93-year-old has the cardiovascular engine of a 40-year-old

93-year-old rower has cardio of a 40-year-old

While attending college in a small town in Iowa, one of my favorite professors was seen frequently jogging around campus.

She was a beast and one of the fittest people I’d ever met. She was so committed to health and fitness that apparently she had been part of research that determined her biological age was much less than her chronological age.

Until that point I didn’t know that was possible.

Recently, Richard Morgan has taken that frontier to a whole different level.

The 93-year-old is a 4x champion at indoor rowing and has rowed a distance equivalent to almost 10x around the earth!

In a recent study, scientists were shocked to discover he has the cardiovascular power of someone in their 30’s and 40’s. What’s even more amazing is he hasn’t been doing it for that long.

He started exercising at 73-years-old!

One day while watching his grandson’s rowing practice, the head coach invited him to come over and test one of the rowers.  Morgan then started rowing on his own for 40-minutes per day in a shed in his backyard – and the rest is history.

When researchers tested Morgan, they were shocked on multiple fronts. For one, his lifestyle and exercise routine had led him to 15% body fat and 80% muscle (which challenges the belief that muscle loss is inevitable with age),

Also, when he exercised they were shocked to discover his heart rate climb to 153 beats per minute!
(Well beyond the estimated max heart rate of 127 for his age and proof of how strong his heart had become)

While there’s a lot to admire about this guy, one belief leaps out:

It’s never too late.

Wherever you are at.

Whether you believe you are in the second quarter… third quarter… or fourth quarter of life. It’s never too late to get started with an exercise routine. A routine that meets you where you’re at. And as your muscles and cardiovascular engine adapt - see where you can take it from there.

For much more on what’s possible with this type of possibility mindset:

Becoming a Mindful Athlete

Kelan Ern