Healthy Habits To Keep You Living Younger Longer

iStock_000016323520XSmallJust as healthy money habits can make you wealthy over time, healthy living habits can keep you living younger longer. Oh, I don’t mean you can stop or turn back the clock, but you can keep yourself in shape to pursue the things you want and need to do.

I’m 63, but according to the quiz at Biological Age.com my biological age is 53. Here are the things I do to try to live younger longer.

Relationships

Having friends and being around others is a huge factor not only in living younger longer but also in living happier longer. I have a loving spouse and am surrounded by family as well as online and offline friends and acquaintances. That said, I could get together with my friends and acquaintances more often if I would stop staring at this darned computer screen!

Exercise

I have done morning exercise tapes, dvds and etc in my home every day since 1984. While I worked outside the home, I usually did a half hour to 45 minutes.

While working I either walked at lunch or worked out at the downtown gym. I also participated in the corporate challenge – in the running events.

Since retiring, I have kept up my morning exercise routine but have added to it so that I now work out 45 minutes to an hour and a half, doing a variety of routines that include cardio, strength training, weight lifting, stretch (including yoga) and balance activities. I also have added an outside walking in our woods routine – 1 – 3 miles a couple of times a week.

Still, that is nothing compared to my spouse. He works all day long outside, walking, mowing, sawing, chopping, planting and watering stuff on our 6 + acres.

Nutrition

I’m not the best example on nutrition and I do love to eat a tad too much. Menopause did me in as far as weight gain goes. I’m seriously working on losing weight. Still, I’m not as overweight as most of the folks I see around me.

That said, I don’t eat out more than 10 – 12 times a year. I don’t eat red meat or even pork more than once a week or so. I do eat fruits and vegetables and am trying to up my servings of those. I love chicken, but combine it with pastas and rice for the most part.

My downfalls are sweets and salt snacks. I could probably shave a couple more years off my biological age on that quiz if I used the Mediterranean diet pyramid and severely limited intake on these two items.

Supplements are something that you might consider as well, with your doctor’s agreement. I do take a multi vitamin, a fish oil pill (I just don’t like the taste of fish so I don’t eat much) and calcium pills.

Drinks

Drinking water helps maintain our body fluid balance, fills us up so we don’t eat as much, helps our kidneys excrete waste and helps prevent constipation. I drink at least 5 (8 ounce) glasses a day.

Of course, I also drink a few cups of coffee and diet soda each day as well. In the evenings I enjoy one glass of sweet red wine most days.

You can also get fluids through food, especially fresh fruit and vegetables.

Genetics & Preventative Care

Being aware of your family history and taking action on that knowledge is important in living younger longer. For instance, I have a family history of colon cancer – from multiple direct ancestors on each side of the family tree. I would be pretty stupid not to get that lovely colonoscopy every few years. In point of fact, I myself have had polyps removed which could have been silent deadly killers.

I walk so much, in part, because I also have a family history of stroke, high blood pressure and heart disease. According to Web MD, walking helps to:

  • “Lower low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol (the “bad” cholesterol)
  • Raise high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol (the “good” cholesterol)
  • Lower your blood pressure
  • Reduce your risk of or manage type 2 diabetes
  • Manage your weight
  • Improve your mood
  • Stay strong and fit”

 

Going in for those tooth cleanings, xrays and checkups can help keep your teeth intact for life. To me that’s an important item – as Mom died with only 4 and Dad had all of his pulled due to gingivitis. He had to wear dentures when in his early 60’s!

An annual physical can help identify problems before they turn deadly serious.

Mom and her sister died from complications of hip surgery after falls broke their hip. They both had osteoporosis. My GYN recommended a bone density scan after I went through menopause, and sure enough, I had it too. Today, there are bone re-building medicines available and I went on them for a few years. Today I have re-built my bone loss and take in a lot of extra calcium and do weight bearing exercise (like my walking) to make sure it stays built.

Of course, on the downer side, there are diseases that truly are silent killers. Pancreatic cancer can take a life in a matter of weeks and you don’t get much, if any, warning of it. But, we should take reasonable measures to try to identify diseases and conditions that can be circumvented, right?

