The term "middle age" is most often frightening, especially if you’re an athlete, because it usually denotes a certain conclusion of one phase of your life, usually the most physically active phase. A lot of times, regret starts to set in, and men, in particular, often wonder what they’ve done with their lives, if they spent too much or too little time doing what they have. Add to this the inability to run as fast, jump as high and recover as quickly, and you have a really scary and unavoidable situation to face.
Some of the things we start dreaming about having again when we’re over 40 (and actually some guidelines to being fit at any age) are:
A thin, lean waistline (Tell me about it!)
A better sex life (No complaints here, actually.)
Impressive muscularity (Reminder to self: go back to the gym.)
High energy and stamina (Can I take a nap first?)
Increased mental alertness (You were saying something?)
A stronger heart (Just listen to loud music, you’ll feel your heart jump.)
Reduced biological age (Does not include plastic surgery.)
A powerful immune system (Achoo!)
More zest for life. (How about that nap?)
As always, I looked to sports for guidance, and found plenty of people my age who were still doing remarkable things on the world stage.
Just last July 5, the indefatigable Martina Navratilova announced that Wimbledon 2006 would be her last tournament and by the end of the 2006 season (after she reached the age of 50), she would retire from doubles play. The following day, the former Czech played her last-ever match at Wimbledon, losing in mixed doubles to the eventual champions, Israel’s Andy Ram and Russia’s Vera Zvonareva in the third round. Earlier that day, Navratilova lost her women’s doubles quarterfinal match against Chinese fourth seeds Zi Yan and and Jie Zheng, who also became the champions. Navratilova capped off her career by winning the mixed doubles title at the 2006 US Open with Bob Bryan for her 41st Grand Slam doubles title (31 in women’s doubles and 10 in mixed doubles) and 177th overall. The only Grand Slam mixed doubles title that eluded her since her return was the French Open.
On Novermber 30, 2003, the 40-year old Karl Malone, then already a Los Angeles Laker, became the oldest NBA player to post a triple-double. He tallied 10 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists in just 26 minutes against the San Antonio Spurs. On April 25, 2004, the Mailman recorded a 30-point, 13-rebound performance at Houston, to become the oldest player in playoff history to score more than 30 points in a game, and only the second player over 40 to tally 30-plus in a postseason contest (next to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar). There have been other NBA players who stayed on or returned to action well after their 40th birthdays: Abdul-Jabbar, Bob Cousy, Robert Parish, not to mention Dikembe Mutombo and Kevin Willis.
Although I am loathe to use the word "geezer" when referring to my age group, GeezerJock magazine (www.seniorjournal.com), "the first Masters sports and fitness magazine to cover the spectrum of competitive athletics for people 40 and over", consistently names outstanding older athletes who have some mind-boggling achievements. Some of their entries include:
• Lois Nochman, an 80-plus swimmer from Michigan. Growing up in the 1930’s and 1940’s, Nochman was taught that it was "not appropriate" for women to be athletic. Although her brother swam in college, she was discouraged from playing sports.
Nochman entered her first competition in 1987. Between 1994 and 2000, the grand old lady set no fewer than 38 world records, and currently holds all the world records in the 50-meter, 100-meter, and 200-meter butterfly in the women’s 80-84 age group.
•¨Trent Lane of Louisiana, an 80-plus track athlete. Lane is 95 years old, and can throw the javelin 68 feet and the discus 52 feet. The farmer currently holds five USA track and field age group records in throwing events. He’s not getting the records just by showing up, since he also flies his own single-engine airplane and is purusing his PhD in physics. Physics!
All this is well and good, but perhaps the biggest problem with age is not the physical deterioration (which takes some work to slow down or halt), but the mental and emotional fear of being older. We suddenly look back and wish we had done things differently, built better relationships, taken care of our health, traveled more, been kinder to people, and generally had more peace of mind.
The good news, to quote George Eliot, "It’s never too late to be what you might have been.