A soldier-turned-schoolteacher is getting fighting fit to battle the daily pain of osteoarthritis.
Alex Wasinowicz says the condition, affecting his hip, often leaves him in “agony”.
With a good diet, regular exercise and Black Watch military mindset, he’s finding ways to cope.
And now he’s preparing to re-enter the boxing ring to show others that osteoarthritis can be overcome.
The special forces-trained 63-year-old, from Fordoun near Laurencekirk, was diagnosed with the condition in his late 40s.
Osteoarthritis is the most common form, where joints become stiff and sore over time.
It’s likened to damage through wear and tear but the exact cause is unknown – unlike rheumatoid arthritis which is an autoimmune disease.
Alex’s condition has now deteriorated to the extent that students sometimes have to help him climb stairs at school.
But he’s still mobile and says, without a healthy diet and regular exercise, he’d likely be a “couch potato” relying on painkillers to get through each day.
‘You have to discipline yourself’
After leaving school with no qualifications, Alex served in the army for eight years – latterly as a personal training instructor.
He then used this mindset to make a name for himself in the world of combat sports, becoming a three-time Scottish boxing champion and coaching others in martial arts.
Alex called time on his sporting career and changed course. At 45, he graduated from Central Lancashire University with first class honours then retrained as a teacher.
“You really have to discipline yourself. Otherwise you’ll pay the consequences,” he says.
An apple a day…
Alex’s determination to keep fit has helped him drop from 18st (114kg) to 15st 12 (100kg) since the summer.
He’s ditched the junk food, limits himself to a beer or two just once a month and only has 85%-and-above dark chocolate for an occasional treat.
He said: “Every morning when I wake up, I have an apple. Every morning.
“I have another during the day, or other fruit.
“And when I go home I have a nice dinner, mostly just vegetables.
“It’s hypothesised that, if you’ve got a good digestive system, that affects your mind. So it’s important.”
Alex also takes daily supplements including turmeric and black pepper, ginger and hyaluronic acid to ease his symptoms.
‘You can’t ignore exercise’
But it’s slightly more complicated when it comes to exercising.
Doctors told him his right hip is half a millimetre shorter than his left.
“It feels like bone rubbing against bone,” he says. “There’s no cartilage there.”
But, determined to maintain his fitness levels, he simply straps up his thighs and carries on.
While he’s dedicated to his role as a PE teacher – known to his pupils as Mr Waz – it often leaves him too tired to do much exercise at night.
So he tends to leave any strenuous cardio to the weekends, focusing on walking, cycling and swimming.
Alex used to enjoy running as well, but finds this now causes too much pain in his hips.
“It’s very important to improve your cardiovascular health for your wellbeing,” he says.
“You cannot ignore exercise – and the story that a lot of people tell me is that they can’t move and they’re in pain.
“But you need to work your way through that barrier.”
‘I keep on going like a soldier’
Alex is hopeful of “taking the plunge” and getting a hip operation to ease his symptoms next year.
And he knows of others who’ve been in a similar position who’ve been back to everyday life within around eight weeks of recovery.
If it goes well, he’s hoping to continue his fitness journey and step back into the boxing ring for an event with friends in Italy.
He added: “My mind is so focused on that.
“I keep on going like a British soldier.
“I’m a civilian, but I remain in that mind frame.”
‘We will beat osteoarthritis’
Alex hopes his work as a PE teacher can inspire the next generation of youngsters to pay attention to their health and actively work to improve it.
He’s recently been supply teaching at St Machar Academy, also helping with its after-school boxing club.
“I’m knowledgeable in the importance of eating healthily and exercising regularly, but many of the public are not,” he says.
“I’m on arthritis forums and I’ve spoken to quite a number of people who just do not appear to have the incentive to go out and push themselves.
“It’s like they’d rather be a couch potato, taking their pills and watching TV.
“That’s no good for anyone.
“I want to promote awareness that people can change their lifestyles. And we will beat osteoarthritis.”
Conversation