What these Kiwis do to stay fit and healthy in their 80s and 90s

Owner of handmade gifts and furniture store Buana Satu on Karangahape Rd. She first opened in 1991 and has been at the store’s current location since 1996.

There’s a lot of people about my age often looking around K Rd, shopping, and they stop and have a chat. I have a lot of conversations with people, and I think that’s a good connection to have. It keeps your brain ticking over.

I go to bed quite late, because I’m a late sleeper. We don’t open until 11. We have a nice quiet cruisy morning and then we close at 5, so the hours are reasonably short.

My sleep is good, because I can get up quite leisurely at 9, have breakfast and walk here. It takes 10 minutes.

My husband’s saying, “When are you going to retire?”. I go, “Not yet”, because my health is fine. I don’t have any health issues. Just a sore knee, but it’s getting better because I’m using it and walking to work every day and back. You have to move things, otherwise they get even stiffer.

I have acupuncture from time to time. I tried the gym but I overdid it. It made my knee sore, so I stopped.

I do crosswords every day. I used to read a lot when I was young. Now I don’t, though my eyes are okay. I mostly watch TV in the evenings. I like watching quiz shows, answering the questions. The Chase is my favourite. It’s amazing how many things I can remember because I read such a lot back in the day ... the brain is amazing.

I eat a lot of fresh, green vegetables. I always have salads with my food. I have salmon every morning on my toast for breakfast. My blood pressure’s slightly high, but I haven’t had to have any medication for it.

I was drinking quite a lot until I got to about 80 ... so I cut back, and then I cut it off completely. Once I stopped drinking I got a lot healthier. I make hot ginger drinks from fresh ginger, I have turmeric.

I think I’m blessed with good genes. My mother was 99 when she passed, but she suffered from arthritis from about the age I am now. I’ve worked hard to try and keep everything intact. If I have to [have a knee operation] I would. I’m fortunate I haven’t had to go there yet.

Leigh Elder, 83

A former PE teacher, health coach and author of Don’t Act Your Age: Living Younger Can Be Age-Defying. He lives in a retirement village in Devonport.

I wake up, do a couple of stretches in bed, [have] breakfast, then I’ll do about 20 minutes of stretches after breakfast. [My wife] and I walk around Devonport every day. It’s got a couple of big hills which we really love, North Head and Mount Vic.

A couple of afternoons a week I play golf. I play a bit of snooker. Pretty much every day I lift weights and do resistance training. I do 50 press-ups a day, and I do biceps curls, triceps curls, flies and more stretches. I do a lot of balance work on a wobble board.

As you grow older, your movements become more limited. I try to take that in the opposite direction.

My doctor, when I was about 68, was hassling me about my blood pressure. At that stage I thought I was invincible. Nothing was going to happen to me. He said, “You need to get [that hernia] fixed, because it’s not going to get better”. In the same week I’d had a colonoscopy, and the surgeon said I had to have a quarter of [my] bowel out.

It was a defining moment. I’ve always hated the idea of growing old. [Previously] owning a rest home validated that – people came in in their mid-60s, needing to leave their house, needing full care.

I thought, “How am I going to spend the rest of my life? I’ll try and live like somebody 20 years younger.” It’s been a great challenge and focus for me.

I wouldn’t have it any other way. A couple of games of golf, a game of bridge, a game of snooker ... a bit of socialising, that does me.

I’m on blood pressure medication but that’s pretty much it. I’m proactive on trying to stay ahead of things.

What I do every day, the stretching and the exercise and the hydrating and climbing up hills – some people would think is boring, but it’s that boring consistency that you’re going to find with adults living well into their 90s.

Former office worker who lives in Whangārei. She started playing tennis in her 50s and learned how to play pickleball at 84.

[I started playing pickleball] six or seven years ago. One of my grandsons married a girl [who] was a great pickleball player, and I had never heard of it. She said, “Grandma, you must get into pickleball”. I’ve been going ever since.

On Thursdays I play tennis, and on Mondays and Wednesdays I play pickleball. I’ve got a lot of energy and I’ve got to use it that way. I feel I’m achieving something and meeting a lot of people.

[I’m] one of eight children. My parents were farmers. We had to do a lot of work on the farm and always had to be busy, so we continued that on through life.

I do a lot of walking, at least 45 minutes a day ... sometimes I go with friends, other times I’m happy to make my own pace. Some people say, “She doesn’t walk, she runs”. I don’t run, but I like to go at a good pace.

I’m still in the family home. My husband died just gone nine years ago, so I’m here on my own now. I can go out and get company whenever I want and have my sport to keep me entertained. I watch tennis and rugby.

I’ve got a big section to look after... it keeps me out of mischief. I’d been mowing my own lawns until about six weeks ago when my youngest son decided, “No, Mum, I’m doing them now”.

I’m in a two-storey house, so I’m up and down the stairs all the time. People say when you get older, you should consolidate and get in a smaller [house]. I don’t agree with that. I’ve got more room to move around.

Don’t think of yourself as being old. It’s a mindset. Enjoy doing what you’re doing. I think it keeps you healthy. I keep regular contact with the family, keep in contact with people. Sport is a great way to do it.

Make the most of every day and be thankful. Every day you wake up, it’s a good day.

Click here to read article