What does a 100-year-old’s fitness routine look like? Ask Joan Eichner.
On Feb. 2, Eichner celebrated her 100th birthday at the Moody Family YMCA, where she attends three aqua fitness classes a week.
“I love the water, but I love the friendships,” she said. “We sit here in the corner in the morning after we have been in the pool, we drink coffee, and we talk.”
Eichner joined the Y 30 years ago after moving to North Texas to help take care of her grandchildren, who also learned how to swim at the Moody Y and eventually joined the swim team.
At the party, she ignored instructions while offering up her secret to a long life.
“I often say wine and chocolates, but my daughters said, ‘Don’t say that today, you’re at the YMCA,’” Eichner shared with a laugh.
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The daughter didn’t seem to mind too much.
“This is how she lives her life,” Deborah Eichner said of her mother. “She has a plan for every day for what she wants to do. It may be we go to the arboretum. It may be we come to the Y. It may be we do something with her church; she’s active in projects. But every day she wakes up, and she has things that she wants to do.”
Joan Eichner volunteers at her church every month and credits staying active with keeping her motivated.
“When you don’t want to get out of bed in the morning, get up, keep going,” she advised. “That’s the best thing I can say.”
– Compiled by staff
