Even for those of us in good health, exercising is a commitment, and takes plenty of gumption and motivation. When you also deal with difficult health conditions, it can make fitness, and staying in shape, that much harder.
But 71-year-old Ruthie Levin never let that stop her. Living in South Palm Desert, California, with her husband, Jeff, she faced a host of grueling physical challenges before discovering the type of exercise that boosts her mind, body, and soul.
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Facing Challenges
Before Levin was a senior in high school, she worked as a swimming instructor at a summer camp. One day, she leaned into the metal frame of a car door, which ended up lacerating the entire inside of her right eye. She had surgery and subsequently lost sight in her eye.
“Learning to function with one eye has been my biggest lifelong fitness barrier, and achievement, because my equilibrium is terrible,” Levin explains. “My balance is off, tripping constantly, walking into and tripping over stuff. I have bruises where no one should have bruises.”
Courtesy Ruthie Levin
She also currently deals with osteoporosis and a labral tear in her left hip, among other health conditions, like CPPD, a degenerative disease of the joints that makes it difficult to use her hands.
Mentally, Levin lives every day with a condition called body dysmorphia, in which someone becomes preoccupied with flaws in their appearance, but in actuality, they are likely minor or unnoticeable to others.
“As a person who has had body dysmorphia her entire life, movement is crucial to my mood and how I see myself or having a positive image of myself,” she shares.
For Levin, her movement routine has included running—that is, until her knees and IT band began to ache. That’s when she found a form of exercise that has changed her life.
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Discovering Cycling
After suffering these running injuries, Levin turned to her local CycleBar, which specializes in indoor spinning classes. That’s when she met a spinning instructor “who made me feel so alive in my first-ever spin class.” That was back in 2011, and she says that it was “love at first ride.”
In fact, Levin loves her CycleBar studio so much that she landed her “retirement gig” there, as she calls it. She works as a CycleBar Experience team member, in which she sets up new riders on their bikes, goes over correct form and prepares eucalyptus-soaked towels that are placed in the fridge and handed to each rider after class.
“This requires a level of welcoming and high spirits, going back to good mental health,” she says.
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Courtesy Ruthie Levin
Ruthie Levin’s Workout Routine
Morning Routine
Levin says that her current workouts are “not complicated at all” and “can be done by most anyone and can be easily modified.”
First of all, Levin says that she starts every morning by not getting out of bed unless she has stretched all her muscles. As soon as she feels stable, she’s good to go. While her coffee is brewing, she says that she’ll do calf raises while holding onto the kitchen counter along with some low sumo squats.
“This gives the hips, quads, knees and calves a bit of a wakeup call,” she says. Levin also does some stretches before bed.
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Spinning
Levin spins at CycleBar at least three times a week (or more), and each class lasts 45 minutes.
Lifting Weights
She lifts weights almost daily for 15 to 20 minutes at a time, and doesn’t lift more than 10 pounds.
Barre
Barre, a type of class that combines ballet, yoga and Pilates moves, is something that Levin does once a week for one hour. She additionally does various yoga and Pilates stretches throughout the week to improve flexibility.
Walking
Levin says that she gets out to walk most days, lasting anywhere from 20 minutes to 90 minutes.
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Listening to Her Body
But Levin doesn’t push herself if her body is saying “no.” As she says, “The length of the exercise depends on what it is and most importantly, how my body is doing on a particular day. The most important thing is not pushing past your capacity. Listen to your body.”
Courtesy Ruthie Levin
Sharing Tips
For others who want to cultivate a dedicated fitness routine like Levin has, she recommends starting off small with an activity that interests you, like going for walks.
“I like to listen to audiobooks while I walk,” she says.
She also suggests choosing an activity that is appropriate for your fitness level.
“Don’t just show up to the pickleball court thinking it would be a good place for you to start, because it’s the latest craze,” she says. “Most importantly, please consult your primary care physician to be sure you are fit and healthy enough to participate in whatever you choose.”
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