Not everyone realizes the importance of movement, stretches, flexibility, and exercise but mobility is key to a good quality of life!
As we age, we tend to get more aches and pains.
Those aches and pains cause us to slow down, not do certain things or get used to walking, sitting or standing a certain way.
There’s a saying “As the tree bends - so it grows.” The tree will grow in the direction it is pushed and may be all over the place.
We grow in the same manner – we have little aches and pains, we move differently, walk with a limp, start protecting body parts and accept the way that we feel…
There are many things out there that we can do to help our flexibility and mobility.
The most important thing is staying hydrated – getting enough water on a daily basis helps with:
- Less headaches
- Skin disorders
- Urine problems
- Kidney Function
- Digestion
- Body alkalinity
- Arthritis
- Many more…
Have a look at these links:
Good hydration linked to healthy aging
6 Reasons It’s Important for the Elderly to Stay Hydrated
https://neighborsdc.org/news/reasons-elderly-stay-hydrated/
Why Drinking Enough Water Is the Key to Healthy Aging
https://www.wellandgood.com/drinking-water-aging/
The Importance of Staying Hydrated for Seniors
https://www.aegisliving.com/resource-center/the-importance-of-staying-hydrated/
Supplements – Minerals & Vitamins
There are many different minerals and vitamins that assist in the aging process.
They can help with:
- Eyes
- Joints
- Digestion
- Mood
- Mental Health
- Energy
- Overall health
Here are some helpful links:
Things Your Body Needs as You Age
https://www.webmd.com/healthy-aging/ss/slideshow-aging-vitamins-older-people
Older Adults: 9 Nutrients You Might Be Missing
https://www.webmd.com/healthy-aging/features/missing-nutrients
Best Supplements for Seniors & Aged (Guide 2023)
https://www.pharmacy24.ca/best-supplements-for-seniors/
A majority of these discuss the same supplements which to me shows an importance on those.
A couple of tips I have learned throughout the years:
- Take calcium at night or after supper – calcium is absorbed when your body is at rest
- Glucosamine is awesome for joints
- Innotech – a company based out of Winnipeg MB has some amazing products at good prices that are very easy to take.
- https://www.innotechnutrition.com/s/shop
- Learn more personally on this company and what I take https://www.tipinions.com/spotlight/february-2023-spotlight/
Health has been an important part of my life as I grew up with a mother that struggled with her health and I had many health struggles throughout these last few years.
I have made it a priority to get to know my body and what it needs.
See more on my personal health journey at https://www.tipinions.com/my-health-journey/
I created this in hopes to help people who are struggling with their health and that it might give them some information about what they could be going through.
To help understand what your specific body needs learn about muscle testing – it is a unique technique that people and alternative health practitioners have used over the years
https://realfoodrn.com/what-is-muscle-testing/
Diet
This is a big topic of discussion and one that I am only going to touch on lightly.
We are living at a time when a lot of our food is processed – it doesn’t hold the nutrients that it used to have.
We eat or drink a lot more sugar now than before and it is having adverse effects on our life and body.
I have a saying and I think it rings true to most people…
“We take better care of our vehicles than our own bodies” – we clean them, get their oil changed regularly, maintain them as needed, make sure they stay hydrated (gas or diesel –lol) and the list goes on.
What do we do to our bodies?
- We overuse them
- We abuse them
- We eat crap
- We drink pop
- Dehydrated
- Over eat
- Under eat
- Under nourished
- Not enough sleep
- Not enough exercise
- Lift wrong and too much
- And the list goes on…
What do we do for our bodies? This is a personal question for you to think about an answer…
What can we do for our bodies?
- Stay hydrated – drink enough water daily
- Exercise – regular and sustainable
- Stretches – add a few a day into your life – no matter your age
- Get enough sleep – your immune system rebuilds itself between the hours of 10pm and 2am – so as much as possible, try to get sleep during those hours
- Take supplements – do some research – use the muscle testing technique to find out what is going to be beneficial to your body
- Make wise choices for eating and drinking
- Remember everything in balance – you still need to enjoy life
- Your diet needs to be sustainable – take time to think about it and make it work for your life, lifestyle and family
- Learn your body and listen to it
- Safe detox or cleanse on a regular basis (annually) – talk to your health professional about this and talk to a health store worker – they usually are a wealth of knowledge
- Stay positive and have fun – we only have one life to live – everything is a choice – Be Happy!
There are also many different forms of treatments that can help us as well. There is a cost to them isn’t your body and ultimately your life worth it?
