Getting old is inevitable, but do you at least want t
Getting old is inevitable, but do you at least want to try keeping your body young, fit and healthy as you get older? The reality is you’ll have to change what you do, because older bodies can’t take as much hard exercise as younger ones.
Whether it’s starting a gentler form of exercise like the reformer Pilates Sydney residents enjoy, or finding foods that don’t irritate the stomach, adaptation is key to ageing well and doing it joyfully. Here’s what you can try after 50.
Exercise
Now that you’ve hit the ripe target of 50 years of age, you need to ensure you get enough exercise. In fact, half a person’s physical decline in later years is due to lack of physical activity. It’s time to add a lot more action to your day. What’s more, physical exercise including gym with personal trainer will ensure that your memory and mental acuity stay sharp.
However, if you do exercise regularly, consider that your body doesn’t bounce back so easily from injury. This means you shouldn’t put too much strain on your muscles and joints, and rather try slower, gentler exercise.
So, what types of activity do you need to include?
Strength Training
Ensure that you have some form of strength training included in the mix. 30 minutes of weight training 3 times a week is sufficient to keep your muscles strong. More is not required for strength at this age.
Stretching
Any form of exercise that includes stretching is to be welcomed. Pilates, callanetics, or other stretch and tone workouts are excellent for keeping your body supple and able to move easily. Again, make sure you don’t strain too much.
Cardio
Activity that keeps your heartrate up is always healthy. Dancing, gardening, and walking are excellent. Running, however, isn’t necessarily ideal. It puts significant strain on your joints, and can lead to long-term or short-term injury.
Food
Cut down on the sugar. Sugar is associated with diabetes, weight gain, acne and heart disease and may even lead to cancer. What’s more, it can cause more wrinkles. So, cutting out sugar and other refined carbohydrates may help you keep young in more ways than one.
In addition, you may find that your stomach no longer tolerates certain foods. Gluten products, green vegetables, or foods containing mercury may have to be avoided. If you have gut problems, find out what the issue is. Act quickly to rectify the situation so that you don’t create too much damage. It’s best to keep your digestive system functioning efficiently, without pain or discomfort.
Supplements
When you’re not able to eat all foods, opt for supplements. Two of the most important supplements to take are:
- Collagen keeps joints young, and skin supple.
- Eye tablets contain xeazanthin, lecithin and selenium, all of which help to prevent macular degeneration.
Additionally, make sure you ingest probiotics, either through fermented foods or tablets. Fermented foods are superior, because they’re also nutrient-dense, containing other vitamins and minerals. You can ferment cabbage, salsa or carrots.
Of course, obtaining all your vitamins and minerals from store-bought food is never easy, so consider growing your own little organic garden to produce what you need.
Cosmetics
If you want to look younger, you may have to spend a little money on cosmetic treatments. Facial massages, facial exercises, and creams are non-invasive treatments that won’t harm you or make you look unnatural. Be careful of Botox and fillers—these aren’t natural, and may create a rather strange looking face.
The best creams are natural oils that contain no preservatives. Water-based products such as aloe are also very helpful, but require some form of preservative, which is never good for skin.
Mental Acuity
The best way, apart from physical exercise, to keep your mind young and healthy is to continuously learn new things. Whether it’s a physical skill, or something intellectual, your brain benefits from new learning. You can try:
- Learning how to play the piano and read music for the first time.
- Learn a new language.
- Take a university course in something that you have no skill in.
- Art demands a lot from the brain, and is helpful because it requires various areas of the brain to operate.
- Doing puzzles and crosswords, sudoku or card games keeps the problem-solving parts of the brain active and alert.
Conclusion
You can feel younger for longer by taking responsibility for your health and keeping immobility and decay at bay. Remember, working on the physical, such as muscle, skin, joints and heart is just as important as the mind. While you can’t regain your youth, you can delay some aspects of getting old. It just takes a little work and ingenuity.
