Posted on 13 Oct, 2011 -
An A to Z of CONSERVING yourself
From As Young As You Feel to… Zimmer Frames… Via posture, moisturiser and Sex, Drugs and Rock and Roll…
Make sure you hop, skip and jump your way through the rest of your life
Dear Reader,
Few of us want to die, grow old or give up before our time. And it isn’t just about our looks and our health.
Conserving yourself if also about conserving you: your va va voom… your joie de vivre… your zest. It’s also about adapting with the times and moving on… Becoming even more than you were yesterday… and being ready for anything.
As young as you feel? Or as old as you look? As long as you’re feeling GOOD, I don’t really care.
Be ready for the world and ready for the next great day. Because you’re the only one who can.
C is for change. The more you embrace it and welcome it the younger you will remain. Try new things now before it’s too late - and keep packing in those experiences now.
So keep up the Dancing, the fine Dining and the Delighting in life.
Even the oldest among us can still jig in our chairs or sway along to music or sing to our hearts content.
F is for flexibility both of attitude and body. Every day take time to stretch and bend and keep your limbs and joints from seizing up or reducing their range of movement. Remain always flexible in adapting to or embracing what life throws at you. And always be open to a change of mind or heart.
To stay positive and flexible or mind it may be important to take a look at the people you have around you. Get rid of any Grumpy, negative friends and keep hold of all the cheerful ones.
H is for your hamstrings, the muscles in your thighs. Bend them, stretch them, anyway you want them. Walk them up and down stairs.
Whatever form of exercise you choose to take, however, the key is always to Increase things slowly. Doing too much too fast can lead to damage of the Joints. Just a little bit more each week is the wise way forward. Never do more than 10% extra and then build it up slowly.
J is for JUST DO IT. Now.
Keeping your Knees pain-free could be as simple as losing 11 pounds. Research has shown that for a woman of average height, losing as little as 11 pounds may cut the risk of osteo-arthritis of the knee by up to 50%.
L is for both Laughter and Learning, especially something new. Neuroscientist and cognitive aging specialist Dr Adam Gazzaley suggests that going out of your way to challenge yourself mentally is the best way to stay mentally active and fit. Take up a new language or hobby or take a course.
M is for moisturise. Whether you’re male or female, slather it on body and face to reduce the appearance of aging in your skin.
N is for never taking anything for granted. Cherish what and who you have.
Remain as Optimistic as you can throughout thick and thin. Because Optimism gives you resilience and the will to live. Optimism tells your body that you want it to keep you alive - and makes your life even more worth living.
As Charles Dickens once said, ”Cheerfulness and contentment are great beautifiers and are famous preservers of youthful looks.”
P is for Posture. Because poor posture not only makes you look older, it could also lead to pot belly, dowager’s hump or a double chin. Stand up straight with your shoulders back, chin up and you will look and feel ten years younger.
Q is for the Queen because there’s somebody who’s set a good example of keeping your wits about you.
Run, run, as fast as you can… Run for a bus. Run for your life. Run to feel the life pumping through your veins - even if it’s just for a few minutes or metres.
And anything that improves your Respiratory fitness.
S is for Sex, Drugs and Rock and Roll. It may be the recipe for an early death when you’re young - but it’s the perfect recipe for staying younger when you’re old. (Especially if those drugs are of the anti-oxidant, anti-aging supplement variety...)
T is for Taking Stock. Take stock of how you’re doing now and take tiny steps to make it better.
U is for Understanding. Understanding that things don’t always go how you want them to but if you go happily with the flow and welcome all events with positive curiosity then life will at least seem to be on your side.
Volunteer your way to youth and put a spring in your step. Separate studies by Michigan psychologist Stephanie Brown and Dr. Linda P. Fried of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore concluded that volunteering your time to help others can slow down the aging process.
And don’t forget your Vegetables. See vegetables as a stay-young fuel packed with stay-young chemicals. Eat them with greed and relish.
W is for a drop of red Wine. The World Health Organization indicates that Resveratrol, an organic compound found in red wine, is one of the active ingredients which reduces the risk of coronary heart disease in red wine drinkers by up to 40%. It is now believed to have an anti-aging effect as well.
X is for Xtra. Because when you get to this age you need extra everything.
Y is for Youth. ”You can only be young once. But you can always be immature.” Dave Barry
Z is for Zippy and Zoos… and for Zen and Zimmer frames and Zest. Because as Oscar Wilde once said, ”An inordinate passion for pleasure is the secret of remaining young.”
Best wishes
