I'm not as old as the writer, but could have written the rest of the opening with total honesty.
Other than walking the dogs and keeping up with the yard and landscaping, I haven't touched my exercise equipment since 2008 and I need to get started again.
After a couple of big hits worthy of ambulance rides, not that I can remember them, I've not found enough "want to" or "have to" to find my way back to my old exercise routines.
Turns out this "getting old" stuff is much harder than it looked when I was younger.
I think it was Twain that said, “If I had known I was going to live this long I would have taken better care of myself.”
Getting old is not for pussies. If you are overweight get rid of it first, then walk to build back your heart function then when you and your doc think you are ready go with the type of exercise you think you would enjoy most.
Bad joints, swimming is low impact and great for cardio plus you get to look at near naked young girls. What could be better?
IMHO life comes down to the choices we make, they are derived from our attitude towards life. Just take the first step. As the Chinese used to say, “A thousand mile journey starts with the first step.”