Dame Kelly Holmes on why summer is a great time to get fit and healthy, whatever your age
As the weather warms up and you can't hide under baggy jumpers any longer, now's the time to get fitter, healthier and leaner.
And no matter what your fitness level, you may take inspiration from Olympic champion runner Dame Kelly Holmes, who still loves the challenge of keeping fit, despite retiring from the track many years ago.
At the age of 55, Holmes still runs three times a week, as well as doing weight training, and she's urging others – whatever their age – to try to improve their fitness for the summer too.
'I keep fit for both my body to still do the things I want to do and for my mental health,' she says. 'I don't have an agenda with running as such – if I enter a half marathon, I'm doing it as a challenge to myself to keep moving.
'I don't want to not do it, I can't not do it – I have to do something,' she declares. 'I think it's a really positive thing for people to keep moving.'
The former athlete, who won two gold medals in the 800m and 1500m at the 2004 Athens Olympics, is encouraging people of all ages to use any good summer weather as a motivation to up their fitness levels and generally look after themselves.
She says: 'With the longer days, people are able to fit a lot more in, and good weather gives you that lifted spirit – you see more people walking, running, and cycling, and a lot of people, maybe like me, use that freedom of time to keep fitter. I think nice weather really helps – it just makes you feel good, doesn't it?'
Holmes loves doing parkruns, and is an ambassador for nutritional supplements Solgar's partnership of The Great Run series, which includes last month's Great Manchester Run and the Great North Run in September.
She was at the Manchester run, a 10k race and half marathon, which she was hoping to run in herself, but was unable to after straining her calf doing a parkrun.
She says: 'I've done a lot of training from a very, very young age, and it's obviously going to have an impact on my body now, but equally with my age and being a woman, there's a lot of talk around the effects of menopause on your ligaments, tendons, etc, and that's what I'm finding at the moment. So it's about managing the body.
'It's important to me to lead by example, so I'll get injuries, but I'll always get them if I'm going to keep training, so I've got to manage them and limit them.'
Despite her slight injury, Holmes still helped support some of the 35,000 runners in Manchester, and met Keely Hodgkinson and Ann Packer, who, with her, are the only British women to win 800m Olympic gold.
She will also be at the Great North Run, and will share tips on training, race day preparation, and recovery.
But she stresses that being fit and healthy isn't just about looking better and feeling physically fitter.
'Keeping moving and feeling good helps your self-esteem as well, and your confidence, general outlook on life and positivity,' she explains. 'And if all that starts going downhill, you don't feel you're healthy from body and mind and internally and externally, so all those things start to dwindle, which will obviously then affect your mental health.
'It's not just about the big win in the big race – it's also about the small everyday wins and those moments of self-care that keep us happy and healthy.'
Holmes retired from competitive running 20 years ago, and she points out that her lifestyle these days is a long way from that of an elite athlete.
'I've been retired a long, long time,' she says. 'I'm definitely not in a 'normal' category, but my lifestyle is conducive to going out and enjoying myself and having meals etc.
'The fact is that if I want to keep strong, if I want to show up, if I still want to inspire people – I do – if I want to prove that it doesn't matter what age you are you can still push your body to a certain degree or achieve things, then I've got to start looking after myself.'
As well as running and keeping fit generally, Holmes is careful with nutrition, saying: 'I've had a lifestyle where I'm in planes and trains and all over the world, and I grabbed something in the morning and went off for the day and I wasn't eating. And you forget that when you want to keep active, the priority for your body being strong and healthy is a combination of movement and what you put in your body.'
She says supplements help get her nutritional balance right, and she also enjoys herbal drinks with ginger, lemon and mint.
'This year in particular I've definitely been more focused on looking at nutrition and trying to stop inflammation, because that's what I tend to get. I do think it's going to be an advantage to me to start thinking more about the health side of things, and holistically as well.'
Holmes is keen to stress that no matter what your age, it's never too late to start looking after your body and getting fitter.
'I cannot tell you the amount of people that inspire me to keep going,' she says. 'Social media is a wonderful tool when it's used right, and I see 92-year-olds running fast 100 metres, or 60-year-old women doing 10 chin-ups.
'It's about people prioritising – looking at how they feel – are they energised? Are they lethargic? Are there things that can support that, like regular exercise, adequate sleep (I should listen to myself), doing things and entering something, and seeking support?'
She adds: 'Our mind is stronger than we ever think it is, and we should give it credit and switch it to be on the positive side to get us through life. But equally, our body can do wonders – we just have to look after it a little bit more.'
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