Marathoner teams up with PERFORM scientific director to talk lifelong fitness
UPDATE: This event has reached acapacity. Registration is closed.
When it comes to exercising and leading a healthy lifestyle, Louis Bherer wants you to know that it’s never too late. “As a specialist in aging and cognition in elderly adults, my research clearly shows that even moderate amounts of exercise can have positive impacts on cognition, memory, attention and intellectual speed,” explains Bherer, scientific director at Concordia’s PERFORM Centre.
Ed Whitlock took up long-distance running when he was 41 years old. “I was involved in track growing up in England,” says Whitlock. “When I moved to Canada when I was 21, I stopped because I was starting my career and family life took over.” He resumed running when a local track-and-field club needed a coach, and he hasn’t stopped since.
At age 73, Whitlock became the first person aged 70 years or older to run a marathon in less than three hours. He then broke his own record, twice. Now in his early 80s, he continues to compete in long-distance and track competitions and holds more than 18 world records recognized by World Masters Athletics.
“Ed Whitlock is an extreme example of what you can accomplish athletically at an older age,” says Bherer. “Obviously, most people will not become elite marathon runners and that’s not the point. Adults of any age can reap the mental, physical and emotional rewards of exercise even if they aren’t breaking world records.”
Join Ed Whitlock as he speaks with Louis Bherer about what has kept him on the run for so long and how embracing a healthy lifestyle through the later years can help us stay sharp, both physically and mentally. The Globe and Mail’s chief Quebec correspondent, Sophie Cousineau, will moderate the conversation.
When: Wednesday, May 1, at 7 p.m.
Where: D.B. Clarke Theatre, Henry F. Hall Building (1455 De Maisonneuve Blvd. W.), Sir George Williams Campus
UPDATE: This event has reached acapacity. Registration is closed.
Related links:
• PERFORM Centre
• Concordia-Globe and Mail conversation series on aging well