Welcome to the shark bite show. We dive into the stories of our members, coaches, friends and family. Shark bite fitness and nutrition. All right, let’s go. Hi, everybody listening. This is Nick. We are here with one of my very best friends. Joe. Carrie.
Joe
Yeah, you Joe Carrie.
Nick
Yep. Joe is a member at sharp by Cape Coral. And he has been here for what, like four and a half years to have you. Yep. Joe is the eldest member at any of our gyms. Joe is 77 years old. He is really, really fun to hang out with. He’s obviously very shy. We’re gonna we’re gonna dive into his history and a bunch of cool stuff. So Joe, hi.
Joe
I did not fight in the Civil War. Okay, I did not find. So that answers that question.
Nick
That’s because you were a pacifist on the side, right.
Joe
No, I wasn’t born yet. Yes.
Nick
Joe, so who are you man, tell me and anyone listening a little bit.
Joe
I’m a retired old guy, just trying to make it through every day. satisfy a competitive CrossFit trying to stay active. And Tony important thing about it too. This is for anybody. It’s old as listen. When you go to workout, you get to mingle a little bit with the younger people, which you don’t get to do when you’re in these little communities with, you know, just fellow old people. So you get to see new ideas, try different things. And the fitness level, it kind of excites you to move to the next fitness level. And it’s been very good, of course, but it’s been very, very good to me. Okay.
Nick
Yeah, I’m glad to hear that. So we were gonna talk about fitness stuff a whole bunch. I’m gonna pull you back on track here. What?
Joe
That’s hard. Dorothy. My wife, Dorothy has been trying to do that for 55 years.
Nick
Anybody who’s ever been in the gym and witnessed the conversation between me and Joe is going to be very similar to that. So they’re wanting to talk to me about your your history, way, way, way, way. Before,
Joe
way, way, way way. I started Grammar School. And I went to a Catholic grammar school. didn’t like that very much. very rigid, very rigid. So then I went to a public Grammar School. Then I went to high school and I discovered women and booze. And that was the end of Jo. Alright. So then I wound up going to a boys Manas in a monastery school in Oklahoma, and Shawnee, Oklahoma from New York. troubled youth troubled youth. So my dad drove me out to Oklahoma and dropped me off at the front door with the trunk. That said, I’ll see you have a great life. And I was 14 when I went out to Oklahoma. So I went to high school and college in Oklahoma. And I met Dorothy my wife in Oklahoma. I enjoyed Oklahoma, even though it was very country. Alright, very country. And I was a city slicker. Alright. But it was nice. It was different, different, honest people, really nice people. And then I got married when I got drafted, which I hate talking about. I didn’t particularly enjoy the army. And I like I said, I got drafted. I didn’t volunteer for this and left the army with a tumor in my knee. So they discharged me and went to work as an electrician. got married, had a child almost right away. So as an electrician, I was an apprentice and it was nice. It was a good good trade, went to school at night, went to night school, two nights schools. One was college and the other was the apprenticeship school and worked various jobs, and then started on new construction. And one of my first jobs as a an electrician, a full fledged what they call a electrician was on the Trade Center. And that was nineteen’s and the 69 beginning of 1970. And worked there for a couple of months before I got another job and another location, another building. And I worked on high rises, office buildings for years, maybe 10 years, 15 years. Then I read a manual that came with the system when computerized systems first came out, and that made me an expert Because I read the manual, I became the go to Computer Guy, even though I didn’t really know what I was doing. And I became the official plug Porter honor. All right now, you guys, younger guys will probably know. All this stuff has to be plugged in, right. And I was like I was sober enough to put these plugs on properly, so they wouldn’t fall off. It’s embarrassing when you’re charging like $100 for this plug, and in false. So that was my job for a couple of years. I walked into construction sites in really nice clothes, and had a little fishing tackle toolbox with my little crimping tools in it, then I would be like my own bots. So but before that I worked on heights. Basically, I did a lot of high stuff. And
Nick
you’ve told me about being up on top of buildings, right?
Joe
Oh, yeah, but I put lightning arresters on top of buildings. So
Nick
those are the big metal poles that are on the top.
Joe
Well, there. They, yes, they’re poles. They’re not as big as you think they are. They’re smaller. But they’re CAD welded, they’re welded to the steel, structural steel rebuilding. And that’s the electricians job is the CAD welding. And a funny one building as the plaza I worked on, it had welded over the side of building so I had my partner hole but belt. Before safety. There was no real OSHA or anything. And we had to get this done. So I kale Cadwell did it with him holding on to my belt, just as a
Nick
safety thing that sounds like absolute insanity. Well,
Joe
I gave you I give you for instance, I’m the height stuff. There was a fellow that used to hide in your dress in a Shani. It’s a shack, right? And you change your clothes there because you, you don’t want to go home and these clothes, they’re filled with oil and gawk. So a guy would hide in the back when they shaved up in the morning to pick crews. And I had my job and my job was to weld support on the steel for these electrical pipes that were coming up. So that meant I was up when there was no elevator, there was ladders, and broken staircases. So this guy would Hi. And one day they picked him to work with me. So I said come on, I forget his name Bill or whatever. But he was from Long Island where the tallest building was short. He never worked than anything over two stories that were up on the 56th floor and we hit the staircase that’s what a temporary wouldn’t Elevate, you know, elevators that run outside the building. Right? They stop. Now you get to a floor without concrete wooden floor before they poured a concrete. Then you get the staircase which is half finished. So as you’re going up, you’re missing pieces of stare. But they had the railings on. So this poor guy is scared out of his mind. And I’m not I’m not paying attention to him because I’m carrying all this cable and stuff and he’s got cable with him. He panics because now you hit the portion that there’s no sidewalk. There’s no anything. It’s 56 floors that way. So he grabs a whole bit of railing and won’t let go. So I want to I couldn’t get I couldn’t release him. I mean he was frozen to this railing and he the strength and a person that scared is unbelievable. So we had to call the emergency services and they come up and they like secured and what belts and things which made him feel better and finally let go but that was panic with heights. That’s I’ve seen it. But that’s not the worst place I’ve ever worked. Oh no, no, the worst place I ever worked was in between jobs. When things got slow into building trades. I had a traveling, so I went down to New Orleans and a little town outside of New Orleans. They were building a nuclear power plant. And I worked on the nuclear power plant. And that was probably one of the worst jobs that I ever had was that the people were unbelievably insane. They were trailer park people plus 10 They were what they do is they would buy their electrician cards in some little place in the middle of nowhere and then hit these big jobs. They were real scummy people. You know they kids will dirty with dirty diapers. They would drunk all the time and it was just like the pit and I’m thinking to myself with all the mistakes I So I hope they never opened this place up, oh man. And they didn’t never open, thank God. But the other lousy places we’re talking about work was the subways in New York, I worked more like a foreman type job where I measured things. And I would mark the side of the walls now that tunnels have beams. And they have right aways where you can hide from the train, you know, you get out of the way to train, like, if you’re doing work. So now, when you’re actually working in there, you have a flag, you have somebody with you, and he uses a lanten to stop the trunk. But I was on my own. So I didn’t have a flag, man. So I had a flashlight. And up, then go ahead and sideways, but stop. And I’m going away to it was it the other way around wonderful way. I never did it. I always hid in a cubicle that he had a train coming. And that moment, they’re doing a good clip. And I worked nights on that and I would wander the subway tunnels, marking off places where these switches I’m gonna go and then when he switches went with this paint stick, and that was my job and it was brutal. all you saw was three o’clock in the morning and the subway tunnel of bombs, homeless people, drug addicts, and criminals. And one night the cops come running down one morning as the cops come running down there shooting at a guy who’s shooting back at him. And I’m yelling, I’m here and the guy hit the third rail and electrocuted. Oh, no. Yeah, yeah.
