We are living in a time when the odds of living into your 80’s and beyond is a strong possibility. The goal should be to get there feeling great with as few “side effects” of aging as possible. The best way to insure that you will arrive at your 80th birthday party with a bounce in your step is to take a look at your current lifestyle and see if it is working For or Against your goal of vitality and good health.
“Health” really boils down to a combination of three things:
How You Eat – Food is Fuel! Your body requires a consistent intake of high quality, unadulterated natural food, and clean water to function optimally. Eating clean and lean protein, a wide variety of colorful, organic fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds, legumes and whole grains will help to insure that your body is supplied with the nutrients and fiber that it needs to stay healthy. Avoiding processed foods that contain additives, preservatives, colorants, refined sugar, salt and white flour will decrease the burden of potentially toxic substances that your body will have to eliminate. Make sure that your body is getting quality fuel every time you eat.
How You Think – Keeping a positive outlook is good for longevity! It is much healthier to see the glass as half full rather than half empty. Do a little experiment and see how your reaction shifts when you look at a half cup of water and say “It’s half full” versus “It’s half empty”. Pollyanna had it right when she played The Glad Game… Keep an Attitude of Gratitude. Likewise, continually challenging your mind to think and create will keep you sharp and has been shown to decrease the effects of aging on the brain.
How You Move – Lack of exercise and a sedentary lifestyle is a major obstacle to vitality and good health. You should get moving for at least 30 minutes EVERY DAY. Your body is designed to move and only moving every few days is not enough. A vigorous walk, riding a bicycle or working out at a gym will all accomplish the goal of increasing your heart rate, deep breathing for better oxygenation, working all your muscles and joints and increasing the circulation in your body. A healthy lifestyle means you do what’s good for you most of the time and moving is very good for you!
If you notice that you’ve been slacking off in any of these areas, you are probably not feeling as good as you could feel. NOW is the time to either develop or get back into the healthy habits that will get you into your 80’s feeling great. It is easy to make excuses for not adopting a healthier lifestyle, but if you don’t make time for health now, you will have to deal with the consequence of poor health later. Make it a goal to pay more attention to how you eat, think and move and notice how you start making better choices almost immediately.
