Aging Gracefully

It usually starts in the mirror either some morning or a time of day when we see ourselves in unflattering light. What happened to our hair? My clothes don’t fit. Why does my skin look like crinkled aluminum foil? What happened to the young body that looks like the way I feel?

Read a few magazines or watch TV for a while and it’s apparent that we are a society that values youth and also seeks happiness. Young is good, old is bad. Being young and having things make us happy, being old and having less makes us sad. Part of the reason that midlife can be so difficult is that it brings up our fears about aging. We fear that life is almost over and we still have not yet attained our long held goals. It would seem inevitable that as our muscles weaken, our hearing and vision fade, and as our skin gets wrinkled things would really get depressing. Bring on the anti-depressants and the meds!

Yes, it does seem dark and dismal, but a recent Gallup poll has found that by almost all measures people get happier as they get older. How can this be? And it doesn’t always look so good for those young folks. Another study found that enjoyment and happiness decrease once we pass our “invincible years” gradually until we hit 50, rise steadily for the next 25 years, and then decline very slightly at the end. The decline can usually be associated with health issues, death of loved ones, and the typical problems of being a senior citizen.

Researchers have also found that with age, many of us learn to live more comfortably with ourselves, and accept our human imperfections and frailties. We stop comparing ourselves to others, and begin to appreciate what we have.

So since we can’t avoid aging except by dying and since it appears that aging is not something to be feared, shouldn’t we be focusing on how to age “gracefully”?

What is aging gracefully? Is it being a silver haired person, impeccably dressed, and driving down the highway in their convertible? Wouldn’t it be better to be someone who feels good in their skin, is able to be active and do the activities they love without pain, and can live thinking that their body is not their enemy but rather a part of their life that they listen to and understand? As we can see from these recent studies,

As personal trainers, we work with our clients to guide them on a path to meet their goals. A client’s typical goal is to bring their physical health to a condition where their body can function at a level that can keep pace with their thinking. Sophia Loren said, "There is a fountain of youth: it is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of people you love. When you learn to tap this source, you will truly have defeated age."

Often times our minds go where our bodies are unable to follow. Physical conditioning and strength is not about youth and beauty, it is about having your body being the friend and vehicle it was meant to be.

A commitment to your body through exercise and diet is as essential as financial planning. While good fortune and genetics can play a big part in anyone’s physical condition, more often our health is a result of the hard work we commit to ourselves so that we may be there with those we love and do the things that we love. Eleanor Roosevelt said, “Beautiful young people are accidents of nature, but beautiful old people are works of art."

Get out and get moving!

LouAnn Good
Fitness Together Fort Myers