The Saskatoon StarPhoenix • thestarphoenix.com
Thursday, May 28, 2015
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Year-round fitness plan keeps this senior in the game BY HILARY KLASSEN OF POSTMEDIA SK SPECIAL PROJECTS
Vi Mizuno shone as a track athlete in high school, but she didn’t start breaking records until she joined the 55-plus club. In Grade 11, Mizuno placed second in high jump in the province. Back then she likely never imagined smashing track records later in life. It started when Mizuno transitioned from Fitness for $10 to the Saskatchewan Seniors Fitness Association (SSFA) because she was getting into track. “I used to do it in high school years ago, and I picked it up again and realized I could still kind of do it,” she says. “Kind of” is not the operative word. She can definitely do it! With the help of her coach, Mizuno prepared for and participated in the Provincial 55+ Games in Humboldt last July, and won a couple of gold medals and a silver. She also broke the record in the Pentathlon event which includes shot put, javelin, discus, hammer and weight throw. That qualified her for the nationals, the Canada 55+ Games in Sherwood Park in August
2014. At the nationals, Mizuno broke the Canadian record for javelin. She was pretty low-key about it at first. “The coaches were more excited than I was. I didn’t know it was a big deal. I didn’t know what the records were,” she says. “It was good just to be part of the games again.” Later on she realized it was quite an accomplishment. Along the way, Mizuno became part of a scientific study through the Kinesiology Department at the University of Saskatchewan. Half the participants take a supplement called Creatine, and half don’t. Creatine is a supplement designed to build muscle and sustain bone mass. As part of the study Mizuno also does a fitness workout. “It’s three days a week in the gym, weight lifting and that kind of thing, and then I’ve got a track coach who sets up my exercises, so I do the weight throw plus whatever I need to do with my arms to be able to throw.” This became part of the preparation for the games to build strength in the arms and the upper body. Mizuno says several
of her friends who also joined the Creatine study have already dropped out. What’s the secret to her endurance? “I keep a routine all the time. In winter, I play volleyball Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Right after volleyball I go straight to the gym, so I do those two things right away and then I’m done for the day. It’s kind of nice you know where you’re supposed to be that day and you get it over with and you can do whatever you want after that.” But it doesn’t stop there. Mizuno is also a Saskatchewan Masters Athlete and will be attending the provincials in Regina. She’ll participate in a weight pentathlon in July as well as mini-games to prepare for the provincials in 2016, and she just completed two other competitions. Provincial and national competitions happen every second year. Various motivations keep Mizuno engaged in her fitness goals. One is the competitive aspect. “I love competitions. I used to do a lot of it. I love being competitive and doing sports, which I’ve always been involved in. I grew
up with four brothers and no sisters, so if they could play, so could I and they dragged me along.” Another is the social aspect. “I don’t like staying at home. I love meeting new people,” she says. Another obvious benefit is physical fitness. “It’s nice to be fit too and have fun doing it.” Mizuno is not fond of the gym, which can become tedious as you do versions of the same thing over and over again. “But with track, it’s more varied and you’re going to different places. Nationals will be in Ontario next year, so you’re doing a lot of traveling too with it which I really enjoy,” she says. Recreational sports are a big part of Mizuno’s life as well. Volleyball, slow pitch, biking, golf and tennis are all activities she does regularly and greatly enjoys, even though she says she has bad knees and can’t run anymore. Mizuno serves on the SSFA executive as coordinator for volleyball. Volunteering and organizing fundraisers is a more recent passion. “I enjoy that. I like details and working out CONTINUED ON PAGE C9
After winning two gold medals and a silver at the Provincial 55+ Games in Humboldt last year, Vi Mizuno (left) went on to break a national record in javelin at the Canadian 55+ Games in Sherwood Park, AB. Supplied Photo
ABOUT THIS CONTENT: These stories were produced by Postmedia Saskatchewan Special Projects to promote awareness of this topic for commercial purposes. Postmedia’s editorial department had no involvement in the creation of this content.
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