She might not be as sprightly as she once was, and she sometimes has trouble remembering birthdays, but Jessica Benton never forgets her appointments at the gymnasium.
She turns up twice a week at Noosa Springs Fitness Centre for her regular workouts.
Not bad going for a woman just a few weeks short of her 100th birthday.
Jessica Benton, who grew up in England and migrated to Australia in the 1950s, lives in Tasmania, but spends three months each year in Noosa, where she stays with her daughter Patsy Fisher at her Sunshine Beach home.
Patsy, herself a remarkably youthful 66, is a fitness instructor at Noosa Springs and Jessica tags along twice a week, where she undertakes a program specially designed for her by an exercise physiologist.
“I use all the machines,” Jessica proudly declares, as she leads the way into a fitness centre which is crowded even in the early afternoon.
“I love it,” she said. “Training has become part of my life. It gives me a reason to get up every morning.”
Jessica, the mother of four children and a widow for 20 years, continues her training regime even when she’s home in the Hobart suburb of Kingston.
A friend picks her up at 6am three mornings a week – even in the cold darkness of winter – and takes her to the same neighbourhood gymnasium she’s been using for years.
“Of course it’s easier for her here where the weather’s so much nicer,” said daughter Patsy.
“She’s a marvel – an absolute inspiration,” Patsy said. “Everybody knows her here and she’s always made so welcome.
“There’s a more mature clientele and it’s a very safe environment and culture. It’s given mum a whole new lease on life.”
