Boomer's Journal - Exercising lessons

By Rachel Barduson of Alexandria

In the 1970s, when I was in my early 20s, I decided to become a jogger. Yes, I would take up the new exercise rage – jogging. I remember it well. I would soon graduate from college and I was about to begin a new chapter in my life.  And I could feel myself aging.  Of course, I wanted to stay current on new things, so becoming a jogger seemed to be the right thing to do.  It would be the answer to preserving my youth.

It was a memorable week.

With tube-socks and Adidas in place, I started my new regiment of jogging every day by running around the block.

I hated every minute of it.

My Adida-clad feet took the steps, but my heart wasn’t in it. It wasn’t long until I retired the jogging idea. If I really wanted to retain my youthful figure and cardio health, I would exercise in another way.

In the ‘80s, the fitness gurus began to emerge. In this chapter of my life, age-related hormones seemed to dictate everything. Richard Simmons and Jane Fonda emerged as possible answers for my desire to stay fit and retain and build muscle tone. Suzanne Somers and the thigh master was the answer. Staying fit would become fun as I followed celebrity workouts on TV or my VCR.

My husband Jim and I on our first paddleboard outing. This was August 2024, one of my favorite pictures of him and I. Contributed photo

I soon found out that doing celebrity workouts was not enough. Even with those fitness “tapes” available at Gibson’s Discount Store, I needed to find an additional answer to my fitness needs, even though I realized that honestly, I really didn’t like to exercise.

I would further my pursuit of fitness and become a gym rat. Leotard-clad, I headed to the nearest gym of the day in whatever small town provided it. I followed the leaders, went with my friends, and pretended to feel confident... and I pretended to enjoy my gym membership. I realized I wasn’t a gym rat after all. I didn’t like to exercise with other people in the room. Who was I trying to impress? I realized I wasn’t doing any of this for myself, I was just trying to keep up with everyone else. I was too self-conscious, so honestly, I had to admit to myself that I just preferred to do some kind of exercise by myself.

I would exercise at home. Bonnie Tyler’s “Total Eclipse of the Sun” would be my fitness theme song – I could do slow-motion workouts or speed up my motions, or run, or march in place – all in total rhythm to the best song of the day. Olivia Newton John’s “Let’s Get Physical” would get me going. Bonnie Tyler provided another song – “I Need a Hero” – and I was off and running. Well, not running, but you get the idea. Thank goodness for the movie Footloose and its soundtrack. I’d push “play” on my boombox and lift those knees high and higher. “Work up a sweat!” I told myself. I loved the music, but hated every minute of the “exercise routine” that I had created for myself. Maybe I should just dance.

I wore out the cassette tape, but I never really worked up a sweat.

The challenge became “to exercise or not to exercise,” as Shakespeare wrote “to be or not to be – that is the question.” I could talk myself out of doing a sit-up in my living room faster than I could eat a chocolate covered peanut.

Meanwhile, softball and bowling leagues would provide some movement. I would “stay fit” in leagues. Too much bench time and sitting between innings, frames, and empty calories during the games may have contributed to not seeing any results in the “staying fit” purpose in this chapter of my life. Sigh.

However, on a positive note, exercise and staying fit wasn’t all about the number of sit-ups I could do, or would want to do. I was active in many other ways. Therefore, finding the perfect fit in how to stay fit wasn’t on my mind constantly. Life, daily living, just continued as it does for everyone and, decades later, here I am today. As I look back, at least I kept trying. Whether it was jogging or exercise tapes on my VCR – and I can admit that I wasn’t a success with any of them. And that’s okay. Even with the ups and downs of life, I’m still standing.

I am now in a new chapter of staying fit and living in “the 70s” – as in, I’m now in my mid-70s. I keep trying new things, or old things. I’ve learned how to take time for brisk walks. My husband and I made a habit of walking together every night. Walking, at a pace that fit both of us, became our thing. Finding new places for those walks became our thing. Now, in his passing, I continue to walk alone and reflect on a life that once was while making plans for more years to come. I don’t look at my walks as exercise as much as I look at them as “my time.” It’s more about mental health with movement. Taking the time to do it. At least I’m “moving.”

Now in my 70s, I love the swimming pool provided in my community. I love the water more than any other thing in the realm of exercising. And for me, it’s not even so much about exercising as it is about movement and motion and the wonderful feeling that my muscles and my knees and my hips and my arms can all still “do it.” I feel my brain working and my spirit being lifted. Maybe I do too much thinking while I’m in the water, but at least I’m in my happy place. The difference now, from earlier times in my life, is that I don’t feel the need to prove anything to anyone. I enjoy the solitude I find in the water.

Yet, I still seek challenges. A few years ago, I took up a new trend. My daughter introduced me to the stand-up paddleboard – the SUP. Thank goodness for new ideas, “trends,” and the desire to still take risks (and kids who believe in me).

I was pretty sure I couldn’t do it – stand up on a paddleboard – but my daughter told me otherwise and convinced me that I could. Not knowing that she was recording my first try with her phone, I managed to stand up and feel confident enough to paddle along quietly over the surface of a smooth lake. My husband was there to cheer me on. It was thrilling.

Today, my SUP provides me not only a test in balance every time I take it out on the lake, but it provides me a connection to nature, a time for reflection and gratitude for life. It has taught me to slow down. I don’t always have to stand up on my paddleboard. It’s okay to sit or lay on my SUP and just enjoy the quiet and closeness to nature. It’s made me realize that I don’t always have to be in motion, and it’s okay to relax. It’s taught me about taking risks, and it’s taught me a few things about myself. I am hearing whispers that “this is what retirement is all about” – all on my own time and timetable.

I’m proud to say that the fear of admitting I tried different things without success didn’t stop me from trying “the next new thing” after all. Looking back at all of my attempts at different things in the exercise world as well as in my general well-being,  I realize that I didn’t give up when something didn’t work out. I learned a lot about my inner soul. I know where my “happy place” is. I CAN imagine aging gracefully after all, and the only person responsible for how I will write my next chapter is – me.