Preparing for Your Third Act - Pillar #2

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The four pillars behind the Third Act program are Mental, Physical, Spiritual and financial health.  In my last blog I spoke of ensuring that we remain healthy in mind, and in this one I'm going to focus on the second pillar - body or our physical health.
       
 
​               'Those who do not find time for exercise will have to find time for illness'                                                                 Edward Smith-Stanley

Now there are millions of books out there that talk about diet and physical fitness,  you may consider yourself fit, you meet the 10,000 steps a day recommendation, you eat healthily, you only drink the occasional glass of wine or beer, and you drink your eight glasses of water per day.  However physical health is not just about keeping fit, it's also, and you have probably heard this before, about what we put into our bodies.  As Rick Steiner, PhD, in his book Retirement, Different by Design states 'In the end, life at any age is what we choose to make of it..... We can pursue lifestyles that promote physical and mental health, or we can choose to live in ways that seemingly go against our own best interests'.  (www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/retirement-different-by-design-six/9781578265565-item.html?ikwid=retirement%2c+different+by+design&ikwsec=Home&ikwidx=0)

​Exercise also doesn't mean you have to take up a sport or train to run a marathon, more it's about balance, 30 minutes of walking each day is shown to lower the risk of heart disease and stroke.  If you already walk each day, try adding a few minutes each week, what about having an accountability partner to walk with.  I love walking on my own, I've always loved it even as a teenager I would take off for hours often coming in late at night from my 'strolls', probably worrying my mother silly, wondering where I was.  When I had young kids it was more difficult to get away, however, now I try to get my walk in daily, and when the weather is really foul, I take to my treadmill.  I also try to walk with a friend a couple of times a week, it keeps both of us accountable and we have such interesting discussions, often not noticing how far we've gone.  Or, you could take up a sport once you have finished your day job.  I know of a gentleman who on retiring felt it was important to get fit and so proceeded to learn how to run.  He continued well into his 70's competing in seniors games and winning medals until his doctor advised him to shorten the runs due to a heart condition.  He continues to do short runs and he took up the pole vault, setting a Canadian record at 85!  His attitude on aging is one we all could emulate, 'take care of the body, and keep on learning new things to take care of the mind'.

If you haven't thought about your physical being, or think it's too late, think about the gentleman above, who for most of the 40 years when working had no exercise plan. He certainly didn't feel it was too  late.  Start small,  Spring is an ideal time to get into the habit of walking, begin with a 10 minute stroll and build by 5 minutes each week, or if you have a step tracker spend a couple of minutes each evening for a week, average the number of steps you take each day - try adding 100 steps to that average over the next week and build your plan from there.

Obesity is a real issue in the baby boomer generation, and continues to grow.  Unfortunately, people can be obese and malnourished at the same time.  Looking at what, and how much you eat as you age is an important strategy against heart disease, cancer, diabetes and a host of other horror illnesses.  As the saying goes, you are what you eat - think about becoming a little greener, or at least more green.  Once a week have a vegetarian meal, or even a vegetarian day, buy a different vegetable, one you haven't tried before; ask or look up the best way to cook it, experiment with food, make your food life more interesting.  A current favourite author right now is Dr. Michael Greger, author of How not to Die,  www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/home/search/keywords=How%20not%20to%20Die#internal=1  Dr. Greger tells great stories, and favours a plant based diet.  I follow his instructions 95% of the time, and 5%, well let's say I have my moments of indulgence.   I believe that this is okay, my diet has definitely improved over the past few years, and as a consequence I feel better.  His website: https://nutritionfacts.org is where he investigates nutrition research and provides it free of charge in 'bite size videos'.

I would also suggest you look up what a portion of meat, fish, vegetables look like, and practice portion control.  Here's the Dietitian's of Canada website link:  www.dietitians.ca/Your-Health/Nutrition-A-Z/Healthy-Eating/Week-3-Portion-Size.aspx .  I thought I knew what a portion for each of these food groups looked like - I was so wrong!   We all could improve on what and how much we eat, think about how you measure up, and then think about taking mini steps to improve your eating habits.

A third part of being fit in mind and body is ensuring that your emotions don't 'convert into physical systems', as Thomas Moore talks of in his book, Ageless Soul. www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/home/search/?keywords=ageless%20soul#internal=1  Anxiety and worry affects a large number people as they age, and it's effect can be devastating to many individuals.  Keeping yourself fit, healthy in mind and body is so important at all stages of life, but particularly as you age, because you are in charge of how you live this next third of your life, and there is plenty of life left in you to live!

If you would like to learn more about the Third Act program, or want to know more about career transition and/or retirement, contact me for a free consultation.

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