Keep walking, keep happy': 100-year-old still does a mile a day - BBC News
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'Keep walking': 100-year-old still does a mile a day
Image caption: Centenarian Peter Byers enjoys walking and regular fishing trips
By Anne Marie Tasker
East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire health and social care correspondent
Published 21 August 2026
For 100-year-old Peter Byers, the secret to a long, active life is to "keep happy, keep walking and keep breathing."
The father of five from Pocklington, East Yorkshire, said he walks into town most days "to make sure people know I'm still alive."
Peter, who underwent heart surgery five years ago, also enjoys week-long fishing breaks with his son. He added that his mobility scooter was gathering dust in the garage because "I go and charge it up regularly like I'm supposed to, but it's never moved."
Image source: Family photo
Peter said walking helped him:
- "Escape the four walls"
- Meet people
- "Keep my legs going"
Five years ago, he had heart surgery at Castle Hill Hospital, near Hull, to treat severe aortic stenosis.
"It was all explained to me what they were going to do,"* he said. *"It's an iffy thing, but I said 'go for it'. And it's done me the world of good."
He added: "It perked me up. I started to enjoy life again. I started back on American Square dancing and I go out with my children. We do everything together."*
Asked what his family think of his new lease of life, he laughed and said: "They think I'm a nuisance. I'm keeping saying, 'let's do this, let's do that'."*
Image source: Family photo
A patient's age does not need to be a barrier to treatment, according to the cardiology team at Castle Hill.
Dr Manish Ramlall, a consultant intervention cardiologist, said: "Mr Byers is a very well man, leading a very active life, and, for him, age is very much just a number."
Peter served in the Royal Navy and the Royal Corps of Signals, a career that took him around the world and allowed him to enjoy his passion for fishing as far afield as Malaysia.
"It's a good life, and you've got to make the best of it,"* he said. "Keep happy, keep walking."
He said he received a card for his 90th birthday that set out the secret to a long and active life: "keep breathing," which he thought was "a good idea."