At 45, DeEtte Sauer was a dead woman walking. She was morbidly obese, her heart disease so serious a doctor warned her to expect “an event at any time.” Eaten up by her marketing career, struggling to raise three kids, she smoked, drank and never, ever exercised. Sauer remembers a vacation when - at 165cm and 105kg - she couldn't make it onto a small boat for a day out with her family. “That's when it hit me. I was an elected cripple. I had done it to myself.”
45歲那年，狄艾特．沙爾已經有如活死人，命在旦夕。她有嚴重的心臟病，醫生警告她要有心理準備，「隨時可能出事」。為了撫養3個孩子，她的身體被行銷工作搞垮，她抽菸喝酒而且從不運動。沙爾還記得有一次去度假，她當時身高165公分，體重卻有105公斤，使她無法和家人一起搭小船出遊。「這時我突然醒悟，我自作孽，已經形同殘廢。」
She got busy, slowly shedding the weight through sensible eating and exercise. She began to walk around her Houston neighborhood, then she discovered the pool. Now 69, the woman who once had a supermom complex is a competitive, medal-winning senior swimmer. “It literally saved my life,” Sauer said, adding that her best event is the butterfly - a stroke she learned at age 62. （AP）
她開始忙著健身，透過合理的飲食和運動慢慢減輕體重。一開始，她在德州休士頓住家附近健行，後來她發現了游泳池。這個過去一度有超級媽媽情結的女人，如今已 69歲，而且蛻變為求勝心切、屢次拿到獎牌的高齡泳將。沙爾說：「這的確救我一命。」並稱自己最拿手的強項是62歲那年才學會的蝶式。
（右圖／美聯社）
To trainers with lots of clients well beyond 50, Sauer is the holy grail, somebody who works hard and efficiently, taking care to avoid injury while maintaining motivation, strength and endurance through careful workouts. Getting fit later in life is one thing, they said, but staying that way at 60, 70 and 80 is another. “Going from running to walking, going from the treadmill to the elliptical as we age. It can be really frustrating, mentally debilitating,” said Chris Freytag, a yoga and Pilates instructor and contributing fitness editor for Prevention magazine. “Even for me. I'm 45 and I can just see it coming. There's going to be some wear and tear. That doesn't mean I have to give up, but I have to make some changes.”
對手下有大批年過50客戶的教練來說，沙爾有如「聖杯」：她努力健身，績效卓著，同時注意避免運動傷害，並透過精心鍛鍊維持動力、體力和耐力。俗話說，年紀漸長時，運動健身是一回事，但要在60、70、80歲時還能保養得當，則是另一回事。「隨著年齡增加，從跑步改成走路，從跑步機改為橢圓機，的確很令人沮喪和提不起勁。」瑜伽和彼拉提斯健身教練兼《預防》雜誌特約健身編輯克莉絲．佛利塔說：「我也不例外，我今年45歲，已能預見老之將至。總是會有些耗損，但這並不意味著我必須放棄，但我是得做些改變。」
Back, hips, knees, balance, cardio - all can be trouble spots and big blows to a positive attitude for seniors, said Freytag and fitness expert Denise Austin. At 53, she has a new book out in January, “Get Energy!” Pilates and yoga are great ways to stay strong and flexible beyond 50 because both can be easily modified, the experts said. Austin said, “As you age, your spine is your lifeline. Keep it healthy, keep it strong. As we age we lose flexibility and it's really important to our tendons and ligaments to stay pliable and keep all the fluids in our joints going.”
