member spotlight
HAC MEMBER
EVELYN HOFFMAN
by Lisa Maguire
Evelyn Hoffman is an inspiration – she ’ s turning 90 this year , and she ’ s still hitting the gym twice a week .
My husband used to sit in the chairs on the other side of the glass to the pool deck and blow kisses to me while I exercised !
42 HACHEALTHCLUB . COM
You ’ d never know that Evelyn is approaching her 90th birthday – her quick wit and winning personality showcase a woman at least 20 years younger . She swears by three things for keeping healthy and keeping “ young ”: exercise for your body , exercise for your brain , and a good glass of red wine paired with a little chocolate .
While she swears by exercise for maintaining optimum health , it ’ s not the only reason she comes – HAC provides a community component for her . She ’ s made a lot of friends through her classes , and she says that one of the nice things about meeting new people at the gym is that they help keep you accountable . She knows that if she misses a class , she ’ ll miss out on the fun she has with friends , and they ’ ll follow up with her to see about her excuse .
Every Tuesday and Thursday at 10:00 am , Evelyn takes “ Functional Workout ” with Nancy . At 89 years old , driving had been getting more difficult for her , but before she ’ d give up her car , she said that she “ had to find a way to be able to get to HAC .” Evelyn would only give up her car if she was able to get to her regular weekly exercise classes . “ If I ever stopped , I would crumble ,” she added .
She ’ s been exercising regularly since she moved to Delaware at 75 years old . Originally from Brooklyn and having spent the majority of her life on Long Island raising three children , and from ages 53-68 working for a doctor , she had been maintaining a fast paced and fairly stressful lifestyle . Once retired and settled in her new home in Pike Creek , she and her husband started to look for a place to exercise and improve her arthritis . That ’ s when she found Pike Creek Fitness Club and Shirley Coleman ’ s aqua fitness class for arthritis . She and her husband came in and joined , and right away , Evelyn fell in love with water fitness classes . “ My husband used to sit in the chairs on the other side of the glass to the pool deck and blow kisses to me while I exercised ! Some of the ladies in my class now still remember that .” Evelyn and her husband also found a wealth of fitness knowledge and improvement in hiring Personal Trainer , Keith Glines , who she credits with getting her comfortable on the fitness floor even though she ’ s now removed that from her routine .
“ I wish women who are younger than me realized how much benefit you can get from exercising ,” she said . Evelyn knows that a healthy body is key to being able to serve a healthy mind , which is something else that she exercises regularly .
“ When my husband and I were younger , he got this computer . Big bulky thing ,” she laughed , “ I had no interest back then . No time or patience to learn it . It ’ s funny , it wasn ’ t until I was retired with a lot of time on my hands that I took the time to start poking around .” She plays a lot of healthy brain games on the computer – “ I play scrabble online . A game I never used to