My wife and I are both 62, and careful about selecting trails of the right length, elevation gain, and surface. We found this to be the perfect trail! There are sections where you will work hard, but the payoff is immense. We did the trail clockwise, though some advise to go counter-clockwise.
The most important recommendation I can make is START EARLY. At 7:00 a.m., we owned the parking lot -- tons of spaces and very few people on the trail. By the time we finished (11:00 a.m.), there were no parking spaces for blocks and close to the trailhead, it was packed with families -- who looked ill-prepared to venture more than a few hundred yards.
You cannot go to Rainier without hiking this trail...it's that good!