ELISSA NADWORNY, HOST:
One month from now, Art Ulene will turn 90 years old. If his birthday goes as planned, he'll be celebrating atop the world's highest freestanding mountain, Mount Kilimanjaro, elevation 19,341 feet. If he makes it, he'll be the oldest person on record to summit Africa's tallest mountain. Ulene joins us now to talk about his upcoming climb. Hello. Thank you for being with us.
ART ULENE: It is a pleasure to be here, Elissa.
NADWORNY: So in a few weeks, you'll be getting on a plane, heading to Tanzania to start this climb. I'm curious how your friends and family reacted when you told them your plans.
ULENE: My family has been remarkably supportive. To be honest with you, I was a little surprised. They told me they want me to stop skiing, but they don't have any problem with me climbing Kilimanjaro.
NADWORNY: (Laughter).
ULENE: Part of that has to do with the fact that I've done it three times before. I reached the summit successfully twice. The last time I went up, I wasn't feeling well at 17,000 feet. So I turned around. I repressed my ego...
NADWORNY: (Laughter).
ULENE: ...And went back down.
NADWORNY: And is this all about breaking the record? I think you'd beat the current Guinness world record holder, Anne Lorimor, by about 10 months.
ULENE: That has nothing at all to do with it.
NADWORNY: (Laughter).
ULENE: But it's kind of fun. It'd be a bonus if I reach the summit. This has to do with my approach to life, generally. Most people worry about their lifespan. Smart people worry about their health span. That's how much of your life you're in good health. And I want those to be equal. I want to be in perfect health until the day I die. When I die, I want my friends to say, what happened?
NADWORNY: (Laughter).
ULENE: He looked...
NADWORNY: I just saw him yesterday.
ULENE: Yeah. Yeah.
NADWORNY: (Laughter).
ULENE: He looked so good yesterday. What happened? I'm more interested in my peak span, which is how close I can stay to my peak potential. I may not be able to stay at my potential when I was at 30 years old, although, I'm significantly ahead physically than I was at the age of 50. For me, Mount Kilimanjaro is a metaphor for life - peaks, valleys, up, down. I mean, that's life for you.
NADWORNY: So you've summited Kilimanjaro twice.
ULENE: Yes.
NADWORNY: Tell us what it takes to get up there.
ULENE: It's really not that hard. It's a 35-mile...
NADWORNY: (Laughter).
ULENE: Well, most people, you know - when we're telling people, I'm climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, it's not a climb. It is not a technical climb. There are no ropes. It is a 35-mile uphill walk. And the way you do this is you put your left foot forward.
NADWORNY: (Laughter).
ULENE: And then you put your right foot in front of your left foot, and then you repeat that 55,000 times.
NADWORNY: (Laughter) Sounds simple. I read that your training sometimes involves two different gelato shops.
ULENE: (Laughter) Yes. We have one about a mile and a half from my home, and there's one 4 miles from my home. And so when I'm sitting here not really wanting to go out and walk - I mean, I got to be honest about it - I don't like exercise. But I say to myself, you know, if you just get out the door and walk to the nearby gelato place a mile and a half away, you could have a small gelato. And that gets me right out the door. And some days I say I'm not happy with a small gelato. I want the big cup, and I want two flavors. So I walk 4 miles to get it.
NADWORNY: You're a retired doctor.
ULENE: Yes.
NADWORNY: A gynecologist, and some listeners might remember you as "The Today Show's" medical correspondent.
ULENE: Twenty-one years on "The Today Show."
NADWORNY: You must have some secret for being able to stay fit this long and aging so well.
ULENE: The secret is that I do not buy into the stereotype. There is a stereotype about aging, and that is that it is a stage of inevitable decline. You're going to get wrinkled. You're going to get decrepit. You're going to lose your strength. And there is some decline with aging. You lose some muscle fibers, a little bit of strength. But in the vast majority of people, the decline can be mitigated with work - exercise, sleeping well, good nutrition, social connection. That's very, very important for staying healthy. Stress management - all of those things contribute to a process that allows you to stay closer to your peak. We leave too much potential on the table. And if you want to find out who you really are, then you need to stretch your limits.
NADWORNY: I got to tell you, Art, I am planning on running a marathon, and this conversation really made me feel like that is the right choice for me (laughter). 'Cause I was having doubts.
ULENE: I wish you a great run and just keep on going. This is only your first marathon.
NADWORNY: This is actually my fourth, so I know I can do it. But I haven't done it in six years, so my body is much older, and I was very inspired by your approach here.
ULENE: The older body is beautiful.
NADWORNY: That's Art Ulene, who is planning to climb Mount Kilimanjaro next month for his 90th birthday. Thank you so much for your time, Art, and good luck.
ULENE: I thank you for your interest and your kind words.
(SOUNDBITE OF A. L. I. S. O. N.'s "SPACE ECHO") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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