In this episode, I talk about the stereotypes about age that we face everyday through the news, on the internet, and all around us. Focusing on the fact that age is no limit to what you can do and what you can achieve.
I discuss:
- Youth Obsessed Society
- Women Over 40 Are Told What They Can’t Do
- Age Restricting Us From Starting New Things
- Benefits Of Athletic Aging
...and more!
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Here are some highlights:
Youth Obsessed Society At Any Cost
“We live in a society that is obsessed with youth, especially when it comes to women,” Robin said. “That's just how it is. We see it in the entertainment industry when actresses feel pressure to maintain an impossibly youthful appearance at all costs. We see it in commercials for age defying beauty products. We see it in the airbrush images and magazines. It's everywhere it bombards us.
And so we grow up with the idea that aging for women is scary. Aging should be avoided, it should be defied. Aging is not a thing that should be celebrated, but what we're not told is that midlife and beyond can be some of the best years of our lives. That there's so much we can do, achieve, and experience in these years, if we choose not to fall prey to what is expected of us during this time in our lives.”
Stereotypes About Women Online And From Friends
“First is you see them in articles online all the time. I recently did an Instagram post about it, and I just did a Google search for things women over 40 should stop doing now. Article, after article, after article came up and they're often these ‘listacles’, but you see them often enough, you start believing them. Or you think they're written by someone who's actually an expert in this type of stuff and not someone hired to compile a ‘listacle’ that may or may not be valid. Some examples of this are exercises women over 40 should stop doing now, or foods women over 40 should stop eating now, or things women over 40 should stop wearing now.”
Don’t Let Family Let You Feel Like You Can’t Handle It
“People may view that as a bit extreme and maybe some ill advised family members might say, not mine particularly, but yours or friends, like they don't understand, they just don't understand it. So they might wonder if you're going too far,” Robin said. “If you're doing things that are gonna get you hurt, that's usually the concern. It’s like, are you concerned about her? Are you concerned about injury? You're getting kind of older, are you concerned about that stuff? And it's like, ‘No, I'm not.’ You know, because I exercise, I train, and I eat in a way that supports this activity. I recover in a way that supports this activity. I do the things I need to do so that I can do what I love doing, because I really love doing this stuff. So I have chosen to live in a way that supports it. No, I am not a hardcore clean eater, I love my ice cream, but I also feel the effects of it the next day. So that happens, but more often than not, I live in a way that supports this activity because it brings me joy. It makes me happy and we are worthy and deserving of joy and happiness. So that's why it's important to not get hung up on the opinions of friends and the opinions of family members. In fact, on the other side, it's more important than ever to surround yourself with people who do support what you're doing.”
Stereotype That It Is Too Late To Start Something New
“On to the next stereotype, it is too late to try something new,” Robin said. “You are told to do this thing; To try running, to try a new sport, to lift heavy weight, or to do something that feels adventurous. It's too late for you. Okay, that's a stereotype that we need to let go of now. All you have to do is go back and listen to past episodes of this podcast and you will get example after example, after example of people who decided to try something outside of their comfort zone later in life. Having never done it before and having that open up a whole new world for them.”
Having An Advantage Starting Later In Life
“It's never too late. Now, we all start where we are,” Legat said. “If you want to run a marathon, it might be difficult to step out the front door and run a marathon if you haven't been training for it. It's important to ramp yourself up and trust that where you are is where you're meant to be but that you can grow. You can absolutely grow and expand, and that if you have never run before, it's not too late for you to start running.”
“I've also heard stories in this podcast where people who have not grown up running have an advantage because they have not been beating themselves up running on pavement for decades. They're just starting with it. So they have that advantage. So you never know what is possible for yourself, but if you think it's too late, you will never find out. So it is time to ditch that stereotype. You can achieve big bold things in your life, no matter how old you are. No matter what your fitness background is, you absolutely can. It starts with having that desire.”
Success Is Not Just For The Young
“I wanna share some examples of people who started new things in their 40s and beyond, just to give you a little bit of inspiration, some actual stories of inspiration,” Robin said. “Vera Wang started her own company at age 40. Toni Morrison didn't write her first novel until she was 40. Julia Child didn't write her first cookbook until she was 50. Mother Theresa won the Nobel Peace Prize at age 69. I ran my first marathon at age 45, I like to share my story. A woman named Gladys Burrell started running at age 84. She earned the world record as the oldest woman to run a marathon when she ran the Honolulu marathon at age 92. Sidenote: Now I need to get her on the podcast.”
