Will You be the Grandparent They Visit—or the One They Can’t Wait to See?
Mighty Oak Athletic Podcast S2:E54 - Will You be the Grandparent They Visit—or the One They Can’t Wait to See?
Parenting is hard.
At one point, my wife and I had four children under the age of six, and every day I felt like I wanted to walk out into traffic.
But what I slowly realized is this: parenting is the work.
The payoff is getting to be a grandparent.
That shift changed my goals.
It’s no longer about six-pack abs or being the strongest guy on the block.
It’s about mobility, energy, and joy—the ability to drop to the ground with my grandkids, scoop them up, and play like a parent, only with the freedom of being a grandparent.
Goals Matter
When I walk into Mighty Oak, the kids often ask:
“Hey, Coach Mike, how much can you bench?”
“What’s the heaviest you’ve ever deadlifted?”
Here’s the answer: I’ve deadlifted 405 pounds and benched around 285.
But here’s the truth: it doesn’t matter.
What matters is how strong I can help them become—and what my own goals are today.
Their goal might be maximizing athletic ability for travel baseball or hockey.
My goal? Training to be a grandparent.
What Kind of Grandparent Do You Want to Be?
This is the question.
Will you be the grandparent sitting idly on the sidelines, immobile, struggling to walk from the car to the field?
Or will you be the grandparent who throws the ball, runs the bases, jumps in the pool, and has the energy to be part of the team?
The difference is how you train now.
I know—it might seem far off.
Maybe your kids are still in elementary school.
But the cliché is true: the days are long, the years are short.
And if you’re not careful, you’ll blink and realize grandparenthood is closer than you thought.
The Sit-to-Stand Test
There’s a simple way to measure whether you’re headed toward that future.
It’s called the sit-to-stand test.
Go from standing, down to the ground, lie flat, and then stand back up.
Each time you need a point of contact—your hand, knee, or elbow—you lose a point.
Score a 10? You did it with only your feet.
Score below 8? It’s a sign that mobility, strength, and balance are slipping.
In fact, research shows this test is directly linked to longevity. The fewer points of contact you need, the more likely you’ll live longer and stay independent.
Start Today
The good news is you don’t need an hour a day or a complicated program.
Start with the basics:
Mobility: Spend five minutes stretching your hips, hamstrings, and shoulders. Think down dog, hip openers, and gentle twists.
Strength: Practice bodyweight squats. Sit down and stand up from a chair without using your hands.
Push: Do push-ups on the floor, a counter, or a wall. Press a light box overhead.
Hinge: Pick up a laundry basket or grocery bags with your legs and hips, not your back.
Core: Do simple leg lifts, planks, or side bends to keep your midsection strong and connected.
Five to ten minutes a day is all it takes.
The goal isn’t perfection.
The goal is to be ready for the most important role of all: being the strong, energetic, fully engaged grandparent your family deserves.
Start your grandparent training today.
