With Age Comes Wisdom — And How About Speed?

I visited my daughter in Miami last week and went as a guest to her health club. It was quite a different experience from what I’m used to at mine. For one thing, it was a lot fancier. More importantly, the energy level was sky-high. At 10 AM, several classes were packed, all the treadmills were in motion, most of the free-weight stations were occupied, the recovery room was full, and there were even a few sunbathers at the pool.

One other thing: besides the four women doing water aerobics, my wife and I were by far the oldest people working out. That was strange for two reasons. First, shouldn’t all these young people have been at work? Don’t people with jobs have to be in the office—or at least available—during normal business hours? Second, this was Miami. I know the city has changed a lot recently, but it still attracts retirees. Where were they?

All kidding aside, I really wasn't that surprised. Fitness for the elderly typically takes the form of walking, counting steps, and, for the more adventurous, pickleball. Health clubs that want in on the market offer "Silver Sneakers" programs that focus on fall prevention, low-impact stationary exercises, and the ever-popular water aerobics. The cultural assumption is that once you reach a certain age, your days of intense exercise are over. You are managing your physical decline rather than fighting it.

Just about all my contemporaries accept this attitude; I’ve heard "I can’t run anymore because my knees are shot" countless times. So-called experts reinforce the idea that older adults shouldn't be expected to push themselves physically. As a result, 70-year-olds are lionized simply for walking regularly. What makes this so strange is that our country is routinely led by people widely assumed to be sharp enough to govern but too old to run around the block. Why do we treat expectations for physical condition so differently from expectations for mental capability?

This makes no sense to me. Trying to get into as good shape as possible should remain the goal no matter how old we get. That can take the form of athletic competition. For instance, many road races have age group awards. There are also online websites that let you calculate what your finish time for a given distance would have been if you were a different age. Other organized sports such as tennis and swimming provide similar opportunities. Alternatively, this can be something you do with friends or even a private quest.

What I want to hear more of is the story of a lawyer who retires and devotes her energy not to cruises or adult education classes, but to becoming a great triathlete. Getting older is inevitable; surrendering your physical frame is a choice.