A makeover takes on a whole new dimension when you reach the age where injections, nips, tucks, and cosmetics aren’t doing the trick. A senior makeover is a little more intense, and of course it refers to health care, nutrition, and yikes, the dreaded “E” word.
Sorry but it really does boils down to “use it or lose it.” Everyone who isn’t actually a fitness buff dreads the thought of exercising, but you would have been living in a vacuum if you didn’t already know that exercise is one of nature’s secret weapons. Of course environmental factors, heredity, and unforeseen disease processes play a role in the ageing process, but they aren’t everything.
Ageing can’t be stopped, but exercise and other lifestyle changes can slow it down and make it a little more palatable. You can moan, groan, and complain or you meet new challenges with gusto.
Are you ready? Get a complete physical and get your doctor’s blessing. I’ve never known a doctor to say “no,” but he/she will take your chronic conditions, as well as how bad your previous slothful habits really were, into consideration.
You can try exercising on your own but even something as simple as lifting weights can damage delicate joints if not done properly. Consider a rehabilitation evaluation and/or a physical trainer. Your body is not the same as it used to be, and the “no pain no gain” mantra isn’t going to cut it anymore.
Specialists in the field of ageing embrace the concept that exercise is the “fountain of youth.” So, why aren’t more seniors doing in? People spend thousands of dollars on medications and cosmetic procedures but complain that they can’t afford gym membership. Go figure.
Next time you are out with your friends, bring up the subjects of gym membership and lifestyle changes. The responses will be appalling but don’t be deterred.
Your health care team wants you to feel good, your insurance company doesn’t want to pay for your disabilities, and your family wants you to be able to take care of yourself. Walking around the block a few times shouldn’t be too much to ask.
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