Michelle Obama on how she's dealing with aging in 60s

Michelle Obama says entering her 60s has brought a sense of freedom and clarity she hadn’t experienced before.

“I tell people, ‘The sixties? Oh, a wonderful time. It’s a wonderful time,’” Obama said in an interview with People ahead of the Nov. 4 release of her new book The Look. “I feel like this is the first time in my life that when I say and do something, these are my choices.”

The former First Lady said she’s approaching aging on her own terms, including her decision to continue colouring her hair. “I’m colouring that gray hair,” she said, adding that her late mother, Marian Robinson, did the same until her death.

As for her health, Obama said, “What I eat, working out, I go to regular doctor’s visits. I do not miss a mammogram.” “I value my health. It allows me to enjoy this time because I’m not achy, I’m not sore, I’m not sick. I’m as vibrant as I’ve ever been.”

Now that her daughters Malia, 27, and Sasha, 24, are grown and independent, Obama said she’s learning to make decisions centered solely around herself. “As mothers and wives, we spend our lives making decisions for others. This is the first time in my life when every decision I make is for me.”

She added that life after the White House has given her and husband Barack Obama, 64, space to reset. “My husband is doing just fine. We are the former president and first lady—almost ten years now. We are formers,” she said. “All of that is freeing.”