“So these are mostly famous names and real success stories that are not just about fitness. Not just about athletic endeavors, of course, that is what I talk about all the time. Expanding your horizons to one area can open doors and open up confidence into other areas. I'm talking about people who started businesses, wrote books, earned the Nobel Peace Prize and of course ran a marathon in their 90s. There are no limits, if you open yourself up and you allow yourself to believe that there are no limits. Success is not just for the young. Opportunity is not just for the young.”
We Are Trained To Think We Need To Take It Easy As We Age
“We are trained to think that as we get older, we become a little more frail, we become weaker, we lose muscle and we lose bone,” Legat said. “Which is a thing that happens, so therefore, we need to take it easy. But the opposite is true, the recommended activity for us as we age is to lift heavier weight because that will strengthen our muscles, that will strengthen our bones, and that will strengthen us to be able to then do bigger, bolder things. Do the things that we want to live a vital, active, fun and joyous life! But we don't. We don't need to take it easy. There are things we can do in practice that we can implement to make it possible to go as hard as you want for years and decades to come. These practices include regular exercise, of course, start where you are and build from there. If you haven’t exercised in a long time, it doesn't mean you can't get started. Start with a couple of days a week. Start building your conditioning and then expand to more days and expand to harder things. We have that capacity.”
Age Like An Athlete
“That's really what I'm all about here, is that you can age like an athlete,” Robin said. “That's my whole philosophy behind the concept of athletic aging, which I'm really trying to promote. I just want to drop the definition of athletic aging. It's something I created, and I think it really applies here. Athletic aging promotes the participation in mentally and physically challenging activities at any age, socio economic status or fitness background, leading to increases in physical fortitude, mental strength and emotional empowerment. Let's break that down a little bit.
Athletic aging promotes a participation in mentally and physically challenging activities at any socio economic status or fitness background; That means whatever that means for you. Whatever your age is, whatever your status is, it means you can participate in these activities. Financial status doesn't get in the way of that. Running is free. Walking is free. Movement is free. With a fitness background, you don't have to step out of the gate and be a marathon runner or run obstacle races. You can ramp your way up. You create mentally and physically challenging activities means what it means for you at any age, and what happens with it. It leads to increases in physical fortitude, obviously mental strength, which helps you face other challenges that you might face as you age. You are more mentally strong and emotionally empowered, which is so, so important at any age, but especially as we get an older.”
Stepping Outside Of Your Comfort Zone
“For some reason, the transition of women between 30s, 40s and 50s is very drastic in these drawings, images and comparisons,” Legat said. “That's what we see. It is what has shown been shown to us, but now becoming older doesn't mean you have to become a weak or more frail version of yourself. Instead by stepping outside of your comfort zone at any age, you can become both physically and mentally stronger. Not only that, but you can step into newfound confidence that can radiate into all areas of your life.”
Not Letting Stereotypes Discourage You
“When you see that article pop up on your Facebook feed that's telling you, ‘Here are exercises you need to stop doing now because you're over 40,’ you can laugh it off,” Robin said. “You can stop having that moment where you're like, ‘Oh, maybe I should stop doing that.’ You could just write it off. Or when someone in your family doesn't understand what you do and wonders if you're gonna hurt yourself, you can explain to them why it's so important to you and maybe encourage them to try something for themselves.
When you have that moment where you're like, ‘I'm too old to try this thing,’ remember what I said and brush that off. Or when you have that moment where you're like, ‘You know, maybe I need to pull back. Maybe I need to take it easy. Maybe I need to do something a little more mellow or a little more gentle, even though I want to do this other thing.’ Maybe you can kind of step away from that a little bit. That's what I hope you get out of this episode today, is just a greater ability to let go of those stereotypes. Starting with the ability to be more aware of when they're happening and understanding that they are just stereotypes. They are not rules that you have to live by. You can make your own rules for how you age and how you live. Because you know what, it's time to forget about aging gracefully, and it's time to think about aging powerfully.”
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