How to Age Well
A list of 21 simple actions we can take to increase both our lifespan, and healthspan.
I previously wrote about having just finished reading Younger by Dr Sara Gottfried, which I first heard about on the Happier in Hollywood podcast back in 2017, and which outlines practical steps we can take to increase both our lifespan and, I would argue even more importantly, our healthspan.
If You Do Any Exercise, Do Yoga
Why, according to Dr Sara Gottfried author of Younger: The Breakthrough Programme to Reset our Genes and Reverse Ageing, one of the smartest decisions we can make to live a long and healthy life is to regularly practise yoga.
Here’s what I’ve started doing based on Dr Sara’s teachings:
Drinking a mug of green tea each morning.
Drinking a mug of golden milk each morning: milk heated up for three minutes in the microwave, to which I add some black pepper, a 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg, a 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon, and a whole teaspoon of turmeric.
Eating Greek yoghurt, for its probiotics and calcium, with either strawberries, blueberries, blackberries or raspberries for breakfast.
“According to the Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University, berries have the highest measure of antioxidant power.”
Eating about two Brazil nuts, six cashews, and three walnuts each day, with about five apple rings (if I can stop myself at five) just because I’m obsessed with them.
“Nuts are like an anti-rust treatment in your body. Walnuts are proven to reduce oxidative stress. Eating one Brazil nut per day increases selenium and glutathione production, which is the most powerful antioxidant your body makes… Cashews are rich in magnesium (which may help sleep and prevent muscle tightness) and zinc (which may help memory).”
Making an effort to limit my consumption of red meats, such as switching my regular sandwich from ham to cheese and pickle.
Drinking a small glass of organic red wine twice a week - currently on Thursday and Friday nights.
“Red wine reduces mortality by more than 30%… When you eschew additives, you get the full benefits of wine without the drawbacks… Don’t forget that three or more servings of alcohol per week is linked to a modestly increased risk of breast and other cancers, on the order of 13 to 15%.
Standing up to work more, then eventually getting a treadmill desk.
“Sitting accelerates aging. If you’re a woman, that translates as follows: sitting six hours or more per day increases your risk of cancer by 10% and your risk of early death by 34%. Men who sat six hours per day in the same study were 17% more likely to die early compared with the less-frequent sitters. Exercise partially mitigates the damage; women who sit a lot and don’t exercise are nearly twice as likely to die early than those who sit fewer than three hours per day and are physically active.”
Repeating my version of the Metta Bhavana prayer in my head as soon as I wake up in the morning (and remembering my intention to do so) while I go to the bathroom, make my first cup of coffee, and get out my daily vitamins and supplements stash.
“May everyone be happy. May everyone be healthy. May everyone be free from suffering. May everyone be free from mental anxiety. May everyone live in peace, and may all of our lives be blessed with ease.”
One of Dr Sara’s recommendations is to meditate, pray, or listen to a guided visualisation for ten minutes each day immediately after waking up. At the moment, I don’t have ten minutes to spare in the morning to devote to such a practice, and I am quite sure I would actually fall back asleep if I tried. I figure my variation is a good substitute. It helps to quell the stress that often arises when thoughts start whirring around in my head as soon as I arise. My mind has something else - something simple, yet positive - to focus on.
A few years ago I started doing a similar thing in the shower for the same reason. I would often get stressed out while showering because my thoughts took it as the opportunity to have a free-for-all. Now I repeat the same prayer over and over in my head until my shower is complete, for different people - currently, my nephew Daniel, Aiyana, James and my brother. By the time I get through them all I am usually fully clean; if I’m not I say an extra prayer for someone else.
“I call upon Daniel Hamill’s (for example) angels, spirit guides, and loved ones in spirit, acting in his highest interest. Please continue to help him, in any and all of the ways that you can, with his best interests in mind, and thank you so much for helping him so much already. Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you. (Seven thank yous at the end is my preferred number - I think because of something Elizabeth Gilbert wrote in Eat, Pray, Love, but I can’t remember exactly…)
Thoughts can still creep in while doing either of these - morning or shower praying - but they have less of a chance to take over and take hold.
I don’t actually do these things every day, but I do them most days.
Here’s what I’m aiming to do in the future:
Ordering either soup, salad or fish when eating out.
Drinking collagen. Dr Sara writes that collagen is rich in antioxidants, lowers blood pressure, and improves bone density, and reaches measurable levels in the blood after oral consumption.
Fasting intermittently. Dr Sara advises practising intermittent fasting by waiting 12 to 18 hours between dinner and breakfast, twice a week if weight loss is your main goal, and one a week if you don’t need to lose weight and aging well is your only goal.
Oil pulling. I used to do this circa 2015 but for whatever reason stopped.
Getting seven to eight hours sleep a night. I currently average around six and a half, so I’m not too far off.
Taking a few short naps a week. Dr Sara recommends always napping for 20 minutes on days when you slept fewer than seven hours the night before, and napping for 20 to 30 minutes at least once a week.
“Did you know that napping lowers your risk of heart disease by 37%? The mechanism seems to be related to lowering stress hormones and resting the heart.”
Using a SAD light during the dark, winter months, which is important for regulation your circadian rhythm.
Doing tai chi before bed.
“Tai chi is one of the best exercises for people with trouble sleeping. It may enhance your sleep quality, sleep efficiency, and awakenings, and it may add about forty-eight minutes to your time of slumber.”
Exercising more regularly. I wrote about my current exercise regime recently, which consists of Yoga with Adriene once a week, and the Les Mills class Body Attack once every couple of months. Dr Sara recommends walking, high-impact aerobics together with resistance training - which is basically what Body Attack is - and yoga as discussed. So if I can increase my frequency of doing these exercises - I think, realistically, once I’m finished producing babies and they are all in primary school - to at least a couple of times each week that would be ideal.
Using a sauna for 20 minutes, four times a week.
A study of 2,315 middle-aged men published in JAMA in 2015 found that those who used a sauna four to seven times per week were: 63% less likely to experience sudden cardiac death; 48% less likely to develop fatal coronary heart disease; 50% less likely to develop fatal cardiovascular disease; and 40% less likely to die from any cause.
Doing eye relaxation techniques.
Learning more about the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) and then using it.
“EFT is proven to help relieve pain from tension headaches. Check out its other science-based benefits:
It lowers anxiety, depression, and cortisol.
In women with fibromyalgia, it was proven to reduce pain and anxiety, and increase activity.
It has been found to improve PTSD, phobias, the anxiety some people feel when sitting tests, and athletic performance.
It has been shown to be superior to diaphragmatic breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, inspirational talks, and support groups.”
Trying to meditate daily again, which I wrote about in more depth recently.
I also make James and I a juice - Joe Cross style - to drink each weeknight. I started doing this in 2020 after watching Joe’s films. Sometimes Aiyana helps me make them which encourages her to munch on some fruit she might not otherwise, and gets her used to seeing vegetables (lol). She sips on them with us too; she likes some more than others.
