About a fortnight ago, the women’s Ironman World Championship took place. This triathlon consists of a 2.4 mile ocean swim, a 112 mile bike ride followed by a full marathon, 26.2 miles. All done in temperatures approaching 30C and high humidity. The two leaders both dropped out on the run, most likely due to the conditions. One lady didn’t drop out though; she was Natalie Grabow and she is 80 years old.
Later the same week I was at a bus stop where some ladies, also in their 80s were talking. They were not talking about sporting endeavours though, they were talking about their ailments and upcoming doctors’ appointments. It was a familiar, if slightly sad, soundtrack to ageing.
The contrast could not have been more stark.
These are two very different pictures of ageing. One defined by medical appointments and declining independence, the other by resilience, energy, and achievement. While not all of us will ever line up for an Ironman, Natalie’s story shows us what’s possible when fitness and health are made a priority.
The truth is, we do have a choice. Of course, genetics and luck play their part, but lifestyle—exercise, nutrition, sleep, and social connection—has a far greater impact than you may realise. The women at the bus stop didn’t get there overnight; it was the cumulative effect of years, even decades, of habits. The same applies to Natalie, but her habits were years of consistency, training, and commitment.
We don’t all need to race triathlons, but the choices we make now and over the coming years, will decide whether you will be a fit or active person, or one who discusses the next ailment that has afflicted you.
Even that phrase, afflicted, makes it sound as though you are a victim of circumstance. Natalie wasn’t lucky that she completed that triathlon, in the same way that the bus stop ladies were not unlucky, both made a choice, the difference was that one was a conscious choice, to get fit, whereas the other choice was to not look after your health and fitness.
You have a choice, what will you choose?