A famous quote attributed to Eleanor Roosevelt when she was in her 70s. I get it. Life is more exciting if we take ourselves out our comfort zone. And on a fairly regular basis I do things that scare me. Or at least make me feel nervous. I have climbed mountains in the dark, I lift heavy weights, I sign up for competitions. And in my work life I have been interviewed live on the BBC, ITV, Sky and Women’s Hour. Plus I given presentations in front of 100’s of people. 

Some of these things don’t go well. The poor interview, being responsible for a team coming last, not being able to lift the weight that was fairly easy the week before. But mostly taking myself out of my comfort zone is exhilarating. A buzz. And it is usually fun. Fun is something we should have in our life everyday. 

But I don’t do something that scares me every day. Did I ever? I know I have become more cautious where physical challenges are concerned. Is this my age or being on Warfarin? Possibly the latter. Certainly I bailed out of a obstacle race the weekend before I went on holiday as I didn’t want to be covered in bruises. I’d got some fairly impressive ones when I climbed the Welsh Peaks. 

I am now quite wary of water slides after bumping my head in one a few years ago. But I made myself do them on my last holiday even the one that was eliciting a lot of screaming. 

As one gets older there is a risk that our lives will become smaller. We don’t have to do things so we don’t do them. But by not doing them we limit our experiences. 

Our society dictates that as we age we should slow down but the evidence is strongly supportive of the complete opposite. If anything older people should be doing more to slow down the affects of ageing. The recommended 150 minutes of exercise per week should be nearer 300 minutes.  

I try not to conform but there is always the niggle that I’m being perceived as a bit odd for doing what I do. Am I being a bit of an inconvenience wanting to be included? And believe me in one gym I go to being a woman in the free weights section is too much for some of the men. Let alone an older woman. Fortunately I have the confidence to ignore them. But a newbie would not fare so well.

But back to doing something scary every day. This weekend I took part in another competition. One hosted by a gym I go to where the men are not emasculated by women deadlifting. Twelve teams of four. Two men and two women. Five events. 

When I signed up a few months ago it seemed a great idea. I started to question my sanity as the kick off got closer. I’d done the event twice before. It is hard. Both times I was in the losing team. So I didn’t have any great ambitions for this one. 

We came last. But the average age of our team was possibly twice that of the other eleven teams. So maybe it was inevitable. However fit you are at 60 year old you are no competition for a thirty year old. The thirty year old is at their physical peak. I’m 30 years into a decline. I think I’m doing a good job preserving what I have but one thing that cannot be stopped is the decline in my maximum heart rate. This has a huge impact in how hard you can push yourself. And is the change that brings to a close the career of the professional athlete. 

Is coming last a reason to hang up my trainers? Of course not. It is keeping me healthy. It is keeping me strong. It takes me out of my comfort zone. And it is fun. So bring on the next competition.