01/20/2026
Jan. 20, 1982, I decided to get back in shape & ran a mile in snow. I increased the distance to 6 miles & eventually ran a ½ marathon. An injury forced me to switch to walking. I rose each morning at 3:30 & increased my distance to 12-15 miles daily. There it stayed for the next 19 years. I’ve since made adjustments but never faltered on my commitment to daily walking. That was 44 years ago today. In snow, rain, from minus 4 to 102 degrees, with a broken elbow then a fractured foot, in airports & hotel parking lots, I haven’t missed a day. I’ve logged over 170,000 miles. That’s the equivalent of traversing the Earth’s circumference 6 times! In 1994-95 I completed 2 race walking marathons & was one of the top female racewalkers in the country in my division.
I added strength training, weights, yoga, stretching & balance exercises. I’m 77, have no health issues & have maintained my ideal body weight, strength, endurance & flexibility, I rise every morning at 5:15 & power walk 3-6 miles. Three times a week I do a combo of 70 pushups, curls or lateral side raises with 10-lb dumbbells; plus 20 pull-ups, 60 sit ups, 15 squats, 40 lunges, 10 devil’s presses, planks, & 20 triceps dips with weights. I just added straight arm kickbacks, triceps extensions, woodchop & curls using 5 lb dumbbells.
I do yoga 4X per week, use a wobble board & foam cushion for balance, & stretch out on my inversion table. My workouts last 2 ½ hours per day. Exercising is hard but getting old is harder. I can still do everything today that I did in my 20’s.
I refused to accept the lie that as we age our time would revolve around illnesses, doctor visits, & medications. I’m not unique. There are many others defying these lies. Staying active allows us to stay young & healthy. NO ONE IS TOO OLD TO GET YOUNGER AGAIN. (Read that again!) Get up & get started. Start small but START NOW! And be persistent. That’s the key.
I can’t stop myself from aging but I can prevent myself from getting old & so can you. Every effort makes a difference. NEVER give in to the myth that getting old is inevitable. “I WILL ALWAYS GROW OLDER BUT I WILL NEVER BE OLD.”