Fitness fanatic, 70, comes out top

While some of us have already fallen dismally off the fitness wagon this January, a 70-year-old exercise fanatic has put younger athletes to shame by winning a global fitness competition.

Tony Linturn took part in MYZONE’s global Movers of 2014 competition and worked out he would need to hit the gym for a minimum of three hours a day, 365 days of the year to take the top spot.

MYZONE is an accurate monitoring system that measures heart rate and calories burned and holds an international annual competition to see who has done the most exercise over the course of the year.

Linturn’s fitness career has seen him be a competitive endurance athlete for 25 years, running 80-90 hours per week and completing the London Marathon in a healthy 2 hours and 31 minutes. And if you totted up his lifetime running hours, it would equate to a distance of him running around the world 22 times.

Tony, who trains at The Marlow Club, didn’t start racking up his gym hours until January 13 last year, due to a fall from his bike but despite his slow start and taking just four days off training in 2014, he beat athletes aged in their mid 20s to become the winner of the World MYZONE Points Championship.

“Doing this challenge was the toughest thing I have done in my life but it did mean I got to eat five jam doughnuts a night as a treat!,” Tony said.

“This is the type of challenge I enjoy and I’m pleased I can still do it at 70 years of age so I’m hoping my story will only inspire others.”