Nick
Man that the subways in New York are probably the friend who has never been there. The dirtiest place I’ve ever been in my life.
Joe
Oh, they’re filthy. Yeah. I could tell you a story about a police officer. A Brit. This is when women were just being hired. And they had to separate Police Department actually three, I think one was the Transit Police for the subways and buses. Okay. And the other was the New York City Police Department. And I think there was a housing police. Alright, I’m not really not sure why. This young girl in the uniform that didn’t fit a well must have weighed about 90 pounds, comes onto the train. I’m on one night and there’s nothing but thugs at two o’clock in the morning on the subway. Except for this poor little girl. So she stayed on the train with me because it was the first night and I’m saying when he shattered the gun took up half her body. It was like, Oh, this poor kid. They have put her on days. I don’t know what happened to her. But she spent the shift with me riding on the train. Because she was kind of scared.
Nick 12:59
If anyone who isn’t not watching this Joe is like six foot two like 240 Oh, I
Joe
was a mean guide. And yeah, I was I was I was strong and young virail and a predator I was a predator.
Nick
What about so so we’re talking back then how did you end up down here in Florida? Long stories, always a long story. Long stories.
Joe
Okay. All right. 911 happened. Dorothy was working at St. Claire’s Hospital in Manhattan. I couldn’t get a hold of her. All right. And I was very worried because she wasn’t close to the Trade Center, but close enough plus the the emergency and nobody knew what what it was whether it was chemical or anything else. All right. They didn’t know nobody knew anything. So I tried to get a hold of her. I couldn’t get a hold of her. And she lost not people but a couple of ambulances that were at the Trade Center. And she they geared up for all this and it was just tragic. And that hospital went bankrupt. So Dorothy needed employment. And I was retired by now because of the broken neck. So we moved to South Jersey. And then from South Jersey. We live there for almost 20 years. And then we moved down here to Florida because Dorothy took a job in Kansas and I would commute on weekends. It was a nice gig. I mean it was nice as in Florida and Kansas between Georgia, jersey and Kansas and then Florida and Kansas. And during the nice weather Dorothy would commute back home and during the lousy weather. It was my job to come in the snowstorm. So I said I came home one time from to New Jersey from Kansas. And the snow was about 22 inches deep and I had to shovel it out. I just said no more So that’s my cousin’s who lived in Florida. So came down to visit Waterplace.
Nick
How long ago was that? Eight years? Eight years ago? Okay, eight and a half. Can we can we act like you didn’t just skip over the fact that you said after you broke your neck? Yeah. What? Tell people about that, Joe? Well,
Joe
I had an accident at work. All right. And then I went body surfing, and slam my head into the bottom of the beach. Because they had warnings up, you know, probably 13 year olds and full body serve in when the red flags are up. So realizing that Dorothy would kill me, if there was anything really wrong, I crawled up the winter blanket was and laid there. And then finally, they helped me in the car. And Dorothy drove home. And the next morning, I woke up, and I was paralyzed. So I had to go to the hospital and went to Mount Sinai. And I got this world renowned surgeon because Dorothy worked there. And he operated. And it was a seven hour operation.
Nick
I knew that you’d broken your neck. I didn’t know you were paralyzed. Holy crap.
Joe
Yeah. Well, I woke up, I couldn’t, couldn’t move. Yep. I was fine until I went to bed that night. And they he said it, each little incident worse than that. And what happened was a piece of the bone broke off and went into the spinal column. So it drained the fluid in that part of the spinal column. So that’s why I have trouble with this hand all the time. So I mean, if we want to talk about medical stuff, I have more orthopedic stuff than anybody you know.
Nick
You do let’s so yeah, let’s do a let’s do an abbreviated version of that because I don’t think there’s enough memory on your all your injuries because I think that’s really important. Anybody who doesn’t realize this Joe works out with us pretty much every day and has been for almost four movies a four and a half years. And that’s really important because I think a lot of people will be really interested to find out that you’re able to do that after these
Joe
you can if you play it smart and have the right coaches. I don’t give a Kudo to you even though I hate it kills me to do it. Alright. Public kudos and sorry, Jeopardy. Yes, all right. Injuries do you need good coaches, that’s a thing if you’re going to work out because you can hurt yourself. But football injuries I had knee surgeries in football broke my fingers a couple of times two or three broken fingers work injuries, knee surgery from work slipped on a wet floor hitting their head with a piece of steel what else broke my foot and that’s an interesting thing. I had to go to work with a broken foot and it was one of the bones in the foot. So my friend who was was the doctor this is different times that says Okay Joe, all you need to do is put your work shoe on really tight. Okay, and you couldn’t do it. So I did my work shoe on really tight and managed to go to work and then come home and got drunk and went to bed Alright,
Nick
every told you about my foot and our I know, I did the same thing I got like a list rank fracture, I broke my foot in Iraq, and we didn’t know what to do about it. So we just duct tape my boot every day.
