[Professional Baseball Player Takashi Wada] Secrets to Maintaining Health for the Longest Active Record

How do professionals who continue to challenge themselves in various fields such as sports, business, art, and culture approach their bodies and unleash their potential? We ask about the "conditioning" they practice in their lifestyles.

This time, we spoke with Takashi Wada, the oldest active player in the Pacific League, about his maintenance methods and conditioning techniques.

*Conditioning, as defined by TENTIAL, is the act of optimizing all factors related to one's physical condition to improve life performance.

How Can You Maintain your Health?

── Mr. Wada, how conscious are you about "conditioning (health maintenance)" in your lifestyle?

Since joining professional baseball, I've always wanted to play for a long time and stay at the forefront until I was 40, so I've constantly thought about how to achieve that. This directly connects to "how can you maintain your health?" So, from a young age, I've been devising my own ways with diet and sleep methods. Now that I'm in my 40s, I particularly feel the importance of sleep. When I was younger, I could fall asleep as soon as I got into bed and sleep for over 10 hours, but now I find myself sleeping later, having lighter sleep, and being bothered by the "sag" in my back from the mattress. I've started to think more about the conditions for sleeping than ever before.

── Did your perspective on health significantly change around your 40s?

Exactly. As I mentioned, I lived my baseball life aiming for 40. After turning 40, it's like a "bonus stage" for me. I've been quite strict about health until now, but from here on, it's more like "let's try this" or "let's do that." While enjoying trial and error with conditioning, I came across TENTIAL's recovery pajamas (recovery wear) this time.

── What caught your attention about TENTIAL?

First, the name "BAKUNE." I thought it was amazing to give pajamas a straightforward name like "BAKUNE = Explosive Sleep" (laughs). I was curious about what kind of sleep comfort I would get, so I decided to order it.

"Sleep" and "Diet"

── By the way, how much sleep are you getting now?

Now, it's about 7 hours, or at most 8 hours. I actually go to bedding stores to try out the comfort of beds and choose pillows that suit me in terms of height and firmness. I've become more particular than when I was younger. Not being able to sleep is a major stress. During the season, with night games and day games, my bedtime varies. With night games, I sometimes get home after 11 PM, and after eating and stretching, it's past midnight. If I have to get up at 7 AM the next day, my sleep time is less than 7 hours.

── I see.

Conversely, if the day after a day game is a night game, going to bed too early and getting sleepy during the game would be a problem (laughs). It's physically impossible to perfectly adjust my internal rhythm, so I focus on how to get "quality sleep." When I was younger, I could face games without worrying about it, but as I age, the impact on performance becomes greater.

── Sleep methods are important. How about your diet?

I've started to actively consume brown rice and enzyme brown rice instead of white rice. Compared to when I used to eat bowls of white rice when I was younger, the amount of carbohydrates has significantly decreased. I stopped carb-loading (a nutritional method to store more glycogen, which becomes exercise energy) last year, and my body condition has improved since then.

Various parts of my body have changed around the age of 40, and I'm exploring ways to adapt. Moreover, when I try different things and fail, it doesn't bother me as much as it used to. When I was younger, I was afraid of failure and didn't have the courage to change my routine, but now I'm much less afraid of failure. As I mentioned earlier, I've become able to enjoy trial and error.

── What kind of "exercise" do you do for "health maintenance"?

Aside from training as a professional baseball player, I do stretching before bed. I've had muscle strains in both legs. When you get a muscle strain, you can hear a "pop" sound (laughs). I never want to hear that sound again, so I do more thorough warm-ups before training and cool-downs after training than before, and I never skip stretching before bed.

I also make sure to soak slowly in a warm bath. I started going to the sauna last year. I used to have a mental block about it, but since everyone on the team goes (laughs). During the season, I use the large bath and sauna room attached to the stadium. I think it's significant that I've started to think about trying things I haven't done before. I decided to start with the basics and bought a sauna hat (laughs).

── Are there any tools you use for health maintenance?

I pay attention to the joints to ensure they don't lose range of motion during baseball, and one of the things I use is a triangular cushion that straightens the pelvis, which I purchased myself and use regularly. I also use a stretch ball. Stretching is very important, whether done by a personal trainer or by oneself. It's important to understand your body's condition, like "Oh, this part of my body is tight today," and to "converse" with your body while stretching slowly. I recommend this to everyone. Stretching in a dimly lit room with healing music playing before bed helps relieve stress and improves sleep onset.

About TENTIAL

── You mentioned wearing TENTIAL's "BAKUNE" during sleep. How is the comfort?

I was surprised at first because it's so thin and light, yet very warm when worn. I'm not using such a thick comforter now, but the sleeping comfort is very good. As the name "BAKUNE" suggests, I'm looking forward to sleeping (laughs).

I also purchased TENTIAL's setup. It's incredibly versatile. It has a casual feel, but when paired with a shirt, it's suitable for more formal occasions. I actually wore the setup for an interview yesterday. It's very comfortable to wear. Baseball players often have large hips, making it difficult to fit into pants (laughs), and jackets can be too loose if they fit the shoulders. I'm always troubled by the size when wearing clothes. But with TENTIAL's setup, there's no stress at all. It feels like it was tailored just for me (laughs). The stretch material used ensures comfort and design for anyone who wears it.

── Are there any other items you're interested in?

The comforter. It's incredibly light and has a great feel. It's also compact, making it convenient to carry. I might want to take it on trips (laughs). It would be great to create a sleep environment as comfortable as home even at accommodations. Other items like sandals, eye masks, and bath salts are all things that make you think, "I'd be happy to have this." For someone like me who constantly thinks about "conditioning" as a daily challenge, TENTIAL's lineup is truly comprehensive (laughs). I highly recommend it to those who are conscious of performance in their daily work. I hope you'll try it out for yourself.