How to Manage Ageing - Making the Best of our Later Years

 Making the Best of our Later Years

"There are no positives to ageing"......this is something I hear so many times? I understand this statement with every year of growing older. I seem unable to do some of the things I could do so easily when I was younger. This is the ageing process and it is the acceptance of this that will help us embrace our age.

My mum would often say to me that 'an old woman' looked back at her each time she looked into the mirror. My mother was probably the same age as I am today when she said this to me. Yes, of course, I found this amusing as my mum was an old woman? Yet here I am looking in the mirror and understanding my mothers thoughts ......... that old woman is now looking back at me.

As a woman, the signs of ageing show in our faces. The odd wrinkle here and there. The skin on our body is not as smooth and firm as it was a few years ago and sadly we can be overlooked by a younger woman just a few steps behind us. All these signs can fill us with sadness and make us feel we need to hide away some place. The loss of appeal, the loss of beauty, the loss of youth feels damaging.

We step into another era, trying to accept that age changes our appearance and attempting to embrace that change.  We slow down, we need to nap a bit more, we cannot move as elegantly and we appear to lose our balance and stability skills. But, we gain more than we realise, more wisdom, more understanding, more resilience and emotional regulation. We tend to know what to expect from life and what we are looking for in our latter years. We no longer seek validation from others and focus more on the things that bring us joy and happiness.

Making the Right Choices - Ageing Better

I think this is the hardest part of all - making good choices for the age we are. I hated the fact my body could not manage the things I needed it to. Being a competitor in sports from a young age, fitness has never been an issue for me. I always wanted to win and I was willing to train as hard as I could to achieve this. I still feel the same. I want to be the best at everything, whether it's walking along the coastal path ( I do not like to be overtaken) or lifting weights (I want to be the strongest). But this is not possible anymore. I would work myself to exhaustion, just to be the best and fittest in the class or the gym. This is not good for your mind or your body as you age. I have now realised this and I have changed how I look at exercise and fitness.

This does affect my job and I am learning to slow down and welcome what I have to offer rather than fight for what is now impossible. I teach slow paced yoga like Yin Yoga or Gentle Yoga. I have learnt that there are many older adults who want to learn the benefits of yoga but are afraid as they feel they are not flexible enough or their joints are unable to withstand some of the more advanced poses. Being able to teach yoga and make it more accessible to older adults has been very fulfilling for me as an instructor and it has brought joy to those that can now practice this discipline without fear. I teach fitness with understanding, modifying exercise to make it obtainable to all ages and promoting the art of movement for mobility and flexibility. 

Living Longer - The Right Choices to Manage Ageing

We all want to 'keep our youth' but most of us do end this statement with 'but with the knowledge I have gained with age'. So what can we do to enjoy our latter years in the best ways that our mind and body can adapt.

Stay Active

This is the number one on a list of benefits as we age. If you are not active now, it is never too late to start. Begin small with little steps, one at a time so that your body will not become overwhelmed and exhausted. If you are used to sitting, then get up off your chair every hour. Take a few steps to become active and increase the number of steps each time. These small victories will give you the courage to start moving. We often expect too much from our bodies but these small movements will increase with time, so patience with yourself will reap the benefits.

If you are active, then you are achieving the benefits already. It can be good for the body to try new things, for example, you may enjoy cardio activities like walking in nature, spending time gardening in the summer or riding a bike for exercise. Adding strength exercise to your daily activities will reap even more benefits for your body. 

To stay active there are some extra activities you can add into your day to promote movement and strength for your body:

• walking a flight of steps instead of using the lift
• getting up from your chair and stretching regularly to add flexibility into your muscles and joints
• walking to your local shop rather than driving
• practice getting out of your chair using your legs rather than pushing up with your arms
• carrying home a small amount of shopping bags.
• try walking every day for 30 minutes out in the fresh air.

Working on your Balance Skills

Practising your balance skills as you age becomes a very critical part of any form of exercise routine. Balance training helps to prevent falls which can be damaging to our bodies as we get older. It is the most crucial time in our lives to avoid falls. Our bodies take longer to heal with age and we need to stay active and move to gain the most benefits with our day to day life and daily activities. Balance exercises add strength to our core muscles increasing our mobility and flexibility. Being steady on your feet helps to keep your living independent and reduces the risks of falling.

• Good forms of exercise to increase your balance skills are practices such as Yoga, Pilates and Tai Chi. These practices are also kind on the joints, a gentler form of physical exercise and also great for core strength
• Incorporating your 'Sit to Stand' exercise everyday will increase the strength in your legs and core. This will help your balance skills and increase your muscle strength.
• Practice standing on one leg. Always make sure that you have a stable object close by such as a steady chair. This will give you the confidence to test your skills with a stable piece of furniture close by. A good time to practice 'standing on one leg'  is when you are cleaning your teeth.

Functional Fitness.

I prefer to use the term Functional exercises rather than circuit training. The word 'circuit' when used for exercising or workouts conjures up images of lifting barbells or jumping rope. This is not the case for all circuit training. Functional circuits are a group of exercises that mimic every day activities. This form of workout increases the strength of the muscles that you would use in your daily life. For example 'push' exercises that will strengthen the muscles you use to push your shopping trolley, or the muscles you use to push yourself up from sitting in the bath tub. The whole purpose of functional training is to increase the muscle mass that will help improve your mobility, balance and strength so to increase your ability to complete every day tasks with ease.

Here are 6 Functional Exercises to Improve Daily Life

Keeping your mind Calm and free from Stress

Mental health is an important part of our self care and wellness routine. Finding joy and happiness as we age will enhance our life and how we view the world today. It can be quite a task to keep up with this ever changing and shifting world with its new technology and society's thinking. It would be easy to just ignore the changes but we do need to accept them and try to have a general understanding of these transformations. 

Living a mindful life will keep our mental health balanced and stable. Trying to live in life's precious moments each day can alleviate stress levels and keep the mind calm. Physical activities, a healthy diet and keeping social connections will improve mental health and stimulation. Bringing routine into your life and ensuring adequate sleeping patterns is a crucial part of a healthy and fulfilling lifestyle.

• Try these steps to living a mindful life. Just a few moments a day can change your mood from low to cheerful.
• Improve mental wellbeing with meditation. If you have never used meditation before try the Medito Foundation as this service is provided for free. They have an app that you can download to your phone or computer. The foundation believes that mental wellness should be accessible to all and provide this free service to teach beginners the benefits of mindfulness and meditation.
• Learn to relax and breath. There are many breathing techniques that teach us to slow down and focus on the breath. When the breath is slow, smooth and steady our mind and body too slows down and becomes less tense and more relaxed.

There are so many things we can learn as we age to help us accept where we are today. Life will always be full of surprises and continual changes so we can prepare our mind and body to be more accepting and embracing. We can find joy and happiness in the 'moments' when we pause and take a breath and start to enjoy our connections and social commitments. We can start to live our life with zest and energy by adopting better self care routines. Eating a healthy diet, moving more and relaxing our body and mind will bring us a more balanced life, harmony and stability.

©HealthyForeverFitnessMotivation

I hope you enjoyed this article.

 

Never miss out on future posts by Following me 

You will receive an email just once a month when I publish my new articles. This will bring you up to date on all things "healthy" that you need to achieve optimal health. This is my hobby and I love to share with you all the things I learn through my ongoing studies and the things I experience to make life a calm, healthy and peaceful adventure

If you are a little unsure about following me then please see a little bit more about me or check out my Tumblr Blog