Dick Van Dyke opens up about realities of aging ahead of 100th birthday

Dick Van Dyke still hits the gym three times a week as he nears his 100th birthday.

In an essay for The Times published November 13, the 99-year-old actor said he sometimes feels “diminished” both physically and socially. 

One of his struggles includes travel, leaving most of his time with friends happening at home.

 "I get invites to events or offers for gigs in New York or Chicago, but that kind of travel takes so much out of me that I have to say no. Almost all of my visiting with folks has to happen at my house," said the Mary Poppins star.

Van Dyke also described other physical changes he’s faced in recent years, much like some of the elderly characters he once played. 

“Like my old characters, I am now a stooper, a shuffler, and a teeterer. I have feet problems and I go supine as often as is politely possible,” Van Dyke said in The Times.

He added that he deals with foot problems, poor eyesight, ongoing hearing-aid frustrations, and eating without spilling.

Still, Van Dyke said he goes to the gym three times a week and feels noticeably stiff if he misses too many sessions. “I don’t know why this is something I still want to do, but it is,” Van Dyke confessed. 

“If I miss too many gym days, I really can feel it. A stiffness creeping in here and there. If I let that set in, well, God help me.“

“I start with the sit-up machine. Arlene says I could do 500, but that might be exaggerating. Then I do all the leg machines religiously because my legs are two of my most cherished possessions. And then the upper body,” he said.

He shared that the key to helping him keep consistent was “music,” and he would hum, sing, and dance his way from one machine to the next. He added, “You heard me, dancing! And if I’m really feeling it, I’m no quiet warbler; I’m a Broadway belter.”

To keep himself motivated, he rewards workouts with a smoothie, a caffeine treat, or a nap.