Learn the science behind aging gracefully and how to use it to improve your health. Youth doesn’t have to be wasted on the young!
RELATED: 14 Of The Best Foods For Joint Health And Fighting Arthritis
Aging Gracefully 7 Activities and Techniques Anyone Can Try
What is aging? Aging is a natural consequence of living. The small injuries of life such as oxidative stress, DNA damage, and general wear and tear add up over time and eventually go beyond the body’s ability to heal itself.
With aging, several changes happen to the body:
- The muscles weaken, making it more difficult to move around.
- Digestion becomes less efficient, making nutrition more difficult.
- Bones become brittle and more prone to breaking.
- The mind and memory become faulty.
- The immune system becomes less able to fight off disease.
The skin starts to sag.
No one likes to age.
According to the researchers at the National Institute of Aging, the estimated number of Americans 65 and older in 2030, will be about 72 million. The healthcare system in the United States and other countries hasn’t caught up yet.
7 Tips That’ll Help You Live Longer
Fortunately, it is possible to slow down the aging process. Anti-aging techniques all boil down to taking care of yourself and not giving up. Here are a few simple ones to start you off.
1. Take Supplements
Eating a wide variety of foods is very important for a healthy diet. When you eat a wide range of foods, it will help ensure you get the nutrients your body needs to thrive.
Now, healthy eating habits are great, but it can be hard to get enough nutrients through diet alone. You can take supplements with calcium, vitamin D, and other essential nutrients that might help you achieve the goal of aging gracefully.
However, everyone is different, and some medications interfere with supplements, so talk to your doctor to see what sort of supplements will be best for you. Sunwarrior offers a fantastic option with their Vitamin Mineral Rush. Liquid Vitamin Mineral Rush comes entirely from raw plant sources and contains no synthetics. These natural ingredients come loaded with phytonutrients, like fulvic acid, that deliver our plant-based mineral complex for increased absorbability, rushing nutrition to the cells where it’s needed.
2. Exercise Regularly
Physical activity keeps your bones and muscles strong, keeps the heart and lungs pumping, helps control weight, and even improves mental health. Don’t worry about not being able to do something intensive such as running or heavy weight training – any physical activity helps.
For example, you can go for a 20-minute walk, take the stairs more often, or do some light stretching, among others. It doesn’t matter what you do, as long as you get the blood pumping and your muscles moving.
Talk to your doctor about what you can do, especially if you have specific concerns like injuries, and try to get in a minimum of 3 hours – of physical activity each week.
It's also good to note that exercise in adults improves brain plasticity!
3. Socialize
Get out and meet people! Socializing with other people keeps the brain active and helps stave off memory loss and depression.
Build healthy, beneficial relationships with different people from all walks of life. There’s no need to limit yourself to people in your age group!
Also, challenging the brain with puzzles and new situations helps reduce the risk of cognitive problems, such as Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. It isn’t a cure-all, but playing challenging games and interacting with other people can keep your brain sharper, for longer.
4. Get Enough Sleep
The anti-aging effects of a good night’s sleep may surprise you! Getting a good night’s sleep leads to more energy during the day, better learning and memory, healthier heart and lungs, better immune system function, and faster healing.
Aging makes it hard to get enough sleep, but some things that can help are regular exercise, avoiding caffeine in the evening, sticking to a schedule for bedtime, and taking a magnesium supplement. Some medications might keep you from sleeping, too, so you should talk to your doctor about that possibility.
RELATED: Your Health Is A Journey, Not A Destination
5. See Your Doctor
Check for possible health problems regularly, and discuss any medications, supplements, or changes to your routine with your doctor to make sure you are doing everything you can to feel great and stay healthy.
6. Practice Breathing Exercises
One of the key ingredients to balancing stress levels and improving healthy living is by practicing deep breathing. Improving your breath and lung capacity by practicing good breath work increases lung capacity, improves blood regulation, reduces stress levels, and all this helps you age better.
By breathing deep and slow, you activate the parasympathetic nervous system which helps us to relax. The parasympathetic nervous system brings your body back into homeostasis. The longer you stay in this state, the better your body heals and develops a healthy immune system.
Over time, you will also notice a reduction in stress and anxiety. In fact, studies show that those with chronic breathing disorders often have anxiety and depression as well.
7. Stretching
An increase in flexibility strengthens your muscles and boosts your range of motion. This can be great for those desiring a higher level of athletic performance, those who want to tone their body and get in shape, or even for those with arthritis.
As you age, your muscles begin to tighten, and your bones become more brittle. Stretching can actually slow down this process and help you stay young. Injury risks from daily activities also increase as you age. By staying more limber through stretching exercises, you can reduce this risk.
RELATED: Benefits of Stretching
Slow down aging and decay with Dr. Weston in this video from Sunwarrior:
Aging doesn’t have to be such a dreaded process. With these techniques for aging gracefully, you can feel happier, healthier, sharper, and more energetic while aging.
What do you think? Try a few of these techniques, and see how you feel.
Do you have other tips on aging gracefully that work for you? Share them with us in the comments section below!
Up Next:
- Conquering Chronic Pain: The Natural Approach (Part One)
- Age Like A Man: Myths About Collagen
- 25 Vegan Breakfast (Or Brunch!) Recipes
Editor’s Note: This post was originally published on April 4, 2018, and has been updated for quality and relevancy.
