Your How To Guide For Exercising After 40 by Teddi B of Hot Mamas Exercise
WRITTEN BY TEDDI BRYANT // PHOTOGRAPHED BY ESTHER LEE LEACH
As a fitness OG, exercise for younger populations is pretty easy to prescribe. But thinking about fitness for women over 40 is a whole different ball game. When the word modification makes you cringe and Silver Sneakers and Jazzercise make you feel like an old lady, I want to challenge you to remember that our bodies are going through a physical journey every day. And what we did when we were 20 and 30 will not work for us at 40 and 50. Through much research and working with experts in the field, I know that spending hours doing cardio and jumping around like we did when we were in our 30’s won’t work anymore. Truthfully that was a relief, because I don’t think I ever actually enjoyed running - but I thought it was the only way to get lean.
Exercise for women over 40 doesn’t have to feel like we’ve been put out to pasture. In designing my method, I created a space that women can come and still feel very challenged and workout intensely, but in an intelligent way that doesn’t hurt our bodies, actually makes sense AND makes you feel sexy & strong.
Currently the media and Instagram has been all about shaming older women for being too sexy and not acting their age. As a lifelong fan of Madonna, even I was a little shocked with her latest Instagram photos which feature her body in fishnets, assets out and a star over her nipples. But then I, a woman at 55, fitness studio owner, realize that you can’t put a number on sexy. Madonna has always been one to push the envelope and her latest posts struck a tone for me. And, with the new Sex and the City comeback, there’s even more backlash about their age, grey hair, injections and so forth. To me though, these women, at the prime of their lives, are more sexy and more confident than ever.
I’ve spent my entire life teaching fitness and it’s run the gamut. My style and my method have pretty much matched everything I’ve been going through physically in my own life as a woman. From bodybuilding competitions and lifting heavy, to stroller classes when I had babies, Red Rocks bootcamps and road races and now studio workouts that are Pilates based yet challenging and intense and designed to target women over 40. I realize that changing my focus to aging doesn’t sound very hot. But it should be. It’s an incredibly underserved, yet large population. And, what’s sexier than a strong, confident woman who’s lived some life and can take some names and doesn’t give a crap about what people think? Grey hair and crows feet be damned. And yeah, if you want to add some filler - why does that become an issue?
If you’ve ever been to one of my workouts or seen a video, I say vagina. A LOT. Say it with me, VAGINA. Well, because we are women and our pelvic floor is everything. We Kegel in class. We laugh a lot. And, there’s a lot of camaraderie around the things that we all notice as aging women but we aren’t allowed to talk about in public - like hot flashes. None of this is very sexy. Or is it? Have we all just been conditioned to think aging is a bad thing?
So what is this magic that happens in a class for aging women (aka ALL women)? We work our butts off, don’t get me wrong. But we don’t get our heart rates too high because it triggers the fight or flight response and that is what causes a bloated belly and a general puffy look all over. I believe in body weight and not a lot more than that. Resistance with lighter weights and dynamic movement are all impactful and strengthen our bones. Even walking can do that for you. Lifting heavy weights is not necessary and over time can cause all kinds of joint issues - especially if done incorrectly. Kettlebells are not even a thing at my studio - what’s old isn’t always new. We are constantly doing sequences and balance exercises that strengthen our minds. And of course, a lot of the work I do is Pilates-based, because Pilates is magic.
Describing a class is almost impossible. It’s an experience that challenges you from head to toe and leaves you dripping in sweat, sore in all the right places, and almost wanting a cigarette.
I challenge you to rethink aging. And instead of pushing back against it, embrace it for what it is: inevitable. You can hang it all up and put on a cardigan or you can rage, rage at the dying of the light, fishnets and all.