This was in today's "Dear Abby" column in the paper:
DEAR ABBY: I am a 55-year-old female who competes in triathlons for fun, fitness and health. I consulted my doctor because I was having foot pain. When I told him I was a runner and was preparing for a marathon race, his response was, "At your age, you could hardly call it a race."
I was shocked. I repeated the insulting comment to my husband, who has never supported me in this nor attended my races. He replied, "Well, you don't actually consider yourself an athlete, do you?"
I am so offended that I want to dismiss both my doctor and my husband. I just finished a race with 5,000 women. Every one of them was fabulous and serious, no matter how old or what they looked like. It was the spirit of the sport that mattered. At what age does one stop being an athlete? -- OLDER ATHLETE, EUGENE, ORE.
This raised some interesting questions in my mind about support, encouragement, or the lack thereof. I don't want to discuss the "athlete-yes-or-no" question. Instead, I'd like to know how people out there deal with non-supportive spouses, friends, co-workers, doctors, etc.
My own experience includes being teased by my co-workers for "getting beat by a 70-year-old woman." (This was after a big meet where they viewed my results on the Internet.) This came from men who are at least 50 pounds overweight and can barely walk from their cars to their desks.
Parents
Former Member
My 1/2 cent contribution is: I was swimming 72 laps 5 times a week till
I broke my leg on clear ice on Dec. 21, 2005. My wife till then would
frequently suggest I walk instead of swim. She walks briskly 6 times a week
in the morning for 1/2 hour; she also leads a group at Curves, an
exercise chain. Over the years I have tried unsuccessfully to convince her
of the advantages of swimming. Thankfully I have returned to swimming
and we have reached an understanding; I swim and she walks. We do
walk together at times for companionship. (BTW, I am 76 and still
work full time, and she is 70 and works 35 hours a week. So it would seem
that our individually preferred exercises helps us both.)
My 1/2 cent contribution is: I was swimming 72 laps 5 times a week till
I broke my leg on clear ice on Dec. 21, 2005. My wife till then would
frequently suggest I walk instead of swim. She walks briskly 6 times a week
in the morning for 1/2 hour; she also leads a group at Curves, an
exercise chain. Over the years I have tried unsuccessfully to convince her
of the advantages of swimming. Thankfully I have returned to swimming
and we have reached an understanding; I swim and she walks. We do
walk together at times for companionship. (BTW, I am 76 and still
work full time, and she is 70 and works 35 hours a week. So it would seem
that our individually preferred exercises helps us both.)
