Dick Van Dyke has shown time and time again that a consistent exercise and stretching routine is necessary to stay mobile at age 100.
The Mary Poppins legend was up to his old tricks when he… Instagram video of himself strapped upside down to an inversion table, with the hashtag “keep moves” added for positive reinforcement.
Van Dyke, with white hair and a beard, defied gravity as he stretched and decompressed his spine, with his slippers up and his head hanging.
Keep Stretching, a song by Moonspatz, played on the soundtrack to set the mood.
It’s no secret that Van Dyke regularly hits the gym up to three times a week to use the weight machines, do circuit training and stretch, with an emphasis on abdominal exercises to maintain his overall strength.
Van Dyke, who leaned on a walker during a recent outing with his wife Arlene Silver, famously danced from one fitness machine to another instead of just walking, as evidenced by Cheers star Ted Danson and, on another occasion, by singer Rick Springfield, according to the Today show.
Dick Van Dyke was up to his old tricks when he shared an Instagram video of himself strapped upside down to an inversion table, along with the hashtag “keep moving”
The Mary Poppins legend has shown time and time again that a consistent exercise and stretching routine is necessary to stay mobile at age 100. Above, Van Dyke in 2021 at the Kennedy Center Honors in Washington DC
In December, Van Dyke celebrated his milestone 100th birthday.
To mark the special occasion, his wife led a flash mob that danced to a medley of the actor’s songs, and along with family and friends, there was a party at their Malibu home.
“It went so perfectly, just everything,” Arlene said People at the time. ‘And he was so happy. His face, I love letting him have that face. This felt so perfect.”
The former make-up artist, 54, admitted she felt ‘relieved, grateful and so happy’ about how the day went.
Van Dyke recently attributed his long years to giving up cigarettes and alcohol in his 50s.
Speaking at the Vandy High Tea fundraising event – which raised money for The Van Dyke Endowment of the Arts and the Dick Van Dyke Museum – at his home, the song and dance man said he was “probably the last living person” to meet and spend time with Walt Disney before the animation legend died of lung cancer in 1966.
‘He was a great guy. He just smoked too much! Doggone,” he said, according to People.
Van Dyke’s son, Barry Van Dyke, 75, noted that his father himself had “never smoked too much,” but the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang star admitted that wasn’t the case.
Van Dyke defied gravity as he stretched and decompressed his spine with his slippers held high and his head hanging as Keep Stretching, a song by Moonspatz, played on the soundtrack.
In December, Van Dyke celebrated his 100th birthday and to mark the special occasion, his wife, Arlene Silver, led a flash mob by dancing to a medley of the actor’s songs. Above, Van Dyke and Arlene in 2021 at the Kennedy Center Honors in Washington DC
The song and dance man recently attributed his longevity to giving up cigarettes and alcohol in his 50s. Above, Van Dyke photographed in Malibu, California in 2021
But Van Dyke admitted that in his old age he feels “lonely” and “frustrated” because he has outlived most of his closest friends. Above, Van Dyke in a scene from the 1964 classic Mary Poppins with, from left, Karen Dotrice, Matthew Garber and Julie Andrews
“I actually smoked a lot!” Van Dijk corrected. ‘I think I was probably in my fifties before it dawned on me that I had an addictive personality. When I liked something, I overdid it.
“So I cut out the booze and cigarettes and all that stuff, and that’s probably why I’m still here.”
But Van Dyke admitted he feels “lonely” and “frustrated” in his old age because he has outlived most of his closest friends and because his declining health means he can rarely attend glitzy showbiz events.
“Although I still do guest spots on TV, make ads and videos, I miss going to the studio every day for a regular series. And all my dearest lifelong friends are gone, which feels as lonely as it sounds,” he revealed in an article written for The times newspaper.
He added: ‘It’s frustrating to feel physically and socially inferior in the world.
‘I get invitations to events or offers to perform in New York or Chicago, but that kind of travel takes so much out of me that I have to say no. Almost all my visits to people have to take place at my home.’
