10 Tips to Staying Youthful
Recently I was at the annual Hay House I Can Do It conference in Pasadena, California. I got to see a number of amazing speakers who addressed the mind, body, spirit collective.
One of the speakers who stood out for me is someone I’ve seen a handful of times before, Dr. Christiane Northrup. A physician, author, mother, inspirational speaker, and pioneer in women’s health, she addressed aging in her keynote on Saturday evening. A couple of the things that she said really stuck with me and they were:
- Stop telling people your age – I love sharing my age, got to work on this one.
- Stop acting your age – I’m notorious for not acting like an adult, nailed this one.
Her reasons were pretty clear: we have preconceived ideas about what certain ages should bring. And not only do we have those preconceived ideas, so do other people. It leads to ageism!
Over the course of the past week I spent time with a number of my girlfriends and gathered a handful of additional tips for remaining youthful.
- Laugh – Laugh at yourself, laugh at life, just find something to laugh about daily.
- Forgive – Holding onto grudges, anger, resentment and all that other negative nonsense puts stress on your body, and stress leads to wrinkles as well is bad health.
- Move – Get up and dance, run, walk or play if you can. If you can’t, then wiggle your arms and legs or flap them like a bird. Just find a way to move your body joyfully for 20 to 30 minutes a day.
- Look to the future – Quit focusing on the past. It’s nice to reminisce but having something to look forward to – events, goals, treats, etc. those give you motivation to keep moving forward.
- Hold on to memories, let go of stuff – Do you really need the stuffed animal your first boyfriend gave you back in high school or the silk flower you got for Mother’s Day 12 years ago? Things require energy and attention and so do people. Where do you think your energy is best spent?
- Keep learning – Even if it’s learning to brush your teeth with your non-dominant hand, if you continue to learn and expand your knowledge base you have greater likelihood of staving off cognitive impairment associated with aging and you’ll have cool things to talk about with your friends and family – instead of repeating the same old stories.
- Make new friends – Create new relationships in your life, and not just with people who are exactly like you. By creating and nurturing new relationships you’ll be exposed to new things and you’ll tick off a few of the other items on this list.
- Find a purpose – Whether you take a job, start a business, do volunteer work or whatever it is, having a purpose that is greater than you, a connection to something that needs you more will continue to motivate you to keep actively participating in this wonderful thing called life.
Read more: My Lesson in Aging Gracefully
copyright Kimberly Rinaldi 2015
