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Eric Greensmith heard that he might get bored in retirement. So as his medical career started winding down in 2021, his thoughts turned to the summer job of his teens: lifeguarding on the New Jersey shore.⁠ ⁠ The chief of the Sea Isle City Beach Patrol—the only guard left from his 1970s stint—said he would offer Greensmith a position if he passed the requalifying test in May this year. The test involved running a half-mile in 3 minutes and 45 seconds and swimming 500 meters in 10 minutes. Greensmith was 67.⁠ ⁠ “I was 50 years older and 40 pounds heavier than my rookie year as a lifeguard,” says Greensmith, now 175 pounds at 5-foot-8. “The concept of a comeback seemed so preposterous that, at first, I didn’t even share my secret hopes with my wife.”⁠ ⁠ He had planned to retire from his job as an anesthesiologist in January. He worked through April because of a staff shortage but scaled back to three days a week so he could train. On April 2, he embraced twice-daily workouts: swimming in the mornings, running and lifting weights in the afternoons.⁠ ⁠ By the time of the May test, Greensmith had dropped 35 pounds. Despite never having run below 3 minutes and 50 seconds in training, he finished his half-mile run in 3 minutes and 40 seconds. On July 22, the 50th anniversary of the month he first started guarding in Sea Isle City, he climbed the lifeguard stand again.⁠ ⁠ “I haven’t been in this good of shape since the Navy,” he says. “I used to say I’m in good shape for my age, but now I don’t need to use that caveat.”⁠ ⁠ Read more at the link in our bio.⁠ ⁠ 📷: Steve Boyle for @wsjphotos