Joe
Well, that happened to be in a football game the first time and this phone was weak because I got stepped on in a football game I came off and did nothing was swollen. So they cut my shul froze it with the free zone. Duct tape my shoe back on and sent me back into game and I couldn’t feel my foot. Alright, so I’m running like some sort of like really weird person and then I broke my neck had the neck surgery. I’ve also had a bunch of shots in the spine. The facet joints that come off your spine, there’s a way that they inject that with the electronic needle and they kill that nerve. So it takes away some of the pain because I have degenerative something that a facet joint, but I don’t pay attention to that. That’s That’s irrelevant. Yeah. I don’t want to hear that. But I’ve had mostly orthopedics and then I had one hernia and three stroke. I was
Nick
gonna Okay, so you want to talk about Arma number. The car ride Verma the stroke firm a stroke.
Joe
Yeah, I’ll talk about the funny thing. I had the first stroke years ago and I didn’t even know I had a stroke. I thought I slipped on the curb walking the dog and apparently slipped the curb stroke. The second time I was driving in an evacuation from Florida for the hurricane. And I was going up to Tennessee. This is the one where I was talking to you, right? Yeah, yeah. And we’re going to visit a friend of Tennessee a really good friend, which is a whole nother story. But the stress, we went 10 hours and we just got to the border of Florida and Georgia. 10 hours, it was bumper to bumper to bumper to bumper, running out of gas, trying to call Mozart he’s trying to call motels and there’s no room at the end. There’s nothing in any place in Georgia. The stress got to me, and meanwhile, I had put up the hurricane shutters twice because I did it wrong. The first time I didn’t realize there was a puzzle to it, you know, you can actually put them in wrong one. So I was totally stressed out. And I had the dog with me in the car and he was acting up and it just stress
Nick
was it. So if anyone doesn’t know we’re talking about during Hurricane Irma, what was it? 2018 or 19? Yep. Where we live in Cape Coral. This happens for anyone not in Florida. This happens every single time they project that your world is gonna end about 1000 times and then it changes every 15 minutes. But we finally got the the basically like, if you don’t leave Cape Coral, you’re gonna die alert. turned out to not be that big a deal. But lots of people like a lot of people on the west coast of Florida evacuated
Joe
a lot. It was packed and there was no gas. I mean, it was a real sticky situation. It could have been better managed somehow. I don’t know how I mean, I have no answers to it. But there must be a way.
Nick
Yeah, I remember being really impressed. And how they were still getting supplies down here. You know, because I remember like Tyler and I were driving around to people’s houses and like putting up boards for like, the single moms or the people who like their parent where they had like a job where like, oftentimes a cop couldn’t come home for like four days. So we covered up his house and drew a bunch of rude things on the plywood. But I remember definitely being impressed and how the gas and supplies were still getting down here. Yeah, but the exit was wild. We didn’t leave. But I remember the exit was wild.
Joe
I’ll never leave again. Yeah, it never that was just too much. It Was that too much. Because I was worried about Dorothy and the dog. And was that the other thing. So make this story longer. I had a stroke. And with that stroke came another stroke. So I had two strokes, simultaneous almost simultaneously. And a funny part I was driving and the traffic opened up. So now I’m doing 70 in Georgia. And I said, Oh my gosh, the lights started blinking. And my eyes felt like they were rolling in my head. And I said, I said to Dorothy, I’m pulling over. And I pulled over from the left lane, to the middle to the right to the to the curb. And I said Dorothy, you’re gonna have to drive, there’s something wrong. And she’s okay. And I get out of the car, we switch places. And she drove to a hospital which happened to be a stroke center, which was the next exit lucky. Wow. And I got the TPA, I think they called the shot. And I went from being Whoa, to being normal. And like 20 minutes. I mean, it was like amazing. So if you have any symptoms of a stroke, get to a hospital. Don’t Don’t mess with it. All right. So that and then I called Nick and sent the Nick, I had a stroke. I’ll be back. Yeah, you can’t let it ruin your life. You have to live your life. Yeah, that’s the one thing I’ve learned is just be happy to live your life. Enjoy it. It’s all a journey.
Nick
So how did you find us? Because it’s a long time ago.
Joe
Okay, I was working out a place h2 with heaven, you know. And I love to have really liked Heather. Heather was really good. And I just felt like I needed more weight. This was more geared. They were men, but it was more geared to I don’t know, less weight and I was getting stronger. I wanted to lift more weight. So I saw something about CrossFit. And I said gee, I could like to do this, I think so I called Nick. I got a hold on Nick. I called the gym. And I told him I said, I have all these things wrong with me. Can I do this? And he said, Sure. Come on in. and that was it. That’s a stock. I came in and did not mislead. I do a lot of it. I do what I can do. Yeah, I’m not thrown around 200 pounds. Yeah, even though I can’t lift 300 on a deadlift. Yeah, I know we’ve done it. But, you know, I make cut down to 250.
Nick
With each stroke, you go down 50 pounds.
Joe
Yeah, no. Yeah.
Nick
So you, you started with us, we talked about, Hey, these are the, you know, the things that I’m concerned about. Do you feel comfortable that and we were like, yeah, definitely. Right. Yeah,
Joe
yeah, yeah, no, I, I feel fit. See, the most important thing to me is not wandering up in a nursing home, atmosphere, or being dependent on everybody, you know, being crippled in a chair. So no circumstances beyond your control. But if you have control over it, lose the weight, get fit as you can get as fit as you can for your age and your time. That’s all.
Nick
This episode is brought to you by punch gunk. Punch Gong is a pain relief and anti inflammatory rub. You put it on your muscles, your joints, you’re gonna feel a whole lot better if you use it. I know that a couple of weeks ago, I had my back was killing me from a deadlift workout couldn’t bend over without strong discomfort. One of the players can there’s been to use some rubbing on my back. 15 minutes later, I was doing muscle ups and snatches with no pain at all. I absolutely could not believe it. But it’s true. They’re a supporter of the podcast now. If you want to try it out, go to punch gong.com use code sharks 10 You’ll get a discount. This stuff is amazing. It’s all over my gym. Now the Southwest Florida sharks in Florida really use it. Big, big, big supporter of it. Now. Check it out at punch gong.com use code sharks 10 for a discount. What? What do you remember about the first? Like couple months? Because it was you and me working together most of the time? Yeah,
Joe
it was Nick and I it was a really great class that they don’t have anymore. It was called the Nick and Joe 1030. Class. All right.
