While most people celebrate their 50th birthday with a fabulous milestone party, entertainment publicist Makeda Smith was desperately trying to keep her life afloat after experiencing firsthand the devastating housing market crash in 2008.
“I was at a shallow point in my life,” she tells BrownStyle Magazine about her midlife crisis. “The market had just crashed. I had lost everything— my home, real estate properties, car, dog, and man. I knew I had to do something to engage my spirit.”
The Introduction To A New Lifestyle
As they say, everything happens for a reason. According to Smith, a chance meeting with a delightful woman named Magda ultimately changed the course of her life.
“One day while taking a walk in my neighborhood I encountered Magda. She was being photographed doing a split on the sidewalk between Sunset and Hollywood Boulevard,” she recalls. “We started talking and I couldn’t make out her age. I thought perhaps she was around 50 like me, but when she told me she was 75, I almost fell out! She told me her secret was yoga and that she had been practicing regularly since her 40s.”
Feeling a decade behind, Smith decided to use Magda as inspiration to move her body. After realizing yoga was too difficult for her at the time, the outgoing businesswoman eagerly began to search for another form of physical activity.
“One day I came across a Groupon/Living Social deal for pole dance classes,” she tells us. “I had never considered pole fitness before but, I purchased it on impulse.”
At the age of 50, Smith headed to the studio for her first pole dancing class not knowing what to expect. Upon entrance, Smith says the feeling that she’d made a “not so smart” decision quickly subsided.
“Something in my spirit was immediately calmed. I know now that dance studios are like temples—they hold a great deal of healing feminine energy,” says Smith.
After the first class, she was hooked. “I didn’t think about anything but following the lead of the instructor,” she recalls about her lessons. “My brain shut out all my life woes, and for the first time, my heart stopped aching.”
How Pole Dancing Is A Self-Love Act For This Grandmom
As a grandmother, Smith says that pole dancing is a form of self-care that keeps her feeling sensual and in tune with her body.
“I tell everyone, sexy never gets old! But like everything else, our sexy requires attentive self-nurturing. Pole dancing makes me take the time to dance and enjoy music,” she explains.
Now at 63, Smith has turned her experience into a movement called Flying Over 50. The self-love movement has gone viral on several occasions on social media and has been featured on notable websites like BET and xoNecole.com.
The entertainment publicist of over 30 years says she had no idea she would have created such a powerful movement on social media, and she is happy to see so many women finding inspiration in her videos.
“I never thought there was anything outside of doing PR for me,” she reveals. “Not in my wildest imagination could someone have told me that I’d become a pole performance artist while still doing PR.”
Helping Other Women Find Joy At Any Age
Smith says that in her youth, she viewed aging as “The End.” However, now that she is aging gracefully, she is living her best life.
“I have mobility, flexibility, and strength— probably more so than in my younger years,” she notes. “One thing Magda told me and I will never forget is, ‘They lied to you about aging.’”
She continues, “Aging can be the best years of your life, but you must put in the work to take care of your mind, body, and spirit. I’ve done it and I want to help others do it also.”
To compliment the new chapter in her life and hopefully inspire other women to break through barriers that may be holding them back from living their best lives, Smith recently published, Flying Over 50 at Any Age, A 30-Day Self Journal for Speeding Past Limitations. In the self-help book, the author proudly reveals her secrets to anti-aging.
Below, read Smith’s brief breakdown of the “Makeda Method”:
Mindful Movement– “Movement is medicine. For Magda, it was yoga. For me, it’s dance, yoga, and exercise. For the average aging adult, these things might not be readily accessible but any kind of movement, no matter where, is a tool we all have access to.”
Breath Management- “I’ve also discovered that managing our breath makes movement more attainable. Your neurological system as a whole can be regulated when you master breath control. You can use breathing techniques to help you fall asleep at night and to reenergize your body when you wake up.”
Deep Stretching- “Stretching your body stretches your soul. Deep stretch yoga has amazing physical benefits like increased mobility—think beyond bending over and touching your toes. Did you know that deep stretching calms your nerves and relaxes your spirit?”
To join one of her online classes or learn more about her breathwork sessions, deep stretch yoga classes, and dance-flow movement classes visit www.flyingover50.com!
