Margaret Webb

PRIME – April 2015 on her book, “Older, Faster, Stronger” and running away from aging By Debbie Gardner debbieg@thereminder.com In 2013, Canadian-born screenwriter, author and journalist Margaret Webb turned 50. Facing that milestone of middle age and inspired by women marathoners breaking records well into their 80s, Webb – then a recreational runner – set out to literally run her way into a younger self before her next birthday. Her goal – to compete in the half-marathon at the World Master’s Games in Turin, Italy the next year. Her dream – to demonstrate that it is possible to stall aging and stay strong throughout the second half of life. Webb dubbed her challenge “my superfit year” and chronicled her quest to tap into discoveries in the science of aging, exercise and sports psychology to achieve her goals in her book, “Older, Faster, Stronger: What Women Runners Can Teach Us All About Living Younger, Longer.” PRIME asked Web about her fitness journey and what it taught her. Here’s what she had to say. Q: At age 50, you set a goal of reaching peak fitness in a year. If you had to do it again, would you set the same pace? “I’m not sure what you mean – would I have started running seriously earlier in life or would I have slowed down or sped up my push to be super fit at 50? Yes, I wish I had started running seriously earlier. But I would recommend that anyone, at any age, make their fitness a priority. As for the pace I set during my super-fit year, I pushed hard but I listened to my body and went at a pace that was fun, not painful. My mantra is this: Why put off what you can start now, which is exercising to get fitter, faster, stronger, happier right now? Will you regret getting fitter? Never. You’ll love it. So why wait to give yourself that love?” Q: What was the most important thing you learned during your yearlong superfitness quest? “That being fit is an incredible gift that you can give to yourself. And, that it’s a gift you must keep on giving to yourself, so you really need to find things you enjoy doing, fitness wise, and then give yourself time and permission to do them! Q: Which one of the experts you contacted influenced you the most? Whose advice did you lean on the least? “Meeting 85-year-old world-record holding marathoner, BJ McHugh, at the Montreal Masters Study [a project conducted by McGill University researchers on how exercise was forestalling aging in older elite athletes] had a tremendous impact on me. It was my birthday – I was turning 51 – and felt that I had given myself an impossible gift, the wisdom of my years and the fitness and energy of a 20-something athlete. Then I looked at BJ and realized that, by many measures, she had the fitness of a 20-something woman, at age 85! And by many measures, she was fitter than me. Her example told me that the experts I met with were right – that perhaps as much as 75 to 80 percent of aging is due more to inactivity than aging. She really modeled what experts like Dr. Mark Tarnopolsky argue –that exercise stimulates bodily renewal at a cellular level. When it came to influence – everyone I met on my journey gave me some piece of advice or information that proved helpful but I didn’t go looking for miracle anti-aging cures like face creams or drugs or plastic surgery. There is no miracle. The miracle drug to stall aging isn't a drug at all – it’s exercise.” Q: There must have been disappointments along the way. What was the hardest thing to overcome? “Really, I had no disappointments, nothing I would change. I only fell short of one race goal but I set a massively huge goal and, had it not been for some brutal weather, I likely would have nailed it. It gave me a great story for my book; I considered subtitling my book, ‘The year of living miraculously.’ I achieved far more than I expected and had way more fun doing it than I ever dreamed possible. It’s not that I am amazing. It’s that getting fit gives us so many gifts – a big one being that we can truly be stronger, faster and younger than we can ever possibly imagine. It just takes persistence, work and finding ways to make exercise fun, so we enjoy doing it. Find something you love doing – whether dancing, hiking, cycling – and do it. ” Q: What personal “myth” did your fitness quest bust for you? “I had a lot of early success in my career, so I was often ‘the kid’ writer or editor at the table. When I was staring down 50, I had to admit I wasn’t a kid anymore; that I was, well, middle aged. The notion of getting older really freaked me out, and sparked this whole quest to see if I could turn back the clock. Then, towards the end of my journey, I invited four age-group world record holders to a lunch that I hosted with my running friends. The youngest was 77, the oldest 94. They arrived in a convertible sports car, dressed fabulously. They were in incredible shape, able to run marathons or sprint, travel to world masters games to compete, hike in the mountains with their adult grandchildren. They laughed a lot, enjoyed their wine at lunch, and still ran because they loved competing and loved moving. There was no complaining about aches or ailments, perhaps because they didn't suffer any. They just presented us with an incredibly positive image of aging and showed me that, really, if we exercise to renew our bodies, there's nothing to be afraid of. We can be ‘the kid’ into advanced years.” Q: What piece of advice would you pass on to others seeking to improve their fitness at middle age? “START RIGHT NOW! It’s a major project, so gather support around you. Get the help you need whether it’s a nutritionist, personal trainer, running coach, running club or health psychologist. It doesn’t have to be hugely expensive. You can trade services, go to free fitness programs. But whatever you spend, it will ultimately be cheaper than early onset aging, disease and disability. Why wait until you get sick to gather a medical team around you? Embark on your journey now and give yourself as many energetic, vigorous years as possible.” Webb’s book, “Older Faster, Stronger: What Women Runners Can Teach Us All About Living Younger, Longer” is available through Amazon.com, BooksAMillion.com , as a paperback or ebook through Barnes & Noble.com. The book is also available in print at bookstores nationwide.