This interview is based on a conversation with Rena Clare, 67, a retired professional photographer from Omaha, Nebraska. It has been edited for length and clarity.
I wasn’t particularly sporty in high school. Golf was just about it. The whole idea of fitness or having a healthy lifestyle wasn’t much of a concept.
Then, in 1969, I was drafted into the US Army, assigned to the First Cavalry Division, and completed basic training before being deployed to Vietnam.
I enjoyed running
In basic training, you had to run three miles before breakfast. Then, during the day, you were always on your feet.
I found that I really enjoyed running and looked forward to doing it. It made me feel more energetic. But I hadn’t really connected the dots when it came to food. I ate a standard American diet, including red meat and potatoes.
After three years in the military, I returned to my college studies before becoming a full-time professional photographer. My workplace was nine miles from home, and I’d usually cycle there. I found it fun.
Meanwhile, my father was having severe health issues, and I didn’t want to go through the same thing. I started thinking more about the role of diet and stopped having meat altogether.
Still, midway through my career in the late 80s, I realized I was getting out of shape. My job took me around the world, and I stayed in hotels where it was hard to choose what to eat.
I became more focused through exercise
I knew I felt better and more focused after exercising, so I’d use the hotel gym. If it didn’t have one and I couldn’t get outside, I’d run around the parking garage.
It could be 8 p.m. or later, and the security guards would stop me and ask what I was doing.
Movement became a regular part of my life. I ran or biked as much as I could to expend any pent-up energy. After a while, I started doing more endurance cycling and running in biathlons.
One of the best things I’ve done is go on bikepacking trips. They’re exhilarating, like an adventure. I have a small, lightweight tent which I keep in a pannier. It compacts nicely until you set up camp for the night.
I have a household gym
Last summer, I went to Colorado and would ride from the campground every day to visit new places. I also bicycle a lot in my home state of Nebraska, as well as Minnesota, Iowa, and Kansas.
Back home, I have a gym on the lower level of my house, where I work out seven days a week. Also, when the weather is good, I can spend up to five hours outside on my bike, particularly along gravel trails on disused railway tracks.
I weight train three days a week before moving to the treadmill or stationary bike. On the other four days, I do isometric-type exercises and core work.
I adopted a whole-food, plant-based diet — part vegetarian, part vegan — and enjoy cooking for my wife, Sharon, and me. Typically, I’ll have two meals a day.
Breakfast is usually between 10 and 11 a.m., consisting of oatmeal with chia and hemp seeds, soy milk, and fresh fruit.
Society can ignore people my age
I don’t snack in the afternoon. Then, around 5:30 p.m., I’ll either prepare a salad with beans for protein or a dish like rice and beans. I like to finish eating at least three hours before going to bed.
Recently, I was thrilled to learn that Senior Planet, an AARP initiative, appointed me as one of its 2026 Sponsored Athletes, working to redefine what it means to stay active in later life.
Society has somehow bought into the idea that, once we reach retirement, we’re irrelevant, disappear, and no longer contribute.
And many people my age let themselves go, thinking it’s the beginning of a decline.
Firstly, I don’t believe that’s true, and it’s a great opportunity to make the most of the time you have on your hands. Secondly, I want to inspire and motivate older people to get out and about and find adventures.
You don’t have to start big. It’s good to increase your movement gradually. Please believe me when I say it’s never too late to get healthy — and feel more alive — through diet and exercise.
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