fit and encourage others to do the same. Father and son share author credit for new book Take Command! Be Lean, Energized & Strong and, together, run the website www. takecommandtoday.com.

Mike and Rex are self-publishing 2,000 copies of their fact-filled, 360page, soft-back manual for sale online, with more copies planned for print and bookstore distribution early this year.

Mike did all the writing, and Rex’s role was to read the manuscript and make suggestions. The book has many pictures of exercise techniques, as well as charts and tables on everything from calorie counts to exercise routines and schedules.

The book could almost be Mike’s autobiography. Mike draws heavily from his background as a Navy pilot, which he uses as a platform to explain how to program your life, including dealing with possible letdowns and planning exercises. His flying career after graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy is at the root of the book title.

He uses other anecdotal stories, such as vacations spent in Key West, to launch other aspects of his fitness advocacy in a manual filled with information about nutrition and how to plan proper meals.

Mike is at once dedicated, ambitious and outspoken in his conversation about fitness, and the associated diet and exercise through which “you can turn back the clock” to overcome aging, become physically healthy and better a enjoy life.

Mike previously consumed several bowls of ice cream and a package of M&M’s almost daily, he says. But he was working out six days a week at the Athletic Club of Columbus, too. Now he sometimes eats unsalted peanuts one at a time, rather than by the handful, and occasionally nibbles small pieces of a one-ounce chunk of dark chocolate.

His near-evangelistic outpouring is carried on to a large extent on the Internet and through social networking. He posts frequent blogs that discuss issues relating to health and fitness, such as the excess sugar and salt in processed foods in many people’s di- ets and methods to fit exercise into the work day.

Mike works out 45 to 90 minutes a day, depending upon which types of exercise he is doing in the well-equipped workout room in his basement. The home gym features weight and aerobic equipment he has acquired over the years. Some days his workout centers on aerobics on a treadmill or elliptical, while others focus on weightlifting. All days – he misses just five or six a year, Mike says – involve extensive stretching, both before and after a workout.

Seniors in particular can use exercise to stave off or even reverse the loss of muscle mass. The cliché is true, Mike says: “Use it or lose it.”

He is a big advocate of following a healthy diet, which he says most doctors don’t stress.

“We don’t eat out a lot. The food’s good here” at home, Mike says.

He avoids less-than-healthful ingredients by reading packaging labels and gathering nutritional information from other sources. Dinner on a particular evening might be a Caesar salad with some healthful ingredients and a home- mixed dressing. He doesn’t eat red meat, but mentions chicken frequently.

“When I’m cooking, it’s pretty good,” with each meal typically featuring a grain, a vegetable and a protein, Mike says.

Mike’s efforts have rubbed off on Rex and have reached as far as the firehouse, where Rex sometimes fixes meals for his crew.

“At the firehouse, the drivers are the cooks,” Rex says.

His influence has resulted in healthier meals for his crew, “at least when I’m cooking,” he says. He did lose one small battle – Saturday is still pizza night – but Rex usually fixes his with less cheese and no pepperoni, which he says is “the worst thing you can eat.”

Rex has two daughters, ages 8 and 3, so his at-home diet isn’t as stringent as his father’s.

“I lean on comfort foods from time to time,” he concedes.

Duane St. Clair is a contributing editor. Comments and feedback welcome at editor@healthynewalbany.org.

By Lisa Aurand Photography by Wes Kroninger