Those words were spoken at a press conference on Tuesday by Diana Nyad, that's 64-year old Diana Nyad, who became the first person to swim the 110 miles from Cuba to Florida without a shark cage, a 53-hour record-setting swim.
Nyad became the latest 'aging' athlete, who has successfully expanded the age barrier, proving to us all that age is, indeed, a state of mind.
Lost in the tragedy of the 2013 Boston Marathon was, perhaps, the performance of the day. And it came 30 years to the day when a young women from Maine smashed the women's marathon world record at the 1983 Boston Marathon, with a time of 2:22:43. The first women's Olympic Women's Marathon Champion, Joan Benoit Samuelson crushed the record back in 1983, and this year she did it again. At age 55, she ran a time of 2:50:29. That placed her 47th among ALL women in the race.
Healthy Americans are living, and competing, longer. We are, indeed, breaking new ground. Endurance sports are well-suited to us as we age, as fast-twitch muscle fibers are difficult to preserve later in life. Not too long ago, many folks retired from their jobs, and retired from competition as well. Today, many retirees look forward to an empty nest at home, free from the rigors of a daily job. The reason: they now have more time to train. "Boomers," those who started competing during America's first running boom, are now in their 50s, 60s, and 70s. They are running faster, later into their lives, than any previous generation.
In my book, "Running Shorts: A Collection of Stories and Advice for Anyone Who Has Ever Laced Up a Pair of Running Shoes," I wrote a chapter, entitled, "Aging." In it, I compared aging runners to aging baseball pitchers. We can no longer rely on our fastball. Rather, we have to be smart and creative in our training. Generally, our warm up period is a little longer, and stretching becomes more important than ever. Rest days become more frequent, and working on total body fitness is essential. Lifting weights, and a moderate amount of cross training is advisable.
Diana Nyad's Tuesday press conference was right on the mark.
"It's not so much the physical," she said. "To my mind all of us...we mature emotionally...and we get stronger mentally because we have a perspective on what this life is all about."
She went on to say, "It's more emotional. I feel calmer. I feel that the world isn't going to end if I don't make it. And I'm not so ego-involved: 'What are people going to think of me.?' I'm really focused on why I want to do it."
Aging athletes need to realize that the race times of their prime years are behind them. They need to adjust and adapt. If the 5K distance is one's strength, stick with it. If the long, grinding pace of a marathon is more your style, then focus your training on that event. It is great to beat the youngsters, but, these days, one should focus more on age-division honors.
In October, I'll go on the road, speaking at marathon expos around the country. I'll appear at the Twin Cities, Atlantic City, and Niagara Falls International marathons. One of my topics will be: 'Advice for running in your 50s and 60s.'
In my speech, I stress some of the things I mentioned above, but I also talk about keeping that youth as we age. One sure-fire way to do it is to train with younger runners. Today I ran with several young runners from my Penn State Schuylkill cross country team. The young people benefit from our sage-like advice, and we benefit from their youthful exuberance. It's amazing how, even after a few miles, how we have so much in common: our aches and pains, tales from our races, irate drivers, and snarling dogs.
Recently, I read a quote from James Patterson. He was asked if, and when, he plans to retire. His response was: "You retire from work."
Indeed, there is no retirement age in our sport. If I expire on a secluded trail, on a beach, or even on a busy road, I'll be alright with that. (as long as it happens about 40 years from now)
I would be remiss if I didn't close with the running world's greatest aging hero.
At age 70, Canada's Ed Whitlock went under 3 hours in the marathon. At age 80 he ran 3:15. At age 81 he ran a 1:38 half marathon.
As we run and as we age, let's all continue to chase Ed.
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