Nick
I mean, the 10:30am class for nobody would show up except for you and me. Yeah, it was
Joe
like having a personal trainer. So I got undivided attention. All right. And Nick is very good. I must have caught this a second time. I’m praising him. This has got to stop taking me off my game here. So yeah, fitness. CrossFit is good because it’s a challenge. And it variety of different things. It’s not just coming and doing the same machines over and over and blah, blah, blah. Even the bikes are hard. Doing the bike is hard. The Echo. They’re brutal.
Nick
It’s like the hardest thing in the world. That never gets better either.
Joe
I got up to like a half hour on it, and it’s still lousy. You know, it’s still terrible. It’s not like you get used to it. Like the rower. Rowing that’s another part of course, but is the rowing. That’s adorable, that I can endure over a period of time. But you know, you do to 10,000 meters. You know, Jim had a challenge. It was 1000 meters and but that’s okay, but the echo bike. No, no, I can’t even get close to the amount of calories i i looked the other night. Was it Tuesday night, and it was X amount of calories on the bike. Right? They were two young guys behind me told me they’re gonna get 20 calories on the bike. And I’ll go okay, I can see the calorie more. So I’m talking and pumpkin and pocket along and oh, God, man. It’s brutal. Then moving pretty quick. I’m trying to keep up but I’m going oh, man, I’m gonna die on this. I look down. It was five. Done with 20 Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no.
Nick
We’re gonna with you at the beginning was really fun, Joe, because he would lie to me all the time. And I remember I ran up to you one time. And I’m like, What the hell are you on? On the bike? And you’re like, I don’t know. What do you mean? I don’t know. Like, can you see the screen? You’re like, Nah, no.
Joe
That’s the rower. They have to have one person go by whatsoever. Say Joe, let’s bring it because now in defense of Joe, you know, I am old and losing vision. But the light the way the light cast sometimes. You just can’t see the numbers. Yeah. And that’s my story. And I’m sticking to the lighting.
Nick
So at the beginning, right when you when you came over and you were trying to when you started working out with us. What were what were some of the goals you had because I remember a couple of them. What were some of the goals you have right at the beginning?
Joe
Why lose a couple of pounds may not want to get strong. That’s basically what I wanted to do. I wanted to increase the weight comfortably and do movements. Again, the CrossFit is very good because it has practical movements on it. It’s a functional moves, you know, you’re lifting, you’re pushing your pull, you know, so it’s things you do every day. And I wanted that extra strength for that. Because I get trust with people. It gets harder as you get older. Even getting off the floor without holding on to something is a major, major accomplishment.
Nick
That one I remember we talked about that at the beginning. You were like, that’s really important to me that I don’t
Joe
lose this that I don’t lose that I can get up off the ground. Myself.
Nick
Do you remember the things we did to make sure that in the beginning?
Joe
No, I’m looking I remember my name. We’ve done a million
Nick
workouts. That’s fairly at least a million stuff like like burpees or climbing up and down off a box is in a good box work. I like yeah, that helps me working on like, twist anchor that you were able to get off your butt on your front, right? Yeah,
Joe
yeah, the Russian Twist. And push ups help to believe it gives you because the way I get up is all fours and push up and save. I’ll tell you another thing that helps too is the What the hell you the squats help but the the one knee lunges. Yeah, couldn’t pick it
Nick
up. Well, no contact.
Joe
Me read my mind. I’d take back everything that I said about him. All right. You should know him and lunges. Squats. Yeah. The lunges helped him. Because they’re hard. They’re really hard.
Nick
We up to that. Okay, that that leads me to my next. What is this stuff that you do in here that you feel like is most beneficial to you?
Joe
The stuff I do I like to step ups? Also like push ups. And believe it or not the rope climbing modification? Yeah, yep. All right. And the other thing is the Joe pull up modification, Nick has devised a way for me to do a pull up. That really helps. It really helps. And so needs the ball, knees to chest and all that. I enjoy you all.
Nick
Yeah, every time you do the pull up, when you come up to me and go, Hey, I really felt that this time.
Joe
Now you feel it. You feel it, because you get to hold more of your weight each time. Like I said, they paid attention to the third nice guy paid attention away. I was doing it. And he made it a little more challenging each time. So it was very good. That helps. So all of it. The, the, the balls. They’re they’re killer. That’s a killer. The wall balls aren’t wall balls.
Nick
You can’t look up, it’s gonna be more challenging. Oh, it’s brutal.
Joe
It’s absolutely brutal. And I don’t have I don’t know how to kids can go down that far and come up. And that motion that’s foreign to me that doesn’t compute. I can only go halfway but give yourself
Nick
some credit, right? Because when he first started with us, he couldn’t squat. And I remember that was one of the things we started working on the beginning was making sure that you could get to an actual squat.
Joe
Well, I get to a box squat a
Nick
parallel parallel, right. That’s, that’s more than most people my age can do. That’s pretty
Joe
good. That’s fine. It’s good. Yeah, I’d rather I’d really like to take 300 pounds and go deep and come up. But that’s not happening in my future.
Nick
Can you remember what we got to go to back squats? I know. We used the box. But what
Joe
did we get you to 255 Yeah, right. Yeah.
Nick
I mean, it was good man who was solid?
Joe
Yeah, the three of them. There was 333 reps though. Yeah. And when I was lifting weights years ago, I don’t think I did any more than 350. Yeah. And I was younger, stronger. So you do lose some strength as you get older, but it’s meaningless because you don’t. Yeah. You’re not tussling bars, whatever it is got to push some old guy out of the pool what?
Nick
I got some questions from the coaches that they wanted me to ask you. So fitness for like longevity, right versus fitness. It’s just to be like as fit as possible. What’s that been like for you? When did that change? Start and what is your advice for people who want to work out for that reason?
