42-year-old Olympic swimmer credits daughter for success

Dara Torres is the latest poster child for middle-aged comebacks.

Make that one incredibly fit middle-aged poster child.

The 42-year-old South Florida swimmer's most recent return to glory took place at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, her fifth such competition. She was the oldest swimmer to medal in the games, and brought her Olympic medal tally to 12.

But this highly disciplined athlete is prouder of another accomplishment: motherhood. In her new book, "Age Is Just a Number" (Broadway Books, $24.95), Torres credits her almost-3-year-old daughter, Tessa, for her success in and out of the pool.

"I think the biggest difference was that I realized that swimming wasn't the most important thing in my life," says Torres, who will be in Tampa for a book signing April 22.

Torres, who today juggles motherhood with her ongoing training and a possible sixth Olympic quest, spoke with 4you about her passion for sport, a battle with an eating disorder while at the University of Florida, and criticisms that she and other athletes use performance-enhancing drugs.

4you: Many people exercise out of a necessity to stay fit, but not you. In the book, you say, "Some people have religion, I have the gym." Why is that?

Dara Torres: It's not only about how I look, but it's also about how I feel inside. When I'm having a stressful day and exercise, I feel better. When I have a lot of things on my mind and I exercise, I feel better. I can think about things. It's a part of me every day, I'm used to it and it makes me feel great.

4you: You have always been an athlete, even during the years when you didn't compete and worked as a broadcaster and sports model. Is that why you have been able to stay at peak performance? How do you work out when you're not training for competition?

DT: That's the main reason I have the longevity, I've kept in shape all these years. Even all those years when I wasn't swimming and was retired, I would run about four to six miles a day. I would only do one aerobic exercise a day, whether it was running or riding a spin bike. ...If I ride my road bike, it's about an hour to an hour and a half. All the other stuff I would do about 45 minutes. And that's about it. ... And then I would do weights about three days a week.

4you: In these cynical times, sports fans accuse you and other athletes of using performance-enhancing drugs. You have never failed a drug test, but accusations persist, particularly because of your age. This would make many people want to quit competing.

DT: I've taken every test possible to prove that I am clean, and (officials) keep the samples for years on end. ... People will have doubts about a person no matter what someone does, whether it's an Olympic athlete or a boss of a company.

Unfortunately, there are athletes before me who have paved the way for us to be guilty until proven innocent, and they've lied to the public saying that they've never taken performance-enhancing drugs and now they are sitting in jail. That's unfortunate, and now when you do anything out of the ordinary, that (drug use) is the first thing anyone thinks.

But I don't care what anyone thinks. I've been proactive. ...There's nothing else I can do. Why would I quit something I love just because someone is accusing me of something?

4you: You say it's important to "Eat well. Sleep well. Make a schedule and stick to it." But you also battled an eating disorder - bulimia - in college. How do you address the role of food in your training and your everyday life?

DT: The two things I do get in my diet every day is Living Fuel, which is a meal replacement that has in it every possible vitamin and nutrient you need in a meal. I take it every morning before I swim. I take it before every meet and swimming competition I race in. The other thing is an amino acid complex (dietary supplement). ... It helps my recovery and helps build muscle. As long as I have those two things in my diet, then anything I eat after that is OK. It's not to say I go to McDonald's every day, I get my proteins and vegetables and such.

4you: As a mother of a daughter about to grow up in a society obsessed with appearance, do you worry about how your daughter will develop her own eating habits?

DT: I'm not going to be obsessive about things. If she wants a snack that's maybe not the healthiest thing I'm OK with that. I make sure to give her the healthy stuff and to make sure she gets her milk in, her fruits and vegetables. It's so hard at this age, because they are so picky what they'll eat. ... She's so young, so I don't know what to expect when she gets older. But I am going to make sure she has a very positive self-esteem and body image of herself.

4you: You have always been in great physical shape, but did pregnancy and childbirth help your body prepare or change your body in preparation for the 2008 Olympic Games?

DT: I think the biggest change was that I became more flexible. That's so important when you're an elite athlete. ... In the water, your biggest goal is stay loose and fluid and efficient. The fact that I became more flexible was definitely a positive.

I didn't know what to expect. I thought my hips would get big. I thought everything would change. And it seemed that everything changed for the better.

4you: Anyone following you in the 2008 games noticed that you have a crew helping you, from coaches to those who massage and stretch your body. Ever feel like you're running a company and it happens to be your body?

DT:I want to be the best I can be, and if I wanted to do something special like make the Olympic team, I had to surround myself with special people. It really isn't a single person effort. I knew I was the one diving in and doing the swimming, but I knew I couldn't do it without my team working with me.

Dara Torres will be at Barnes & Noble, 11802 N. Dale Mabry Highway, at 7 p.m. April 22. Call (813) 962-6446 for information.