How to enjoy life after 50 and beyond

July 11, 2020

Many people today in their 50s, 60s, 70s, and even 80s are leading full and busy lives.  They do not see life after 50 as a grim reality.   They are maintaining their health and have put into effect all kinds of programs that will help them in this endeavor.   They are actively involved in exercising their bodies and minds doing such things as cycling, swimming, or weight lifting.  As humans, we need to be busy and productive in order to be healthy.  Retirement is a relatively new invention and not one that is beneficial to the human body or spirit.

People are living longer and it is important that those extended years are spent being as healthy as possible. It is nice to slow down a bit as we age, in order to enjoy our newfound freedoms, but becoming too sedentary is not a good thing and is likely to shorten your life.  Never think that you are too old to do something.  The most successful and active individuals will not be defined by their chronological age.  So how does one overcome the negative perception of aging that we often find in society even today, and win that Jackpot Capital bonus!  Below are a number of ways to live longer and healthier.

Nutrition

Food is what keeps us alive, it is the fuel of life.  The things that we feed our bodies can have a positive or negative affect.   Not too many of us look into the details of what we eat and how that affects our bodies. Probably the most important element to understand about the food we eat is the amount of glycemic content it contains.  The amount will determine how much a person’s glucose level rises after consuming the food.  Eating sweet food causes our bodies to metabolize it very quickly, the result being sugar being converted to fat.   An interesting read is “Fantastic Voyage: Live Long Enough to Live Forever, by Ray Kurzweil.

A pretty healthy and fit body mass index (BMI) is around 22.  We should be aiming to be around that figure, most of us are not.  This is considered a healthy number by life insurance companies and one that is considered optimal in terms of fitness for health.

Exercise

Physically working and using our bodies is important if we want our bodies to work for us. Our bodies need to be challenged in the right way.   Our bones become brittle if we do not do some weight-bearing activities. We need to utilize our muscles and all that is surrounding them to make them stronger. When our bodies are stronger, we can move around easier.  We will feel better, physically, emotionally, and mentally.  All kinds of exercise will do, from gardening to swimming to working out in a gym.

Posture and agility

As we get older gravity has the effect of drawing us down, we may tend to gravitate forward in a more stooped fashion.  However, there are ways that this can be avoided.   Stretching is a major benefactor. Enrolling in a yoga class can be really helpful to eliminate aches and pains and learning to use muscles properly.

Retirement should not be an option

One of the quickest ways to early death is to retire.  When you retire, you lose your reason for being.

People who have a reason to get up and contribute live longer.  Presidents, for instance, are known to live long lives.   They do have very stressful jobs but they are doing jobs which are full of purpose and this, it seems keeps them going.  For the majority of people, the work that they do is the main purpose of their lives.

When people retire, they often feel useless and somehow not important anymore.  This creates tremendous anxiety.   We need to be busy and active and feel that we are making a contribution.  Perhaps your career has ended, but that does not mean you can’t get busy and active doing other things.  You can train for a new career, get involved in voluntary work or social activities.  There is no reason to slow down.  Get active and keep moving. You now have the time to explore other areas that perhaps you didn’t have time for before.

If something works, don’t change it.

Sometimes in our 50s, seems to be the time when most of us seem to stop and re-evaluate things. We tend to get rid of things that are no longer working for us and then need to concentrate more on the things that are going well and do more of them.   A great book to look at is Barbara Bradley Hagerty’s “Life Reimagined: Science, Art, and Opportunity of Midlife.  She talks about focusing on something that we really excel at rather than something we are just good at.   We now have the time to really concentrate on those things we really want to do and the people that we really want to be around.

An additional tip: Getting rid of old stuff that you have accumulated is a wonderfully liberating feeling.  All that clutter just holds us back and weighs us down.

Love yourself and the way you look

As we age, we see those lines and wrinkles that inevitably appear.  If you are busy and have a sense of purpose in your life, these will become less important to you.   You should embrace the way you look.  You can still take care of yourself and aim to look your best.

Of course, it is important to take care of the way you look.  It is not vanity to be interested in how others see you. It is healthy to be interested in the way you look and feel.  You should take care of your hair and of course your teeth.   As we age, visiting the dentist becomes even more important.   Wearing clothes that fit well is often something people overlook, especially men.   The way you care for yourself is sending a message to the world about how you feel about yourself and that you are worth it.

Get out and mingle

Getting older can often be lonely. As we age, our social networks often shrink.  It is often necessary to make more of an effort to socialize.   Today we have Facebook and other online groups that can make real-life socializing seem less important. However, joining in and meeting real live people is what is important. You can join a church, a book club, or become a volunteer for something that interests you. Make sure you accept invitations whenever they arrive and make joining a priority.  Sitting at home watching Netflix should be a last resort.

There is no time but the present

We can take care of ourselves and maintain a healthy life, but we are not fully in control and we really have no idea how long each of us has on this earth.   It is important to really take hold of the moment and do all those things that we have dreamed of doing.   Stop making excuses and just go for it. There is no time like the present.   If you want to change something, do it now.  Life is not a rehearsal.

Life is good but it is a choice

Each day we can choose how we wish to view things and how we want to feel.  The most important thing we have control over is the way we think and what we choose to focus on.   Choose to be grateful and appreciative of all that you have around you.   Choose to accept the things that you don’t yet have and know that you don’t have complete control of the world but it is up to you to decide what you wish to focus on.

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