Joe
Okay, for fitness. You want a general overall workout where you do everything. All right. And I’m going to incorporate something I wish I had done years ago. Now I did Pilates, which is very similar but yoga, yoga, if you’re young enough and you get keep flexible. That’s the main thing as you get older as you Ah is the flexibility. And CrossFit helps with that also because of functional moves, but that’s why I love CrossFit. I even do a little don’t listen, Darby, a little running. I did 100 meters the other night, the Joe run the Joe ran 100 meter run, and it’s a floppy jog at best. And, yeah, I would say, make sure you incorporate flexibility in with all with working out. And, again, running isn’t for everybody, but some sort of cardio. You need a cardio and you need the weights, you need resistance, whether it’s bands, body weight, whatever. First time I ever saw a CrossFit move. I was impressed that a gym. CrossFit was infancy. But years ago in a gym in New Jersey, and a guy came in a kid, young guy, really good shape. And he did a muscle up. I saw oh my god, what the hell is that? Oh, wow. And it’s impressive. I mean, you pull yourself up and then up over the bar. Wow. And they do him all the time here. Yeah. But at that time, that was like really impressed me. And that’s about it on the phone. Oh, one other point on the trade side. One interesting fact. My father was retired. And they called him back from retirement to well, the TV tower support for the tradesmen.
Nick
When was that?
Joe
1970 home. Yeah, yeah. He was retired and they call them the union. And they said, because he was a electrician and a welder. Right, which I did a little welding but not the way he did. And they wanted somebody specifically for the Trade Center for this tower. So they called him in with other people. But there’s an interesting story about he supposedly, the story I heard. He was on the elevated Japanese Embassy was in the Trade Center. Back in the day for a while they couldn’t rent the Trade Center. The Trade Center was on rentable in the opening year, because its weight. Its weight, like a ship. I mean, it was unbelievable on the upper floor. So they had the New York State since the state was the Port Authority on it to try state owned it. There were a lot of state offices, the Compensation Board was in there a couple of things, the review boards, blah, blah, blah. And it was a couple of embassies temporarily. And there was a Japanese Embassy and my father was in the elevator with a bunch of Japanese gentlemen. And they said they asked me excuse me, because you had to switch elevators to get the certain floor. And they asked them what elevator and he says you found Pearl Harbor, then you bet shows your personality. dear old dad, okay. Oh my god.
Nick
That sounds like something you’d say to me in the middle of a class.
Joe
Oh, no. He was like, he was a tough dude. He was one. He was a little crinkly on the edges. What else?
Nick
So somebody asked me to ask you about this. You have been sober for 40 plus years now. Right? Yeah. Yeah. Something like that. Yeah. How did you go about that? And have you have you maintained that for so long?
Joe
Ah, what? Well, I kind of remember smoking and drinking. And what? Give me the story of what happened. The what Dorothy would complain about my drinking and all these wild things would happen. Ballerinas and machine guns, all kinds of great stuff I might be having no limits drunk in the city is insane. Okay. And went to a New Year’s Eve party. And we sat down and we were a little late. All right. And this guy was annoying me and he was a work partner of mine. I never liked them. But everybody liked his wife. She was a sweetheart. And he said, he said some jerky to me about work. And I said, Bobby, I don’t want to talk about it. It’s something I see. You know, Bobby, nobody really likes you. Just be quiet and stay over in a corner. You’re annoying. And he turns to everybody says, Oh, you can tell Joe has been drinking. And I hadn’t had a drop. So I said, Ah, as long as you have a reputation of alcohol. Nobody will take you serious. They’ll assume what you’re saying is under the influence of alcohol instead of what you really felt like And especially in this type of atmosphere. So then you’re not gonna believe this one. So definitely says you got to do something, you got to do something. So okay, so what am I going to do? So I went to an AAA meeting. And that was the worst thing I ever did at this particular meeting because it was all my drunken buddies, and everybody would drink in the pocket a lot after the meeting. It was terrible. I mean, it really was a disgrace. Right? So So I gotta do something. So I found a psychiatrist that specializes in this and his name was duck their head. Okay, Dr. Head had an office in a high rise in Staten Island. And I go in for the first time when I’m sitting in a waiting room, and as patients people in there, and they would talk, and apparently, you’re in for a while sessions take time. So you’re in talking to the other patients waiting for you on time to come up. And I was giving them advice. Right. So apparently, he heard this or his secretary told him motor receptionist and he comes out with his diploma. And he announces to the room, I have the diploma. He doesn’t. All right. That’s nice. Okay. Sorry. So no, I got thrown out of the psychiatrists office. All right.
Nick
Giving everybody advice. stupid stuff.
Joe
I mean, my daughter doesn’t listen to me, I still won’t tell her was crazy. Absolutely, like, needy or whatever. So I didn’t belong there. So then, I said, I just got to give it up. So that’s what I did. I went to a couple more AAA meetings, you know, better meetings, different in different part of town, and went through a couple of hours, but I didn’t stay with it. I just decided not to drink anymore, because it became a lot easier. As far as working and relationships, you know.
Nick
And then once it wasn’t a habit anymore, it was once it’s not a habit.
Joe
And then I gave up smoking. Because without the drink and cigarette. I mean, neither one, you know. So smoking was hard, but or drinking was fairly easy. So funny to give you an anecdote as I go to parties. And what the reason I told my party people that I stopped drinking was because I had hypoglycemia. So I’d go to a party, and somebody, oh, come on, Joe, you got to have a beer drinker. And somebody else would come up and say, Oh, no, Joe has hypoglycemic Oh, hypo. Whatever it is, he can’t drink. A great excuse. So no one ever bothered me to drink because they, your fellow drunks don’t like it when you’re sober. Alright, so
Nick
yeah, we’ve we have a couple couple sober people in the gym. And that’s one of the really common things I’ve heard. Is that right?
Joe
Yeah, your friends want you to drink because they liked the company, or they think you’re a better person when you drink because you move for whatever reason, but it’s there for their selfish reason. Now your reason? So it worked out Dorothy and I stayed together. And she didn’t leave me and I didn’t get fired on jobs or anything. Before that it was who know you may have
Nick
I am very glad it worked out because you’re such a jerk. I couldn’t imagine if Dorothy wasn’t around. How much more of a jerk you’d be
Joe
like I said machine guns and ballet dancers get
Nick
What does so Joe’s got the coolest wife in the world? What what does she think about you doing this you know as an important thing in your life at 77 years old?
