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Exercise is the ultimate anti-aging product. Need proof? Check out these seven gorgeous, vibrant women—all of whom are fitness and yoga devotees. Many of them have been leading active lives since grade school, and they swear by healthy habits like superfood smoothies and more than eight hours of sleep.
In most cases, they’ve also made being active not just a passion, but a profession. If their toned physiques and glowing complexions featured here don’t inspire you, maybe a workout with them will?
Scroll down for seven women over 50 who prove fitness is the fountain of youth.
Colleen Saidman Yee, owner of Yoga Shanti
Age: 56
Saidman Yee is a former model, but she credits 25 years of yoga with keeping her young. In addition to running her Hamptons studio and teaching at workshops and festivals around the country, she released an A.M. & P.M. Yoga DVD with husband, Rodney Yee.
“I believe that stagnation is an aging culprit,” says Saidman Yee. “Practicing yoga keeps the circulatory, respiratory, and digestive systems functioning optimally.” Yoga also protects her from the ravages of stress, and she complements her practice with flax-and-omega packed smoothies, long, hot baths, quality sleep, and “lots of laughter.”
Ruth Zukerman, co-founder of Flywheel
Age: 58
Zukerman has been in the fitness industry for 30 years and today teaches an average of 10 Flywheel spin classes a week. Sweat, she says, is key to looking and feeling great. “Despite the bodily changes that we women experience in our fifties, sweating through exercise has kept my body toned, my pores clear, and my skin firm.”
She also is sure to get enough sleep and maintain a balanced diet (with a daily avocado!). “A friend of mine once referred to me as ‘The Fountain of Ruth,’” says Zukerman. “I hope to be worthy of that name for many more years!”
Lauren Piskin, owner of Chaise Fitness
Age: 54
Piskin got a head start on fitness. She first laced up her ice skates at age seven, and as a competitive figure skater, was often on the ice for five to six hours per day. She now works out around five days a week, most of it spent teaching classes at her two studios and training teachers in her Reinvention Method. “Fitness is the main reason my body feels 25, as well as my head!” Piskin says.
Dana Flynn, founder of Laughing Lotus
Age: 54
“Yoga makes you immortal,” says Dana Flynn. The yogi first stepped onto a mat at age 27, and 23 years later, energy is literally bubbling out of her at all times. She’s virtually famous for her giant grin—and for her lighthearted approach to life. Her secret is a constant cycle of “playing, dancing, singing, laughing”—both alone, and with the vast community of friends, family, and yogis who love (and look up to) her.
Elisabeth Halfpapp, co-founder of Exhale Spa and Core Fusion
Age: 57
Halfpapp stood at her first ballet barre at five-years-old, and almost five decades later, she still fits exercise (including ballet, yoga, and Core Fusion) into her schedule six days a week. She says that fitness has kept her body young, but “most importantly, it keeps your mind sharp, especially when you do classes like Core Fusion, yoga, or ballet, where you need to focus and be single minded about the combinations, sequencing, and choreography. Halfpapp also credits her youthful energy to lots of sleep, leafy greens, positive energy, and a happy 33-year marriage.
Susi Wunsch, founder of Velojoy
Age: 58
After discovering cycling eight years ago, Wunsch has become a tastemaker on the New York City bike scene. She skips the subway and rides her bike as transportation most days of the week, rides out-of-town on weekends, and attends Gregg Cook’s spin classes at Equinox twice a week. “Nothing enhances my mood or boosts my creative energy more,” says Wunsch. Other secrets? Pushing boundaries, family time, staying hydrated, stretching, and…dark chocolate!
Terri Walsh, founder of The A.R.T. Method
Age: 53
The celeb personal trainer has been working in fitness since she was 19, and her muscles and energy are nothing short of inspiring. “Fitness doesn’t just keep me young, it keeps me fierce, alive, and excited about every day!” she says. Other than her signature active-resistance training, Walsh has this advice: “Wine and chocolate on weekends only, and never overdo anything, either good, or bad—and never ever ever ‘diet’.”
Fitness can transform your life in other ways too. Find out what happens when you use yoga as your alarm clock. Plus, here’s what the world’s oldest yogi has to say about happiness.
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