"I have a grandson who's 3 years old, and I can still pick him up," the 85-year-old said.
At-home workout videos are quite popular now. But Jane Fonda did it first. Fonda famously revolutionized the workout industry in the 1980s with her at-home exercise tapes. Recently, the star, 85, discussed how she has benefited from working out for over four decades.
During the opening of H&M's Move Studio in New York City on February 8, she told PEOPLE, "Keeping moving is the mantra for growing old successfully." She added, "You don't have to be an athlete, it doesn't have to be a sport, it doesn't even have to be in a workout class. But, walk, move, stretch, stay limber." She also discussed all the positive outcomes that have come from working out over the years. Fonda admitted that she realized that the "shape of my body" was changing when she first started working out and she also saw improvements in her mental health, per PEOPLE.
She said, "I come from a long line of really depressed people, and the best way to fight depression is to keep moving." Fonda added that she "thanks God every day" and that she's been staying active for more than four decades.
"You've got to stay strong," she said. "I have a grandson who's 3 years old, and I can still pick him up. I mean, I have to bend my knees and you know, it takes a long time to get him up there, but I can still pick him up. You want to be able to carry your own bags," she elaborated.
"You have to be able to, you know, make love," Fonda continued. "I don't remember much [about that], but do I remember you need flexibility!"
She admitted that she has grown to love working out over the years and she did not always value fitness. "I didn't know that it was important to do 'til I was in my 30s," she explained, noting that she used to make up excuses to get out of gym class growing up. "I had a 'constant period' all during school so that I couldn't do gym, anything to get out of the gym."
"It wasn't until my late 30s [or] early 40s that I started to actually become active … [and] life before I was active, it wasn't nearly as good as when I started to move," Fonda continued.
The Academy Award winner also discussed her diagnosis of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, which she revealed in September 2022. Back in December 2022, Fonda announced that her cancer is in remission. "I won," she rejoiced in the February 8 event.
"I think about death a lot. I have for the last 30 years," Fonda told Entertainment Tonight. "I think that's a healthy thing to do. It's hard to live right if you don't think about death. It's a part of life," she added.
"Other cultures aren't so afraid of thinking about death as we are," she continued. "I spend a lot of time thinking about it and it's made my life a lot better. And when you get a cancer diagnosis, you think about it even more and you want to be sure you get the things done that you want to get done, so when the time comes you won't have a lot of regrets," she added.
References:
https://people.com/health/jane-fonda-shares-why-she-works-out-mental-health-depression/
Cover Image Source: Getty Images | Emma McIntyre