Joe
Oh, there are the expects the phone call from Nick every day. Come and pick up the body Darth is happy because I still carry her luggage and whoa. Just broke the chair.
Nick
Every go that’s a strength or we’re going on Holy Christ.
Joe
Crappy assassination attempts number two. So he’s happy because we get to travel. And this sounds chauvinistic. But I’m the great protector always have been like that a hovering person but I carry the bags. I make sure everything’s safe. And yeah, I’m very aware. So you’ve grown up in a city, you’re aware of your surroundings a lot. You can sense danger, right? There’s been some instances over the years where I knew something was brewing. And I was right. You know, there was shootings and things. beatings. And one time I was in a bar. And I said to my partner, let’s get out out. And with that a guy comes in as well leaving with bat, him and a couple of the guys would bat and they just destroyed the people in the bar. Yep, they throw him out of the bar early or whatever. So that little instinct, you know, back away. Oh, and so that’s what she likes to the fact that I’m active.
Nick
Right? Because you’re staying active. You still feel like you can do a lot of those things.
Joe
Right? I can do most everything. Yeah, matter of fact, there’s nothing I can’t do. I’m the jar opener. Yeah. Somebody’s Joseph, brutal. Chico, with the I think it was the pickle jar. And she says openness and I just had the hernia surgery and I don’t know dum dum dum.
Nick
Because that would just be the worst.
Joe
Because that’s a whole body opening experience. Yeah. So she’s happy with the workouts and all this and she’s happy. She likes that. I have fun. You know, it’s a hobby. This is like a hobby. But a good hobby. Yeah. Unlike the drinking and smoking and messing around.
Nick
So this coming week, right. So next week, we have our SharkBite classic. That’s our in house competition. We do. Now we do with all three gyms, right? You and I partnered up for the first one we did, right? You remember that? Yeah, we won. Yep. What do you remember about that?
Joe
I remember being challenged, I forget the weight. I think it was 50 pounds. Right. And I had to do a clean with a 50 pound dumbbell. And that was a challenge. But it being in a competition. I did it. Alright, it was tough. And another time we were in one where I had to clean the 110 pounds with the barbell with the barbell. And I had never done a clean with the barbell really, you know, just to practice fooling around. And that was interesting, but you do it. You know, this is competition. Yeah. Yeah. Really strong.
Nick
I think you were the crowd favorite that day? Because what we had was it walks, right. Yeah, you would get up on the wall and you would finish yourself fast. And then I’d have to go and I’m like, Joe, I need. I need a break. Like, I’m so tired. You would turn to the crowd and be like, can you believe this turd?
Joe
I’ll tell you what. It’s amazing. How lazy some people are. I really? This is a competition. You’re supposed to be pumped. It’s supposed to rip things off the wall. Not a lot. There. I want to look yeah.
Nick
I just remember you would go so fast. And I’d be like, God, that was four seconds. I’m so tired.
Joe
Well, let’s like when I was it similar to competitions at the open. I go through two things really quick, which is detrimental. doing the exercises that fast. But that’s the way I learned and my brains geared that way or whatever. I have to do the exercises fast. So poor Nick is limping along. You can get the ball going. Oh god, I gotta do this if this clown Yep. Now, in his defense, his ball was twice the weight is mine. Okay. But he is two times younger.
Nick
I’m only two times younger. That’s terrifying.
Joe
Oh, no. Be scared. Oh, no, no, actually. Yeah, you’re half. Yeah, so I’m yeah,
Nick
I’m here. 33 You’re 117? It’s about the same.
Joe
mummified a mummified?
Nick
Yeah. So you talked about this right at the beginning. Right, right. What’s it like being around younger people? Because you’re the oldest person and
Joe
I’ll tell you what, it’s interesting. And, okay. One thing that me personally never did, no matter where I was, or what situation I was in was said, Gee, it was better in the other situation, right? I try and make the best of whatever situation I met. Okay. Mingle with young people, even though they don’t know half of what you’re saying. They you’re like, Nick, before I brought up off the gofree. Right, which was so common back when I was young, at the gofree that people know. Oh, yeah. orthographic Nick had no clue. So therefore, he didn’t know how to loci or Julius lira was a big scandal or nope, nope, none of this. So make mixing with the young people. You get to learn a little more like I learned what this actually podcast So
Nick
we were talking about what a podcast was before you before we started this right? You were like, What? What is a pocket?
Joe
What justifies and or a podcast?
Nick
Why are we having this conversation? Why
Joe
is this happening? Yeah, I’m here like, like a pilot phones and this microphone thing. That’s what I got for you. I think after he had the mic in front of me in Hawaii, Hawaii. Yeah. Okay. Oh, you would have liked though the gofree. And a free bag of Lipton tea bags when you went to the show. I told Nick about that. Yes. My mother liked the tiebacks. The other show I went to was a kid with my mother was feather your nest. It was a game show day. Like it was a game show that was on that you had to answer questions. And my mother put her name in, went from the audience. And my father got selected to go on the show. And he wouldn’t go. So that’s the big fight. Yeah. But for the nurse, the good old shows that you’ve seen on me TV. That’s the old pipe. So getting back on some eat meat TV. Sorry, getting back. So it’s really nice because they’re talking about their kids, their spouses, their lives, their jobs, stuff that are, you know, are foreign to me now. Like having a child now. totally different ballgame. Alright, it’s different than when I had my, my boys. Even school is different. Everything’s different. You know, it’s not the old days. It’s the new times. Like somebody asked me what my opinion was on this. And I still I have none because it’s not my time. It’s young people’s time. All right. I have no horse in this race. I mean, I’m all. So let the future belongs to the people. You’re not. That’s a little crank buckle. Back in the day. We did it my way. So it’s nice being around young people. Plus, you learned that they never take their face out of the phone. Yes. How weird is that? That’s weird to me. Yeah. That they’re so good at it. Because I suck at the phone. I can’t see the the apps I get on the app and I have to expand. I went I got a magnifying glass that I keep and I hold a magnifying glass that detects alright, because I can’t see the text
Nick
that makes me so happy. I gotta tell the story. So over quarantine, right. Remember we were we were doing bingo. Every Friday. Yes. So on Friday, I would run bingo from my house and we would do it on zoom with with all the members who wanted to come up that between like 20 and 40 people on every Friday. And remember you indoor if you’d be there and softball your son was there for a coupleof them. Right.
