Fifty and fabulous, older single women are breaking the myths
 

http://9news.com/acm_news.aspx?OSGN...47-c589c01ca7bf

DENVER (AP) - The AARP recently polled more than 2,500 women ages 45 and older for its landmark AARP Foundation Women's Leadership Circle Study. They found some surprising results that shatter the 'aging as a single woman' myths.

Sunny Fitzgerald is a 50-year-old single woman with big plans for her future. "Since I turned 50 this year, I decided to run a 50 mile run this year."

Fitzgerald is one of the 25 million single women over the age of 45 who is breaking the stereotypes of aging single women.

"Everyone we talked to had some myth in their head about older women," said Karen Reyes of AARP The Magazine.

Some of the myths that top the list - all single women are desperate to find a mate, older women are clueless about finances or older women give up on worrying about their appearance.

"I definitely disagree with that! I'm pretty content and happy with my life," said Fitzgerald, "I picked up investing right after my husband died. . .and I'm taking care of myself better now then when I was married."

According to the survey, older single women have endless opportunities to do what they want as they age, and women like Fitzgerald are running away with them.

Reyes concluded her interview by saying, "I think the one word to describe being a woman 50 and older today and single, is possibilities."

Thanks Dodger, nice to read something uplifting. I'll try doing a 5 mile run when I'm 50.

What I've noticed is the men I'm interested in keep getting younger...and younger. Latest guy is 32; I'm 47. And they don't seem to have any problems with it. In fact, the 32-year-old wants me to meet his parents! :eek:

I'm 56, single, doing my thing and loving it. That's what's great about our society, having unlimited possibilities to do what you enjoy doing.

I have a poster I made pinned on the wall beside my desk that says

33 pounds gone,
67 to go
Yayyyy!!!!
Purple hair, mini-skirts and high heels here I come.

Sure, the ideal is happiness with a partner/soulmate, but I'm not actively looking for one. If I stumble across one, so much the better, but until then I'm still happy with my life and myself.

Love your attitude. I feel the same. But I don't think the "ideal" is with a partner/soulmate. I think that is a culturally conditioned construct that is forced on us by society. If we are not pair-bonded, in other words, we are at some level considered "losers." And that's really sad. There is enormous pressure in our society to pair-bond, and I have fought that for most of my life. I'm still single at 47, sleeping with a 32-year-old guy, but really not in it for some long-haul thing. I've never been married and never wanted kids.

There's a reason the divorce rate is 50% (or higher) in this country. People construct fantasies about how their relationships and long-term partnerships are going to be, and reality of course bumps up against that. When the going gets tough, many people just bail. Long-term relationships are not always what they are cracked up to be. Plus, I'm just not a monogamous person. It's something I discovered about myself in my mid-30s.

Keep up the great attitude! I'm with ya! :)

Hair

I'm proud to say I'm almost 57. I became a certified Spinning instructor for a local health club a few years ago and can outride any 20 year old in my class.

I decided that I was going to age with as little impact as I could. I'm 58.....at age 55 I decided to finally learn to be a good downhill skier....and I finally achieved that this previous winter. While maintaining weight or losing weight is one heck of a lot harder now than it was 20 years ago, I've re-vamped my entire way of eating and I feel marvelous as a result. I learned that no matter what, I cannot eat gluten (in wheat, barley, rye & oats). I also can't tolerate much dairy. I'm also carb sensitive....too many carbs, or more specifically, too much sugar, would make me sick. SO....the Atkins WOE is pretty good for me in general. Not having any grains in my diet made a HUGE difference in my digestive system, let me tell you! I'm also committed to exercise....weights and cardio, also some yoga, which I love. I exercise first and foremost because of how good it makes me feel, and my body and joints demand it. I'd be pretty happy if I could just get strict and serious enough to knock off that last 20-25 pounds which are hanging around my mid-section. :lol:

I just turned 50 and i really appreciate the beauty of women my age.. my dw is just 30 days older but in my eyes is 30 yrs younger :thup: she makes my heart thump!!

Me too, I just turned 50 and I have to lose about 60 lbs more... this is encouraging :) I love yah all!!!!

I started my weight loss journey at age 54......now at 57, I'm happily maintaining for the past 2 yrs. :agree: :cool: Most people are shocked when they find out my age. :lol:

I am 52...and no one thinks I am that old..... the 21 lbs. I need to lose represent another 10 yrs......I am not ashamed of my age...but it feels good to see others guess my age as 40!

WTG people! I'm 64, going on 30! {smile}
You're only as old as you want to be!
Think young and you will be young!
WHOOHOO!

:hyper:

I will turn 50 this November and I hopped on a treadmll for the first time in my life on March 4th, I might just become a fitness center junkie.....I have 109 pounds to lose, I'm thinking when the weather is nice I will also add some outdoor walks that might just lead to running...and maybe get back up on my horse........I never realized how much my extra wieght was stealing from my life..

Well I'm no longer single, but I was till I was 40, and was perfectly ok with the idea of never getting married.

I'll be 50 in 11 days, and last year I learned to ride a motorcycle and joined a HOG chapter. Looking forward to lots of bike adventures with my (10 years younger) hubby this summer!

I've been on the same job for 19 years, and many of my coworkers have been here this long too... I think a few of them think I'm having a mid-life crisis! lol! But they probably thought the same 10 years ago when I married a man from germany I met over the internet.

I'm 51 and never married, which is OK with me. Most people think I'm younger, which is nice. After years of saving and dreaming, I'm now in the process of purchasing a tiny beach condo. I'm planning to enjoy it. :)