In her 40s, going strong National Parents Center

In her 40s, going strong

November 3, 2011 – 3:26 am

For Val Wiseman, life really did begin at 40. “Most women tell me that once we reach 40, it’s a downward spiral,” she said with a laugh. “That’s so not what I believe.”

On the verge of turning 48, her life got “a whole lot better” after 40 and judging by how things are going, her 50s are going to pale in comparison.

At 38, Wiseman found herself in the middle of a heartbreaking divorce that turned her life upside down.

Not one to wallow in self-pity, though, Wiseman says that she’s actually grateful to her ex-husband for making her “strong, self-sufficient and independent” — traits that obviously came in handy as a single mother with three children to raise.

Wiseman has always been a natural athlete, playing everything from basketball and volleyball to rugby, so sports were always on the agenda for her young family. In fact, one of her daughters is on a full basketball scholarship at a U.S. university.

“We were always doing something sports-related,” Wiseman said.

Bodybuilding was something that held her interest. “I had always wanted to enter a competition,” she told me, “but my husband always discouraged the idea, so I let it go.”

But after the divorce she decided the time was right.

She began to weight train, and added boxing to the regime. “Boxing is phenomenal; it got me into the best shape — I mean I had three kids and had a six pack.”

It was then that she was finally ready to enter her first FAME bodybuilding competition. She was 40 and placed first in the Eastern heavyweight division. FAME is part of the World Natural Sports Organization, which oversees bodybuilding competitions worldwide.

Not all contests call for drug testing, she explained. “I liked FAME because it was an all-natural tested competition, not like others ones where it’s steroid city.”

Life took yet another turn when Wiseman (“a Canadiens fanatic”) was approached at a hockey game by Harley Davidson to be the new face of Harley. “They wanted to change the image from ’biker’ to female friendly, and I was it,” she said.

As a result, she has segued into TV and film work — “at 6-foot-2, they’re pretty much action roles,” she said laughing. “But that’s fine.”

Wiseman was also on the Canadian Women’s Senior dragon-boat team and won three gold medals at the worlds in Australia in 2007. “It was such a great experience,” she said. “A tremendous amount of training, but very rewarding.”

Along the way, she became certified as a personal trainer and is most happy helping clients achieve their fitness goals. “I have a client in her 60s who couldn’t do a single pushup when we started working together,” she said, “and now she does 25 men’s full pushups; it’s so gratifying to see (my clients’) confidence soar.”

She gave up bodybuilding competitions — where you are judged on your muscle mass — in favour of Figure competitions. Those are “one notch lower,” she said: it’s about definition, not bulk. Still, even those competitions are starting to lose their appeal, she said, citing the focus on where you train and whom you train with: “It’s becoming a little too political for me.”

Her plans for the moment are to hang up the little sequined swimsuits as she has turned her sights on becoming a naturopath.

“As a kid, my mother never, ever allowed us to eat anything processed or out of a box,” she said. “I love the whole idea of all-natural and organic foods and achieving wellness in a natural way; it makes so much sense to me.”

Wiseman told me she has never tasted poutine. “Why would I eat that? Just the look of it grosses me out.”

For Wiseman, proper nutrition is 80 per cent of the equation. “If you don’t fuel the body well, it doesn’t matter what you do, especially when it comes to weight loss.”

The key is moderation and balance. “I don’t believe in diets and deprivation,” she said. “Find an activity that you really like to do and it will lead you to balance.”

She says people binge with food and exercise. “Make it about lifestyle, eating and moving in a way that you can sustain and then you’ll have success.”

Wiseman says she has never been happier. She has a new love — none other than veteran radio host Aaron Rand, a new career on the horizon, and the possibilities seem endless.

“Women should never let a number influence their lives,” she told me. “With the right attitude, you can achieve whatever it is you want to do. Attitude is huge.”

Certainly was in her case.

National Parents Center