Ex-soldier called ‘tubby’ at school is as active as ever ahead of 90th birthday and says ‘it’s never too late to start’

A former soldier who was nicknamed “tubby” at school and was never chosen to play sports is now as active as ever as he approaches his 90th birthday, playing golf three times a week and going to the gym twice a week, and has said “it’s never too late to start”.

Douglas Robertson, 89, from Weybridge, Surrey, said he has always led an active lifestyle as he does not want to be overweight. However, he only started playing golf in his 40s and did not seriously start going to the gym until after he retired at the age of 65.

During a typical week, Douglas spends Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings playing golf and, in between this, on Tuesday and Thursday mornings Douglas heads to his local gym at The River Bourne Club, in Chertsey, where he uses strength and cardio machines.

Douglas said some of his friends describe him as a mentor as he is “so fit and healthy”; he has no aches or pains; he maintains a balanced diet, comprising lots of fresh fruits and vegetables; he has his “own knees and shoulders and hips”; and he does not take any medications.

While Douglas does not view himself as a mentor, he believes “everybody can do it” and he said he will continue with his fitness until “the last day of (his) life”.

“My aim is to keep this going for as long as I can (because), at my age, one has no idea when it’s suddenly going to come to a halt,” Douglas said.

“When the day comes that I get up in the morning and think to myself, how am I going to fill today? What am I going to do? I want it to be the last day of my life – that’s how I feel.

“I just want to keep on as I am now – try and maintain whatever fitness and health I have got – and I shall go on making myself do it.”

Douglas explained that fitness has “always been there” throughout his life and he has “always kept (himself) fit”, particularly as he spent more than 30 years in the Army.

However, during his younger years at school, this was not the case.

“When I was at school – you might be surprised, looking at the slim figure before you today – my nickname at school was ‘tubby’,” Douglas said.

“I was tubby, and I couldn’t sprint, and I couldn’t run, therefore, I wasn’t a great footballer or cricketer, but I had stamina, so I did a lot of cross country running and swimming and water polo and cycling – those were my sports, I could do all of those quite happily.

“I was never picked to play football; I played cricket, but only for the 4th XI if they were short of a player.”

After joining the Army in his 20s, Douglas spent 33 years in a Scottish infantry regiment before working briefly in the City of London Corporation’s Remembrancer’s Office, where one of his responsibilities was to organise ceremonial events, including state banquets and eating functions.

After this, he was “poached” and worked for the Caravan Club for 13 years before finally retiring at the age of 65 – and this is when his real fitness journey started.

Douglas, who lives alone, now plays 18 holes three times a week at Burhill Golf Club – on the outskirts of Surrey’s Walton-on-Thames – and, when possible, he carries his clubs from hole to hole.

He will go to The River Bourne Club on the other two days, where he completes two circuits of the Milon smart fitness equipment, which takes around 60 minutes in total. This includes using eight fully automated strength and cardio machines, including the cross trainer.

Douglas said he maintains his fitness for his physical health, particularly as his 90th birthday is coming up in October, and for his mental wellbeing – but most importantly, because he “enjoys doing it” and he “always feels very, very high and good” after his gym sessions.

“I do it because I’ve got to where I am physically, and in physical health I don’t take any medications at all,” Douglas explained.

“I’ve got my own knees and shoulders and hips, and I want it to stay that way.

“I am going to be 90 this year, so I’ve got every reason to want to keep it that way.”

When he is not exercising, Douglas enjoys singing, gardening and cooking, and he explained that he always has fish, chicken and lots of fruits and vegetables at home.

The father-of-three and grandfather-of-three never snacks between meals and feels his diet is just as important as the exercise. However, he does enjoy eating pasta and drinking red wine on occasion – in particular, Bordeaux – as life is “all about balance”.

Douglas said there is never a day when he feels he should just rest and relax and “stay in bed”, as he is extremely motivated, but he does not “make a fetish about it”.

He said he is not trying to be “Mr Universe”, but he hopes to continue maintaining his physical and mental wellbeing for his remaining years, and he said his family is extremely pleased that he is keeping so fit and healthy at 89 years of age.

For those wanting to improve their health and fitness, even in their later years, Douglas said “it’s never too late to start”.

“Everybody can do it,” he said.

“You’ve got to try, you’ve got to put something into it; it won’t happen by itself, but it’s never too late to start.

“If you haven’t done any exercise for the last 20 years, you can still get out and take a walk, a brisk walk, and then start walking around the golf course, or going to a gym, getting some exercise, (or using) exercise bands and doing some exercise at home – but do something otherwise you will disintegrate.

“Muscles do atrophy, by nature, as we get older… you can’t stop it, but you can delay it and slow it down by taking regular exercise. That’s the advice I would give.

“Never think that it’s too late to start; start as early as you can, but it’s never too late.”