We've been deluged with books that proclaim, in ever-more-frantic tones, that with the right food, the right exercise, the right supplements, we can prevent aging or avoid it altogether.

Women to Women: A Handbook for Active Aging has a different approach. Instead of denying the realities of time, the authors assert that "This book is for those who are not afraid of the words 'old' or 'aging' and who aspire to be active old women."

The authors, a retired physical therapist and a minister in her 70s, offer their own lives as examples. Catherine began noticing stiff joints in her 40s and made a commitment not to go through her later years with increasing joint pain from unused muscles. For Barbara, being diagnosed with osteoporosis in her mid-50s was "a real wake-up call" and she began researching how she could stay healthy without medication.

The result is a practical 165-page book of inspiring photographs and tips on nutrition and exercise, all with the goal of empowering older women to "keep on keeping on" despite losses and setbacks associated with the aging process. You'll see women hiking, biking, swimming, and even mountain-climbing. You'll see a picture of Ilse, 87, walking with two trekking poles. (She walks two miles three times a week.)

The book offers many examples of goal setting as a way of achieving a more healthful life. The authors recommend setting a goal "big enough to be challenging, but not so big that it can't be accomplished," and they warn, "It is unrealistic to have the same fitness goals as a woman of 30 or 40." They encourage breaking goals into "bite-size pieces" and writing down your progress.

This book goes out of its way to be friendly to its intended older-women audience. The print is easy to read and the photographs show real women, not airbrushed models.

If you're feeling discouraged about getting into better shape, this book will show you how without making you feel like you're impossibly behind. If you're already feeling good about being "an active old woman," you'll feel affirmed. Either way, you'll know you're not making the journey alone.