- Massage
- Chiropractor
- Reflexology
- Osteopathy (my favorite – I’ve seen the best results with this one)
- Reiki
- Bars
- Body Talk
- Acupuncture
- Ho’s treatments (electrotherapy - seen on tv)
- Laser
- Infrared
- Energy Machine
There are so many different kinds of treatments available – more now than ever and they do work – I would encourage you to do some research – see which one(s) would benefit you the most. I personally have utilized each of the above and tried them for myself throughout the years and each one helped me in their own way.
I am a firm believer that our bodies were meant to be in good shape – I do not want to accept anything less than that and continue my journey to have complete health and wellness – I research – I read – I do the work – I involve the right people – I want an amazing, healthy quality of life.
There have been many bumps and bruises along the way – much knowledge learned and applied – great friendships made along the journey – many recommendations and other people seeing results.
Try something new – keep an open mind and see what happens!!
Keeping fit does not just pertain to our bodies – it pertains to our mind. If we don’t exercise our bodies they just turn mushy and weak.
What do you think happens to your mind if it isn’t exercised? It turns mushy and weak…
During our lifetime we work, we’re busy raising families, helping friends – never a dull moment.
Then we retire and the quietness is sometimes nice.
However, it is super important to keep your mind active and fit!
What can you do for your mind?
- Games
- Puzzles
- Games on your phone
- Read
- Write
- Volunteer
- Mentor
- Share your stories
- Write a journal for your grandchildren to have one day of your life’s stories
- Scrapbook – make a memory book for your family of your life, your stories, your moments
- Research online
- Learn something new – a new language, new concept, new idea
Keep using your mind.
You lose what you don’t use – it is something I said to my dad once after he retired from his band.
My dad had a band for many, many years – it was his part time gig – at one point he did pursue it…
To give a little history:
- He got his first guitar at age 9, his mom taught him 3 chords and the rest was self-taught
- He performed on stage for the first time when he was 15 After graduation, he went on to radio (CBC) and television (CKCK) out of Regina, SK
- He travelled western Canada and the northern States with the Gene Dlouhy dance band
- In 1967, he started his own band “The Alex Fraser Combo”
- With his band he accomplished
- Made 5 record albums – recorded 1 in Nashville, TN
- Played in some awesome venues
- In 1979 & 80, Nominated by CMA for Best New Artist, Outstanding Performance Country Music Male Singer
- 5 singles on the National Charts
- Was on TV shows
- Represented Canada at the International show during the Fan Fare
- He decided that family was more important and gave up pursuing his musical career and instead had a dance band for 43 years playing at many types of functions and enjoying every minute of it.
I gave the little bit of history to show how important music was to him and how it impacted his life to provide more understanding for this little story…
It was hard for him to retire, as he had been doing that for so much of his life, it was so much a part of him and his identity.
It was his passion…
In that moment, we had a discussion and I said – you have a talent for this. It is one of your many talents – God gave you this talent and you have used it well.
Just because you have retired does not mean you don’t do it anymore – you just won’t be doing it in the same capacity.
“If you don’t use it, you will lose it”.
And it’s true to some point on a lot of different topics and I believe it rings true with your mind…
In my twenties I volunteered with the Alzheimer’s Society in Calgary. It was hard – I worked with families that were going through the transition of moving from their homes into a care facility.
I learned a lot in a short period of time.
These were my key takeaways:
- Don’t correct someone who has Alzheimer’s – it causes great confusion and frustration for them (after they have been diagnosed by a health professional)
- The disease hurts the people around them more than the person dealing with the disease
- They are happy in their own world
- Meet them where they are at
- Don’t get caught up in the little misunderstandings or mistakes
- Go with the flow and listen to the stories they have to share
- Enjoy the time you have together regardless of what they remember or forget
- Don’t take them out of their surroundings
- They need that familiarity
- The confusion is scary to them and hard on them when they are away from what they know everyday
- Instead take supper to them and have it with them
When my grandma suffered with severe Alzheimer’s, it was a tremendous help to know this and gave me peace of mind and helped me deal with it better – for both her and me.
Diane – a board member – did an amazing job when her mother suffered from Alzheimer’s – she’s an inspiration.
- When she would visit her mom, it was all about her mom…
- She would clean and organize and just pretend to be one of the care workers
- Her mom would talk to her, share stories and enjoy her company
- Once in a while, her mom would say to her “you know, you remind me of my daughter”, or other things like that and Diane would smile and nod
- She made the absolute most of her time with her mom and didn’t take on the hurt feelings or cause confusion by correcting her
- She met her mom where she was at
- She went their regularly and hung out with mom
I commend her for being able to do that – it wasn’t easy but it made her mom’s life better.
There are many ways we need to Keep Fit – make it a priority. It doesn’t mean that your body or mind won’t give out at some point, but at least you have put the effort in to get the best results…
There is a separate page on stretches & flexibility, and exercise – check them out!
