Tag: exercise

  • Growing Older Better

    My Take On Aging

    There is no golden ticket

    There is no ticket, activity, pill, etc. that “magically” works to improve your aging process. There are many things that you can do and very often it takes all or many of them. It’s often trial and error to see what works for you. Buying into the hype of  “this is what you need to be healthy if over 50” is usually not true.

    It requires work

    Movement is your friend. You don’t have to run like in the image but walking around is perfectly acceptable as is weightlifting,  yoga, core work, Pilates, or anything that makes your body work, but the work is necessary. If you’re in a wheelchair or bedridden, be sure to check what kind of exercise you can and are able to do.

    And a bit of a caveat here it helps if you start moving when you’re younger, but it’s never the wrong time to start moving.

    macro shot of vegetable lot

    It requires good nutrition

    Good nutrition does not mean expensive food. In fact, one of the most nutritious and least expensive foods is beans. If you have dietary restrictions, you have to think about that –  if you have a garden, you can grow a lot of nutritious food. You don’t even actually need a garden – you can grow in pots. I did container gardening for years. There’s a lot of good food out there, but be a label reader – that is important. That’s too long a conversation to have for now. I’ll come back to this at another time.

    It requires using your brain 

    Keeping your cognitive activity working is something that also helps with aging. So keep [or start] doing things like crossword puzzles, or most any kind of puzzle, learning new things, going to classes, or doing classes via apps or online.

  • Getting Back On Track

    treadmill

    Or actually I should say – getting back on the treadmill!

    Last year I did training for a 5K. We did it online and it was through an organization where I used to live. It was fun and it did actually get me exercising so I signed up again this year. 

    This is the 6th week of the 12 weeks of training – and I just got started. [SIGH]

    It’s been that kind of existence since I started packing to move – last Spring. 

    Last year I used my indoor bike for training, this year I was going to walk, thinking that maybe by next year I could try running.

    my view

    But as I said many things got in the way including really wild weather and power outages and so walking outside became something I was not going to do on a regular basis – except for the dog walks…but that’s not training.

    I was going to go to a gym but car issues and other things including ice and wind storms [and inertia] kept me away – but then an at-home treadmill was acquired – and I got going.

    Above is my view when I am on the treadmill. It does make using the treadmill much more pleasant than if I went to the gym where they have a TV to watch.

    And the getting going on the treadmill and back to the training will get me back on track with my writing and course creation….and the other ideas and products I want to get out this year.

    ideas