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Have You Fallen Into These Four Aging Traps?

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Older man working out

By Jonathan Rimmel

If you’ve said some variation of these four items, you’ve fallen prey to a number of misconceptions. Where have these stemmed from? Simple. Our society is youth obsessed. The mentality is, if you’re not under 30, you don’t really matter that much. Wrong!

Let’s break these four aging traps down, one by one.

1. It’s too late for me, save yourselves!

When most people think of health and fitness, they think of the twenty somethings with rock hard abs and a shaker full of kale juice. Now, I’m not harping on our youth by any means, but this media driven narrative does give a false impression. One might be led to believe that only the young can be healthy and fit or at the very least, you have to start your wellness journey in your early twenties. That simply couldn’t be further from the truth. Age may present a number of challenges, but it’s never too late to get fit and healthy.

2. You can’t build muscle over 30, or 50, or whatever age.

I’m not sure where this idea came from, but it’s simply not true. Granted it is easier to lose muscle as you age. However, this increased loss of muscle makes it all the more important to build it. Not just maintaining but building muscle—for men and women—provides a number of benefits:

  • Balance and stability (falls are often a major concern for seniors)
  • Bone strength (keep those hip bones nice and strong)
  • Fat loss (having more muscle means you burn more fat)
  • Increased mobility (working your muscles isn’t just about strength, but being able to move freely, and confidently)

3. Hey, I made it this far!

Maybe you’ve been lucky. Maybe every generation before you took care of themselves and gave you strong genetics. Maybe the future will prove you wrong. Don’t take chances. Do you want your later years to be full of aches, pains, sickness and injury? I don’t think you do. Eating right and exercising doesn’t have to be a chore. Find workout routines that are fun. Challenge yourself. Play games with your exercise. As far as diet is concerned, don’t try to replace your traditional comfort foods with healthy versions. That just keeps you in that old mindset. Besides, big juicy steaks are healthy and tasty, so it’s not so bad. Just pass on that pie next time.

4. But I have this or that ailment.

Ok. It may be harder for some than for others. But don’t let your ailments be a crutch. Depending on what it is, you may even be able to free yourself from it with diet and exercise. Then you won’t have to deal with it anymore. For those ailments that are more permanent, even those can be eased. If you can’t do squats right away, or handle those vitamin rich organ meats (ie: liver, heart, etc), start slow. Do what you can do and ease into it. