Three mornings a week, 99-year-old Ruth Myers starts her day at the gym.

Myers started her routine in 2005 after she relocated to the area from Indiana.

Myers’ husband had passed away, and she was lonely and looking for friends.

"I heard people talking about the gym, the gym. And I had an idea of what it was and I said I'm going to try it," she said.

But what Myers may not have realized, she's actually lifting others up.

"I just hope that when I'm her age, I'm still here,” gym member Tonya Griffin said.

Myers was the regional finalist for the Richard L. Swanson Inspiration Award, part of the Healthways Silver Sneakers fitness program. She was chosen out of more than 300 nominations.

"I don't do it to lose weight. I don't need that. I only weigh about 117,” she said. "I do it because it builds me up and makes me feel good."