Joe
And it wasn’t as cold trivia night.
Nick
Oh, not being Oh, I’m sorry. Yeah, trivia. Oh, who’s got the Alzheimer’s? Alright, so not bingo. I was talking to you. And I thought of bingo. I’m sorry. I don’t know why that popped up. Yeah. So trivia trivia from my house. And you you guys be there. And I remember, we were putting him into breakout rooms. Right? We were remember that’s when we would separate people to your teams. And I remember being very aware that you were suffering from the technology deficit because at one point, you were trying to ask Alexa, what the answers to the questions were and didn’t know that I was in the room with you. And you were asking it on your other device. But
Joe
my son Jay, was three was with me staying with us. And he said to me, I forget what the question was. And the bad thing about trivia with younger people is their trivia is I’ve never even heard of it. Okay, it hasn’t happened yet. So my trivia is thought the gofree and Hana Loki Okay, back in the day. So he said to me that very simple. Go Alexa. What’s the date? Well, what’s this? Oh, okay. So that’s when Nick caught me cheating.
Nick
He’s holding another vote. He’s going Alexa. Alexa, Alexa
Joe
and it wasn’t I was doing the wrong one elections the other thing series.
Nick
And then I also remember when we were doing the trivia and we do also zoom classes, right as you might be working on classes you would try it it exit out of the video and he kept missing the button. So I don’t think I told you this for the first couple of weeks, I would just let you pretend to hit the button a bunch of times. And then after I stopped laughing I would kick you out of the room.
Joe
man, times of being blind. Yeah, but I do have the magnifying glass and has a little light on it though. So I can read I have trouble reading. Well, so you,
Nick
you’re saying like, the older people should talk to the younger people because
Joe
it just to keep in line. In other words, it’s not a child, not a relative. It’s a person that has no stake in you. Except being nice, right? You’ll learn a lot you’ll learn what’s happening in now in society just listening to them also, because they have the the daily problems that I had many years ago, but they’re different problems now. They’re different. They’re the same, because they problems with children or school or jobs. But they’re different jobs and different schools, different children are different. It’s night and day. I don’t know what is better you sacrifice one thing to get another thing, like manners. They don’t seem to be important anymore. They’re not stressed. The way they were like, I can’t even say thank you to Siri. Alright. It’s ingrained in me or, or sir, or miss of man, you know, it’s just ingrained to say hello, no. If I walk into a store, I say loaded the people, you know, because it’s ingrained in me. That’s the way but that doesn’t seem to be as important. And I don’t know, I don’t there’s no good or bad. But now it is. I would have loved to been a child today with computer mic and not having to go to the library. I used to have to go to the library, get a library card and sit in the library and read the books and research and that the Laney cards going through you had to know the author and the book. I was complicated. This you press upon this terrific. I was right. I told the nuns years ago I said I don’t really have to know how to read. And they said why? Because it’ll be a tape. Because they didn’t tape record it. That’s not just listen to it on tape. And I was right.
Nick
You are we’re gonna get you hooked up on a bunch of podcasts when this is over. So you can listen to
Joe
yeah, like I said, I didn’t know what it was. I do do YouTube. I’m happy enough to do YouTube. Yeah. So that that I got
Nick
that. So the same way you’re saying that older people should listen to younger people I know. Like, personally, you know, having you in my life for me and a lot of other people is really, it’s eye opening. And it’s helpful and it’s super rewarding, you know?
Joe
Well, it shows you that if you keep up what you’re doing, you know, everybody likes to be okay, you’re doing your right path. So if you keep fit, like I was telling Nick beforehand. When I after I broke my neck, I got really laid off. I was in a brace after the surgery. I was in the hospital for a while and then I had this brace on. And I couldn’t take it off for eight months and things and being a work or in workout person you eat. Okay, so I ate the same amount of food being laid up. And I was taking the painkillers because I was in agony all the time. And not that they’re addictive, but they have consequences. They’re not really good for your body. There’s consequences for everything that you take. So I went up to 300 I think it was 300 when I finally weighed myself 302 pounds, which was way Oh, I was a big fatty slob. Yeah. And I didn’t realize it until I saw a picture of myself. And that’s when I said I gotta get back into fitness and I started out slow and work work my way back in different types of fitness and i i like it all. I like olefin and active you want to stay active. You want to go kayaking. You used to do whitewater kayaking. And that was a lot of fun. But it was a lot of fun river rafting
Nick
pictures of that. Yeah.
Joe
The one picture the woman wrote a kayak with over the top of me. Time I got stuck under a pontoon. They had a guide company going down to River East to release the water from the dam mode. serve as a dam now. So when you get the Whitewater, it’s a release from the dam. And it’s dates that they release. That’s all automatic release. So the tour companies pile about 20 people into these pontoons and they go down the same river, you’re this kayak. And I had this pontoon people weren’t Can’t they supposed to be steering it, but they’re not. They’re not controllable. He’s came right over the top of me and pinned me. But I got out. I mean, I didn’t drown to die. So I’m here, but I got out. But that’s twice I had, it was so crowded on that river that day that I got ran over.
Nick
due to having you having you around, right. I think you do a really good job of, you know, for me personally given me perspective on a lot of things, right? Like, you know, you know, this, and when doesn’t know this, Joe and I are really good friends. We talk probably far more than the average 77 and 33 year old speak, but you’re only 33 Yeah, man, I’m young. I’m a young buck. You better start eating better. You’re one of the people when I get amped up who will be like Amen. Like calm down. There’s, you know, a long life ahead of you. You got you got it. You know, there’s there’s no race, there’s no rush down. You’re trying to get
Joe
all the journey and joy even though even the bad parts you got that’s something you could look back on. Oh, thank God, I survived that. You know, it’s, it’s all good. It’s the alternative is the dirt nap. And that’s not a good
Nick
one. Well, what would you what advice would you give to the other younger people, man because you’re like, you know, you’re the you’re the sage grandpa at the gym,
Joe
stay in a frame of niceness and happy. Don’t overreact to things. And this is from me that had a stroke, because I overreacted. But I’ve learned since then don’t overreact, it will, everything will pass, it will work out. Everything does work out in the end, maybe not exactly the way you want it, but it will work out it keeps going. So basically, try and be happy. Enjoy, enjoy what you’re doing. Or don’t do it. Because you have a choice, you know, you could enjoy or not enjoy. And I know you enjoy. You’re very good instructor and coach and helped me out a lot. Because I would kill myself throwing 200 pounds around. I’d be the body in the going.
