Embracing Your Age And Seeking Improvement In Everything
"Never let an old person into your body."
- Dr Wayne Dyer
Life, and people, have a way of telling you how to live, what to do, what to think, and when to think it.
Age is a great example of this.
How many times have we all heard or have been told to;
"Act your age!" ?
(okay, maybe I have heard it a few more times than others... as I write this having just returned from a walk and 8 sets of chin ups in a public park super-setted by walking around the perimeter of the park balancing on copper logs).
I recall many times throughout life observing those trying to act older, those trying to act younger, and those who do their very best to try to not ruffle any feathers by just going along with the program and staying in the zone of approval.
I notice age.
I notice old people.
I also notice the power of thought and intention.
I walked past a very elderly man today on the way back from the beach. I wondered if he would want to be young again, and if he did, what he might give to get it.
I recall in my 20's hearing fellow sportsmen say constantly that they were old when they were 27 or 28.
I couldn't believe how these guys were inviting old age into their lives at the time.
Looking back I realise I got that message and lesson at the age of 20.
Our bodies are always listening...
My Physical Approach:
Improvement is my keyword here.
I always seek improvement on some level.
Note that improvement is a work and play that is always in progress - it is not to be confused with perfection.
Physically speaking I always seek improvement and functionality.
I realised a very long time ago that my natural affirmation was;
"I am naturally fit."
It wasn't conjured up or contrived - it was my natural response to life and how I went about it.
I'd say it all the time.
Not as a boast, but because that was my reality.
I felt fit. I looked fit. I was fit.
Fit was something I valued. It had meaning for me.
That kind of affirmation and feedback sends a strong message to your mind, body and spirit.
It's powerful.
The thought, the feeling, and the evidence was there for me.
In coach speak that is called alignment - I like alignment.
Alignment has power and congruence.
What hasn't changed for me is my commitment to myself and my definition of what it is to get older.
At 57 I want to stay in great shape - and improve.
Why wouldn't I?
Is age an excuse or reason to stop improving?
I want to be my best... whatever that is.
I want to keep finding new ways - those one percenters as I like to say - to keep me moving and growing and thinking.
Like for example?
A new food added to my diet.
Removing a food group.
A new exercise or stretch.
A new meditation.
A new thought or approach.
More evidence of people older than me who look great.
Cold showers.
Fasting.
Eliminating sugar.
No drugs or alcohol.
I realise this may sound egotistical or physically obsessed to some people.
That's ok.
For me it's simply about looking after myself and respecting the time I have here on this planet to be the best version of me.
My approach simply states, as Dr Wayne Dyer stated above, that I refuse to let an old person into my body.
On some level we all invite reality into our lives.
We all get older. How we define older, how we live older, how we learn, unlearn, and re-learn, determines the rate at which we choose to age.
I know 70 year olds who have more life force than 25 year olds.
They may not look 25, but they sure don't look or act 70 either.
It's their mindset, their engagement, their passion, and their ability to create their own reality as others age around them.
We all have this wonderful gift called life.
None of us know when our time is up.
We know that one day it will be.
For me that is worth 8 sets of chin ups and walking and balancing along copper logs in a park any day of the week.