Ageing: You're never too old to learn, says Charles Eugster, aged 97

Charles Eugster started rowing in his 60s, body building in his 80s and sprinting at 97. He tells Margaret Jennings why he has become a ‘poster boy’ for ageing well.

Fri, 14 Apr, 2017 - 01:00

Margaret Jennings

HE claims he was “a balding, self -satisfied lump of lard” in his 40s, but took up competitive rowing at age 63 after his sedentary life building up a private dentistry practice and raising a family.

But despite winning 40 gold medals over the subsequent two decades at World Masters regattas, and staying super fit, rowing six days a week, Charles Eugster didn’t like what he saw in the mirror.

“Being vain I wanted to improve my appearance. I joined a body building club at the age of 87, hired a previous Mr Universe as a coach, lost 12 kilos and my body was completely rebuilt at the age of 90.”

As you can see from the recent picture of Charles, who will be 98 in July, he has become a sort of ‘poster boy’ not only for the benefits of strength training and staying fit, but for successful ageing in general.

Age is just a number for 97-year-old Charles Eugster, who believes the talent, experience and skills of the older generation should be better utilised. Picture: www.potoczna.com

At 95 he became a sprinter for the first time in his life, competing as a Masters athlete for Great Britain and setting multiple world records in his age group in races ranging from 60 meters to 400 meters.

But aside from the athletics, he continued practicing as a dentist in Zurich until the age of 75 and publishing a clinical dental newsletter until age 82.

“From 82 to 90, I was unemployed — which was most unpleasant,” he tells Feelgood.

“But at 90, after my body was rebuilt I was offered a paid job in a German Fitness group called INJOY. At 93 I learnt to become a speaker — my TEDx talk has had over 600,000 hits on YouTube.”

He started sprinting then at 95 and holds four British and two World Records and has three European and four World Championships under his belt.

Charles has another first to his name; he has just published a book (available on Amazon) called Age is Just a Number: What a 97-Year-Old Record Breaker Can Teach Us about Growing Older.

“The book is inexpensive, easy to read and could change your life,” he says. And who could argue with a man who is so supremely focused and passionate about challenging our concept of growing old?

His message is a shared socially conscious one, as well: “My interest is our future. I am determined to show that one can rebuild one’s body at any age, one can learn something new at any age and one can start a new life at any age.

“I want to change the world. If nothing is done, my grand-children and your children will live in poverty.

"The cost of pensions to the economy has reached such a mind boggling dimension that it is putting our financial future at risk, and dragging the world economy down,” says the grandfather of two.

“There are fewer and fewer workers to support an ever increasing number of dependants. The number of older dependants are not only increasing at rapid speed, but the length of time of dependency is continually increasing.

“At the same time the talents, experience and skills of those aged 65+ are thrown away. Retirement is simply forced or unforced unemployment.”

If the old were given the opportunity to retrain and have a job or profession the economy would benefit, he argues.

“Their health would improve and our health systems could be saved. Humans have been given an expiry date of 65. But in contrast to other materials, humans are not recycled. This is a serious mistake.”

When asked for some tips for mere youngsters, of 65+, he says: “At 65 you will have to make some of the most important decisions affecting your whole future life.

"Retirement is a chamber of horrors disguised as a holiday resort. Never retire. Retrain and constantly relearn.

“Restrict carbohydrates in your diet, increase protein. Try to find a sport you enjoy doing. First develop your strength before muscle building and later high-intensity interval training.

"To be healthy in old age you must preserve your muscles, the biggest metabolic organ of your body. They produce Myokines or messenger substances, that influence your whole body, one of which is BDNF, which affects the brain.

“Being overweight in old age is dangerous as you will have visceral fat as well as subcutaneous fat. Visceral fat causes permanent inflammation (inflammaging) and is a factor in promoting chronic disease.”

Charles doesn’t give too much thought about the great athletics track in the sky.

“There is so much to be done. It is not over until it is over,” he says.

And here’s his final nugget of advice: “Man has two lives, the second begins when he realises that he has only one, (according to Confucius). Make your second life the best life that you have ever lived.”

It’s worth noting however that Charles has a lot more mileage up than the Chinese philosopher, Confucius, who died at age 72!