Nick
That’s one that this doesn’t happen as much anymore. But this is one of my favorite older moments where the two of us is a class of like, you know, nine or 10 people. And then you’re in the corner and you’re purposely trying to get in the way that I can’t see you so that you do something and I’m like, Hey, Joe, you know, you can’t do that. And you’re like
Joe
well, like with the squats. I set up one day to do the heavy squats without the box. And with a mommy Yeah, the baby sitting. But yeah, no. That’s been a good experience. I had a fun. One thing I can honestly say, put it on my tombstone here. He had a good time. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Enjoy yourself. It’s a must.
Nick
You always told me that the unicorn we had up in the rafters you said one day you’re going to live in that in haunt me.
Joe
Oh, I’ll be here one thing? Yes. You’ll hear him whispered your brain slug.
Nick
So I think you’ve answered this already. But it is it intimidating for you ever as an older person to be working out with all the young people? No, but it’s annoying
Joe
that I can’t throw around a wait. All right, because young. Even though younger ladies are Michael girl. Sorry. Sorry, ladies, girls, because they are young, strong, They’re strong. They’re strong, right? And it’s frustrating because I used to be strong guy. And I can’t get that type of strength back because too many injuries. So I can’t do that. But that’s what you want to be you want to be as strong as you can be. Because it life is tough. I mean, a lot of roadblocks in a way you got to make sure you’re in good enough shape to do what you can do. And enjoy yourself like I said paddleboard kayak, swim run whenever you want, but enjoy it go out. Enjoy, do thanks.
Nick
If we’ve had this conversation privately before but if you were talking to another older person who’s not working out and they wanted to try it, but they were worried or intimidated or whatever, what would you tell them?
Joe
Get off, get your ass out of the chair and stop moving. Alright, that’s the whole game is the move. Doesn’t matter what you do. All right, move. Just get up and move. All right. I cannot believe and understand the sedentary life of the people my age that I know. It would drive me nuts. When I COVID I was stuck in the house. I was went out of my mind. And I did workouts, body workouts because he’s just how could you sit there later all day? I mean, it’s just yeah.
Nick
Because you me and Steph had it at the same time I remember.
Joe
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, that’s another thing we shared.
Nick
We were texting each other comparing, like breathing patterns per day. Oh, I
Joe
had four people call me and say what symptom do you have today, because every funny thing about the way I had it, it’s everyday it’d be a new symptom and to go away, one day, it would be loose stool another day, it would be cough, and it would just last the day, and then a new synth pop up, and that would go away. But then when I finally I called the doctor again, after I got the test, he called me excuse me, he called me and said, Oh, you’re COVID Positive. And I said, Great. I’ve had, you know, for two weeks now that I’m over, so he says, Okay, you’re done. So I got the test. That’s how long it took to get the data. Remember the results?
Nick
Yeah. Oh, that’s when it was like a three week week.
Joe
It was like terrible. Oh,
Nick
so what? What else do you want to say? Joe? I mean, this is your this is your you got a mic in your face. You got headphones on or recording? Anything else you want to say? Well, I’m
Joe
really nothing important to say. I mean, I have no real important. earth shattering philosophies. It’s all a book somewhere. Yeah, no, just keep doing what you’re doing. If you’re listening, I guess you look up fitness. If you’re in fitness in any way, keep doing it. And it really will help you as you get older because, man, it gets tougher. It gets really tough. I mean is aches. Whoa, is me poor Joe, but you’re in pain. 24/7 as you get older, somewhere, something’s gonna hurt a finger thumb or the foot your toe. You get a cramp. It’s unbelievable. But it helps if you’re in shape and move. Keep moving. That’s no matter what. And my other advice is, don’t get a puppy when you 77.
Nick
get zapped many times you message me like this fucking dog. Oh,
Joe
God won’t stop. My next hope is next week. We’ll go into another vet for spade that was fixed. And hopefully that will comment that this time, she runs on walls runs Brown. Liberal. From couch to chair. She’ll fly six foot in the air and land on Dorothy in the lounge chair. All right. Put. He’s got Bruce. I have cuts and bruises from her banging into me when she’s led out of the crate, or comes in from a walk. Yell incoming. Because the rocket ship going in. She wants to be agile. Yeah. So learning experience. Yes, I would have been better off Nick mentioned something about getting an older dog and calm and blah, blah, blah. This thing is a walker about three miles a day just on and still runs around a wall. It’s just like insane. Just nuts.
Nick
Joe, you have been a great friend to me and an inspiration for a lot of people here. So thank you, thank you for doing this podcast. I can’t wait to teach you what a podcast is. You can listen to it later.
Joe
You’re putting too much pressure on me. I’m an icon.
Nick
Guys, if anybody wants to work out with Joe, just come join us in the lessons class. And if you have, you know, a parent or grandparent or an aunt and uncle who want to, you know, make a positive life change. Come Come join this cranky old man with us. Monday, Wednesday, Friday at 1045.
Joe
Yes. I’ll be there tomorrow. Yeah, I’ll be there tomorrow. I didn’t sign up yet. But the cleaning people come tomorrow so I have to vacate the house. I’d only be in there when they’re cleaning. So
Nick
that’s it. Cool. That’s it. That’s it. All right, we’re done. All right. Thanks for hanging out with us today on the Shark Bite show. If you’d like to get a hold of us, you find us on Facebook or Instagram at Shark Bite fitness Nutrition or on our website at SharkBiteFitness.com. If you’d like to learn more about our guests, their information will be in the show notes. If you’d like to talk to us about getting more fit. Schedule a free no-sweat intro at one of our Cape Coral, Fort Myers, or Naples, Florida locations.
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