背部、臀部、膝蓋、平衡、心肺都可能會出問題，這對積極面對人生的老人可能是一大打擊，佛利塔和健身專家丹妮絲．奧斯汀說，今年 53歲的奧斯汀1月甫出新書《獲得能量！》。專家指出，對年過50的人，彼拉提斯和瑜伽是繼續保持強壯靈活的最佳運動，因為兩者都很容易修正。奧斯汀說：「人老了，脊椎是你的命脈，要注意保持它健康強勁。隨著年紀增長，我們會逐漸失去彈性，最重要的是要保持肌腱和韌帶柔軟，並確保關節液不致流失。」
She suggests increasing floor work to take pressure off the knees. Can't touch your toes anymore? Use an elastic band for the same stretch, or to replace weight training that might grow dangerous. Arthritis can make gripping difficult at a time when tissue is losing elasticity, which might mean giving up heavy free weights in each hand or on an overhead press. “The technique isn't there anymore, it falls down and they hurt a shoulder. I've seen it a million times before,” Austin said.
她建議加強地板運動以減輕膝蓋壓力。再也搆不到腳趾頭了嗎？不妨使用鬆緊帶拉筋或換掉可能增加風險的重量訓練。在組織失去彈性時，關節炎可能使抓力訓練更困難，這可能意味著你得放棄雙手舉沉重的槓鈴或肩上推舉。奧斯汀說：「技術已經不到位，它會掉下來，使肩膀受傷。我親眼目睹不下一百萬次。」
Taking the time to stretch, to reopen joints and muscles after a workout, is increasingly important as we age - particularly crucial at 60, 70 or older, Freytag said. She recommends at least five to 10 minutes of stretching after a workout, when the muscles are warm. Warming up BEFORE a workout is key to balance. For running seniors, Austin suggests five minutes of walking before getting into a gradual run, or intervals of walking and running. “It's very important as you age to change it up more, to surprise your muscles and work them differently,” she said.
佛利塔說，隨著年齡增長，健身後得花點時間伸展，尤其要拉拉關節和肌肉，60、70歲以上的長者更要注意。她建議，運動後肌肉還溫暖時，至少要做5至10分鐘伸展操。健身前做好暖身運動是保持身體平衡的關鍵。對想慢跑的老年人，奧斯汀建議先步行5分鐘再慢慢起跑，或邊走邊跑步。她說：「年長後，最重要的是做點調適改變，喚醒肌肉，分別鍛鍊。」
Balance issues don't have to put an end to staying fit. Work out in a chair or use one to lean on if you're feeling unsteady. Freytag said, “In a gym, there's a huge trend toward functional training, meaning doing things that kind of mimic the functionality of your daily activities.” She called “balance a use it or lose it” proposition. “There are so many classes at gyms for folks over 60,” she said. “The biggest thing for people who are athletes already is not to stop and think about the fact that you're going to train smarter. It's just that you have to change.”
平衡問題不一定得終結健身運動，你可以在椅子上運動，如果還是覺得身體重心不穩，可斜靠在椅子上。佛利塔說：「健身房有一大趨勢就是功能訓練，意指大體模仿日常活動機能。」她提出「平衡感不用就會喪失」的論點：「很多健身房為年逾耳順的長者開班授課，對那些常運動的人，最重要的是不要停下腳步，想想你要的是智慧型訓練，只要作些改變就行了。」
At 93, Esther Robinson wouldn't give up her life of fitness for anything. Active all her life, she still hits her local gym （“I like to bench press”）, but dancing is something she can enjoy with others. “When I was 60 or something, I got into square dancing,” the great-grandmother said. “I like the music and the movement of it.” Take a page from Sauer's story and hit the pool. “Swimming is easy on the joints. You'll keep your love of sports.” This Dec. 16, 2010 photo shows Julie Green, left, 58, as she helps her mother Robinson, right, during a workout in Houston.
93歲的艾絲特．羅賓森老太太無論如何都不肯放棄健身運動。她這一生都處於激活狀態，至今仍上當地健身房（「我超愛臥凳推舉」），舞蹈則是她可以和別人分享的運動。已經當曾祖母的羅賓森說：「我60歲左右學會方塊舞，因為我很喜歡那種音樂和舞蹈動作。」她向沙爾的池畔故事取經，也下水游泳。「游泳時關節不用太出力就可以繼續運動。」在這張2010年12月16日攝於休士頓的照片中（上圖／美聯社），左為58歲的茱莉葉．葛林，正在幫母親羅賓森健身。