Do you remember when you were a child and you could hardly wait until you became 10, went to high school or was old enough to live on your own and make your own rules? Ironically, once that age was reached and has passed, we often look back at those younger years and yearn for the energy, dreams and vitality of those days. Instead of looking to the future or yearning for the past, it’s time to live your life to the fullest. You can live your best life by focusing on the here and now and realizing happiness and satisfaction doesn’t have an age.
Staying fit and healthy makes a huge difference in how enjoyable your life is.
The older you get, the harder it is to stay fit. Your body slows the production of hormones that help you build muscle tissue. Your body produces less energy because of free radicals and your metabolism slows. Those changes and others cause weight gain. Brain activity can slow and inhibit the production and release of hormones that keep the body running its best on a cellular level. As you gain fat, chronic illness can begin and you slow down due to the excess weight, causing the problem to become worse. While that sounds horrible, with the right diet and a program of regular exercise, many of the problems these changes cause can be reversed.
Find ways to reduce stress, which adds to the aging process.
Stress not only kills, it also creates hormones that can add years to your appearance and increase abdominal fat. How do you reduce stress in your life? You can learn breathing techniques, meditation and even exercise to help reduce stress. You can also make changes in your life to avoid stressful situations. If you feel you’re constantly being bombarded by stressful news, turn off the television, avoid social media and take a break for a while. Go out for a walk instead.
Follow a dream.
One of the saddest parts of getting very old is that too often, people give up on their dreams or don’t look for the next challenge or goal. Dreams are what make life worth living. They’re a reason to get up in the morning. You don’t have to have big dreams, anything you’ve always wanted to do that’s important to you is good enough. No matter what your age, having a goal, a dream will make your life richer and more worth living.
- Identify what you have and don’t dwell on what you don’t have. If you’re constantly looking at others with envy, you’ll miss all the great things you have in life. Focus on those and count your blessings every day.
- Learn something new each day and find ways to improve. Whether you take a language class, read a classic or learn how to ballroom dance, learning something new not only makes life interesting, it keeps your brain active.
- Be adventurous. Take a vacation to someplace you’ve always wanted to go. Be open-minded to trying new things. Take a part-time job to learn more about a field that interests you.
- Take care of problems that you can solve. Even if you’re dreading cleaning out that closet or facing a more serious problem, just do it. Start on the process and you’ll find it can lift a lot of stress from your life and may not be as serious as you thought.
For more information, contact us today at BioFit Performance