When I turned 50, my daughter bought me a bicycle to help me start exercising. I had never worked out before, but I fell in love with cycling around my home in Long Island, New York and heard that there was an upcoming local triathlon.
I didn’t even know what a triathlon entailed, but when I learned that this one involved a 1.5-kilometre swim, 40-kilometre bike ride, and 10-kilometre run, I was intrigued. I knew how to swim and had a newfound love of cycling, and although I’d never really run before, I figured I could teach myself how. I wanted a challenge, so at 53, I signed up for my first triathlon.
To hold myself accountable, I told everyone I knew that I entered the triathlon. Then, I started practicing the distances of the triathlon events and got to work. Cycling was my strongest event, so I bought a nicer race bike and increased my mileage to build endurance. I also joined a masters swim club to improve my swimming form and boost endurance. However, running is where the real challenge came: At first, I couldn’t even run one lap around a track (roughly a quarter mile). But over the next nine months, I increased my distance and worked my way up to the 10k.
On race day, I was the oldest woman there, and I was so excited to compete. My goal wasn’t to win or break a record, but I wanted to cross the finish line – and that’s exactly what I did. I won a first place gold medal for my age group, and was officially bitten by the triathlon bug.
Today, at 87, I’ve competed in 200 triathlons, at least six marathons and tons of half-marathons (I stopped counting), six half-Ironmans, and one Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawaii. I’ve competed in 25 national triathlon championships and came in first place in eight of them, and I placed first in five of my 20 world triathlon championships. When I was 67, I became the first-known athlete to compete in a triathlon in all 50 states. I’ve also been awarded All-American status at least three times.
I haven’t decided if I’ll compete in another race because 200 feels like a good number to stop at, but I still train every day because I love it and regular exercise makes me feel my best. Here are the five most important fitness habits I’ve learned since beginning my triathlon journey at 53.
