About Coach RicK
Coach Rick's Transformation
2021 Emerald Cup Masters 60+
2025 Photoshoot Age 69
2025 Photoshoot Age 69
My Story, and My Journey
My Journey to Healthy Aging
Today, at 70 years old, I am healthy, strong, and fit—and excited to see how well I can continue aging into my 80s, 90s, and beyond. I enjoy the strength, vitality, energy, flexibility, mental sharpness, and libido of a man decades younger. If you're skeptical, join me for a workout at the gym, then spend a day keeping pace with me at the office.
But it wasn't always this way.
When Everything Changed
In 2006, at the age of 50, I was living with chronic hip pain that affected every aspect of my life. I woke up in pain every morning and lived with it throughout each workday. It was relentless.
I could no longer jog along the beach with my wife. I gave up the idea of backpacking into the mountains because I feared becoming stranded by unbearable pain. Running on a treadmill and using an elliptical machine became impossible. As my physical activity declined, so did my metabolism, my muscle mass, and my self-confidence. I gained body fat, lost strength, and felt as though I was aging far faster than I should have been.
At just 50 years old, I felt physically and mentally old—much older than my actual age.
Eighteen Years Later
Fast-forward to 2024.
The hip pain is gone.
I jog, hike, lift weights, and enjoy an active lifestyle once again. At 70, I have regained the strength, energy, vitality, flexibility, and enthusiasm for life that I thought I had lost forever.
People often ask me, "How did you do it?"
The answer begins with discovering that the original diagnosis was wrong.
The Wrong Diagnosis
The story actually started in 2001, when I was 45 years old.
During my annual physical, I told my physician about increasing pain in my hips. After asking a few questions, he diagnosed me with sciatic nerve problems. His advice was straightforward: take pain medication, consider physical therapy, and accept it as part of the normal aging process.
I trusted that diagnosis.
Over the next five years, however, the pain steadily worsened. I gradually stopped jogging and avoided activities that aggravated my hips. Every annual checkup reinforced the same diagnosis, so I accepted that this was simply something I would have to live with.
Looking back, I realize that my condition wasn't improving because the underlying cause had never been identified.
Taking Control of My Health
In November 2006, I decided to stop waiting for answers and begin searching for them myself.
As an Aerospace Engineering Executive and Rocket Scientist who had spent decades solving complex technical problems—including work on the Magellan, Ulysses, and Galileo planetary missions, and more recently Boeing and NASA'a Space Launch System that flew the Artemus around the moon — I approached my health the same way I approached engineering: gather data, analyze the evidence, and identify the root cause.
I scheduled an appointment with a naturopathic physician and requested comprehensive laboratory testing.
The results were eye-opening.
Several hormones, including testosterone, progesterone, and DHEA, were low. More importantly, my vitamin D level was severely deficient. Because of that finding, my doctor ordered additional testing for celiac disease.
The tests came back positive.
The Real Cause
Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder in which consuming gluten triggers an immune response that damages the lining of the small intestine. Over time, this damage destroys the gut lining and interferes with the body's ability to absorb essential nutrients, including vitamin D.
To confirm the diagnosis, I underwent an intestinal biopsy through my primary healthcare provider. The biopsy confirmed significant damage to my small intestine consistent with celiac disease.
Next came a DEXA bone density scan.
The results revealed accelerated bone loss in my hips.
Suddenly, everything made sense -- as an Engineer I found root-cause for my problems.
The pain I had been living with for several years was not caused by sciatic nerve problems. It was early arthritis associated with bone loss resulting from severe Vitamin D deficiency, which itself was caused by undiagnosed celiac disease.
For five years, I had been treating the wrong problem.
Recovery
I immediately adopted a strict gluten-free diet.
Within weeks, the constant pain began to diminish. Within a few months, it disappeared completely.
I started jogging again.
I returned to weight training.
My waist shrank from 36 inches to 31 inches. I lost significant body fat, gained lean muscle, and regained my health.
Today, after many years of maintaining a gluten-free, low carb and high protein lifestyle, I continue to live without the debilitating pain that once dominated my life.
When I compare photos of myself before 2006 with those from today, the transformation is remarkable—not just in my appearance, but in my quality of life abd energy.
What I Learned
My story is unique, but the lesson is universal.
Many people live with chronic health conditions that remain undiagnosed for years because symptoms are attributed to aging or treated without identifying the underlying cause.
Acute illnesses such as colds and the flu often resolve on their own. Chronic diseases generally do not. They require investigation, diagnosis, and appropriate treatment.
No one has a greater stake in your health than you do.
Ask questions.
Seek answers.
If something doesn't feel right, continue searching until you understand why.
Being proactive changed my life.
A Book That Influenced Me
One book that had a profound impact on my approach to health is The Life Plan by Dr. Jeffrey S. Life.
One passage especially resonated with me:
"We are all going to age, but we don't have to get old."
That idea became a guiding principle in my life.
When younger men ask me at the gym how I stay in such good shape, I often recommend that they read the first chapter of The Life Plan. If its message resonates with them as it did with me, I encourage them to finish the book and begin taking an active role in managing their own health.
My Message
Healthy aging doesn't happen by accident.
It requires curiosity, discipline, informed decision-making, regular exercise, sound nutrition, and a willingness to take responsibility for your own well-being.
My experience taught me that obtaining additional opinions and seeking the underlying cause of persistent symptoms can make an enormous difference. While the healthcare system excels at treating many acute illnesses and injuries, patients also benefit from becoming informed advocates for their own long-term health.
At 70 years old, I don't feel like I've reached the end of the journey.
I feel like I'm just getting started.