My mum recently turned 60 and retired from work. Other than the three days a week when she looks after her grandchildren (my nieces and nephews), I’m pretty envious of her lifestyle now. She goes to the gym to swim three or four times a week, is training for a walking marathon and is getting into running. And she also visits her local pub a few nights a week.

Holland & Barrett recently surveyed 4,000 women in their 30s and 60s to see the different attitudes to exercise between the generations. I can’t remember my mum being my age, because I was too busy being a baby then. So I asked her a few questions about what the world of exercise was like 30 years ago and what she did.

“I used to go to a music and movement class at the local infants school. It wasn’t anything as rigorous as the aerobics that you might do now. One of the songs they used a lot was Stevie Wonder, ‘Isn’t she lovely’. It wasn’t anything formal and the woman who led the class wasn’t a qualified instructor or anything, it was just a local woman in her 60s who organised it.

“There was water aerobics as well. We used to swim in the pool and do music and movement water aerobics too.

“Your dad played hockey and football. Sometimes I’d go and play hockey for his team. Then one year when you were about six you and I did the Peterborough mini marathon. That was about 5k.

“Not many people did marathons back then. Your Uncle Rusty, did the very first Skegness to Boston Seabank Marathon the year your sister was born in 1976. But I don’t think many women were doing those things.

“I didn’t have a car in the day – your dad used ours to go to work – so I would cycle everywhere with you in carrier. Or I’d walk into town and back from where we lived – that was about three miles each way – with you in pram to do the shopping.

“I walked a lot when I was pregnant with you and your dad was awfully worried about me walking so far. He didn’t think I should be doing it.

“When my mum was in her 30s, her generation were still doing all the washing by hand so that took a lot of time for them and was very physical work. My generation had automatic washing machines so it took us less time to do the housework and it wasn’t as physically demanding.

“I don’t cycle any more because it puts a strain on my back now. But I swim four times a week, I walk a lot and I jog. When I was your age I don’t think people in their 60s back then did all that. But it’s good to keep active. My mum died when she was 59 so  I think that I’ve got to 60 is a good achievement for me.

“I’m training for the Walk the Walk marathon now. Tomorrow I’ll walk to cake shop which will be 4 miles there and 4 miles back to collect a cake tin for a wedding cake I’m making. A couple of my good friends have had breast cancer so I’m doing the walk for them.”

Post in association with Holland & Barrett.