Jim Owen Couldn't Do a Push-Up at 70. At 84, He Won 10 Senior Games Golds

At 70, Jim Owen could not do a single push-up. At 84, by his account, he won gold in all 10 fitness events he entered at the 2024 California Senior Games.¹

Owen, a retired Wall Street executive, is one of three late-starting athletes profiled by Suzanne Baum in a Men’s Fitness UK feature published Aug. 13, 2026.¹ The other two, Axay Shah and Dr Richard Rosenfeld, started exercising in their 50s and went on to run marathons. For anyone who suspects the window for getting fit closes somewhere around retirement, they make a useful set of counterexamples.

Owen’s story is told in his own words. Outlets that have covered him, including Fit&Well, Tom’s Guide and Authority Magazine, rely on what he has told them. He also wrote the book Just Move! A New Approach to Fitness After 50 (National Geographic, 2017) and produces documentaries on healthy aging, so he has a professional stake in the message.³⁴

From around the block to sets of 50

At 70, Owen was overweight, low on energy and dealing with chronic back pain. He has described himself back then as a couch potato.¹⁴

“I was struck by the fear that if I didn’t get off the couch and change my way of life, there was bound to be a walker or wheelchair in my future,” Owen told Men’s Fitness UK.

His first step was a challenge to walk every day for 30 days. In week one, he could barely make it around the block without losing his breath.¹

Walking alone did not fix his back pain. So he started strength training with a personal trainer. On day one he could not do a push-up, and he managed his first about three weeks later. He trained three times a week that first year. By 75 he had lost 35 pounds, his aches and pains were gone, and he was doing push-ups in sets of 50.¹

Ten tests at the Senior Games

The fitness category at the Games included 10 tests of strength and endurance, such as hanging from a bar, throwing a heavy ball and skipping rope, Fit&Well reports. In the jump-rope test, Owen completed 49 jumps in 60 seconds.² He competed in the 80-to-84 age category at the Games in San Diego and reports winning 10 gold medals.³

“I never would have guessed at 70 that ‘gold medalist’ would be part of my story,” he said in the Men’s Fitness UK feature.

Two more late starters

The other two profiles come from the Men’s Fitness UK piece alone. Axay Shah, 67, had never run a mile before 50. After a New Year’s Eve challenge with friends, he ran his first marathon at 50, and he is now training for his ninth LA Marathon.¹

Dr Richard Rosenfeld, also 67, began changing his habits at 56 with weight training at home and a shift toward a whole-food, plant-based diet. He ran his first marathon at 60 and qualified for Boston at 65. By 67 he had finished 15 marathons, including all six Abbott World Marathon Majors. He is Director of Guidelines and Quality at the American College of Lifestyle Medicine.¹

“It is never too late. Do not plan. Do not wait for tomorrow, or someday, or the 1st of January. Just start now,” Shah told the magazine.

What late starters can borrow

The feature closes with advice from personal trainer Nicole Greco-Peepas and sports-medicine physician Dr Reuben Chen. “It’s never too late to begin training after 50, even as a complete beginner,” Chen said.¹

• Start small. Owen began with a daily walk that barely got him around the block. Chen suggests low-impact moves such as walking, bodyweight squats, wall push-ups and balance work while holding a chair.¹
• Add strength, not just steps. Greco-Peepas recommends strength training two to three times a week, walking daily, prioritizing protein and leaving time to recover. “If you’re just getting started, don’t overcomplicate it,” she said.¹
• Build up gradually. Owen went from zero push-ups to one in about three weeks, and to sets of 50 by 75. Chen advises increasing effort a little at a time.¹
• Check with a doctor first. After years of inactivity, or if you have health concerns, Chen recommends talking to a doctor before you begin.¹

“For me, 70 just happened to be the starting line,” Owen said in the Men’s Fitness UK feature.