Other Healthy Habits 

The book, Living Young, 32 Habits of aAgeless People by Andy Troy lists and explains many of my habits above and also suggests things such as:

  • meditation
  • wearing comfortable clothing
  • being happy
  • wearing sunscreen
  • aromatherapy
  • washing hands often
  • removing clutter
  • drinking green tea (hey, I do this one too!)
  • petting the dog
  • listening to music
  • getting massages

 

What’s your biological age? What habits keep you healthy?


Comments

Healthy Habits To Keep You Living Younger Longer — 30 Comments

  1. I’ve never used that site. I think exercise and relationships are key. Not only does it help you stay in physical shape, but can also use your mind. I’ve drank water for years for many of the same reasons. I probably have 64-96 oz each day.

  2. I’m keen on nutrition, exercise, and managing stress. Several of the strategies mentioned–meditation, listening to music, etc.–help with the latter, along with exercise. I began a plant-based nutrition diet in August and have lost 20 lbs, my blood tests look great, and I feel good.

    Attitude too I think is key. The adage ‘you’re as young as you feel’ actually carries a lot of truth. Again, man of the strategies and techniques mentioned in your post will also contribute to a positive, optimistic attitude.

  3. I exercise to manage my stress and keep myself healthy so I view it as a key ingredient to treating your body right. I need to work on the nutrition bit, but I plan to have that be incorporated into my goals for next year.

  4. First of all, YAY, there are bloggers out there that are as old or older than I am. Seems like most bloggers are in their 20s, what’s up with that? Not me baby, I am 52 and counting!
    I try to incorporate walking in my day as much as possible. I love your list, but I honed in on “removing clutter”. I hate clutter as it makes me feel heavy and tired! So that is huge for my health. Great post.

  5. I eat very little meat and a ton of organic produce. I also don’t smoke and avoid most known carcinogens like the plague.

  6. Next time you write about me, you should ask me first! LOL! Chronologically, I am 66 yeas old. I had a recent physical and my doctor told me I had the medical stats of a 35 year old. I eat healthfully, very little beef and no junk food. I exercise, ride a bike 2-7 times a week and walk 30 minutes a day. I drink water nearly 100% when I don’t drink fruit juice. I use vitamin supplements. My Mom lived to nearly 99 years old. The best part is life is great! Attitude is a large part of long life.

  7. I am 32 and my biological age is…12. You made my day with this test!
    I swim a lot, walk almost everywhere and eat a generally healthy diet. Also, I don’t have a schedule, or a job to go too since I work from home, so I can sleep when tired and work when I want, I listen a lot to my body.

  8. I have been reading more on primal fitness and nutrition, and really like what I have read so far. Another good rule of thumb is don’t eat anything your grandparents wouldn’t have eaten when they were young, at least most of the time. 😉 It’s not always easy to make the right choices, especially when much of the food around us might be tainted in one way or another, but we don’t have to do things perfectly to see a lot of benefits, either.

      • I think that’s what they meant, and I love that whole cream and milk. 😉 I try to avoid the processed fats and stuff; I mean on one hand, drinking homogenized milk means I’m probably less likely to get sick (and that’s all they sell around here, anyways), but I guess there’s a balance to how much prcessing is good and how much starts to become quite unhealthy. I try to avoid margarine, vegetable oil and other similar stuff.

        I did the test and I got 16 (I’m 30), so not bad. 😉

  9. I came in at 24 which isn’t bad since it’s 16 years younger than I actually am. However, if I bumped up my veggie and fruit intake, I’m guessing that age would drop a few year. 😉

  10. Hi Marie…

    Wow…what a great set of habits to get into!! They all look like they’ll be on my NY’s eve resolution list!

    One thing I found missing…unless I missed it myself…was having an open mind and thinking “young” instead of one’s age. I find that works for me, ’cause even though I’m 53, I feel like I’m really 13 🙂 At least on some days anyway!

    Take care and thanks for looking out for us!

    All the best.

    Lyle

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