Book excerpt: As the years have gone by I have become increasingly aware that having good health is far more important than having money or owning nice things. Everything else pales into obscurity when compared with our health. In this book I encourage men and women of all ages to find sports and physical activities they truly enjoy beginning as early in life as possible. This book is about being the best you can be for as long as you can be. Not only will you find it very enjoyable if you do, you will reap huge health benefits as well. We are capable of much more than most people realize. I speak from the personal experience of still being able to compete with much younger athletes in a challenging game at an age most people would likely regard me as being "too old." Many of the players I play with have made the comment, "I don't know how you do it." In this book I have tried to explain what I have done to "do it." I do not feel much different mentally now than I did as a young man and I am still considered to be a reasonably capable player. My health is excellent. My energy level is high. I do not take any prescription medicines. I do not experience many aches and pains. I believe these positive outcomes have been greatly influenced by the effort I have put in. It doesn't just happen you have to make it happen. This is a book about real life in the real world. I have included several real life experiences to illustrate the impact that athletics and physical conditioning have had on mine and my wife's health. They include vignettes on job stress, open heart surgery, depression, and allergic reactions to chemicals. Many of you may experience these or other types of serious challenges at some point in your lives. I wish all of you the very best and hope that you will make a real effort to "Be all you can be." You can help forge your own destiny.