Girl Power. No Age Limit.
I love running with great company, so when I found myself in a new town (in Kansas, USA) at the end of last summer, I was overjoyed to wrangle an invitation to join a group of female runners for their mid weekly training session. At 49, I see myself as an older runner, relatively speaking, but these ladies were in their 60s and 70s. Full disclosure, as a relatively decent runner for my own age, I wasn’t expecting to work hard that day.
Cut forward to our first 400 metre rep and I find myself chased down by the 71 year old, and mid-field by the end of the session. I worked hard! These ladies were properly cool, wearing the latest Hoka trainers, baseball caps and shorts. One had cycled a good few miles just to get to the track (because, as I later discovered, she was a triathlete).
They were all lean and gazelle-like and they were awesome – way beyond their abilities as kick-ass runners. Our run session was before the sun rose and that was because they all still had jobs; among them a lawyer, a therapist – all were doing things that helped people and served their community. One was breaking state running records for her age, working, organising significant local running events for charity and still finding time to make covid masks that she was giving out free from her porch. They were joyful, they were funny and I loved them all pretty much instantly.
So, when we here at Belle received the results of a poll for the 60 most inspirational women over the age of 60, we had to share it. In celebration of this year’s International Women’s Day today (8th March) Look Fabulous Forever, the beauty brand for older women, polled nearly 1000 of their customers to compile the list.
A read of this list in full is well worth it, refreshingly about so much more than looks. We defy you not to find inspiration. Find it here.
Here’s a sneaky peak of the top 10 (dream dinner party right there?):
- Queen Elizabeth II (94)
- Dame Judi Dench (86)
- Baroness Betty Boothroyd (91)
- Dame Jane Goodall (86)
- Dame Esther Rantzen (80)
- Dolly Parton (75)
- Dame Mary Beard (66)
- Joanna Lumley OBE (74)
- Rose Hudson-Wilkin MBE (60)
- HRH Princess Anne (70)
Traditionally at an age known for retirement, pensions and taking life a little slower, the survey celebrates a diverse group of women over the age of sixty who are still living a life of purpose and direction. All those featured in the top 60 are still active, engaged and making an important contribution to the world and the industries they represent. An inspiration to those over sixty as well as the younger generation who follow.
Tricia Cusden, founder Look Fabulous Forever, told us: “I’ve long thought that the rich pattern and experience of women’s lives past the age of 60 is neither sufficiently acknowledged nor celebrated.
“By creating this list, I wanted to shine a light on the talent, hard work and commitment these women show to their respective professions and the ways in which they are still enriching all our lives in a meaningful way. I am delighted by the diversity of the list and hope it serves as inspiration to a younger generation of women that life can be exciting and fulfilling past the age of 60.”
So, back to me and my Kansas runner girls. I’ve been running with them for a while now and I love every minute I get to spend with them. They have been running together, supporting each other through major milestones of their lives for around 35 years and that makes them a resource any girl could use.
These ladies are my hope, inspiration and aspiration. As I approach 50, an age where common thinking can warn you in often the most brutal of ways, that it’s time to become invisible, I say BS.
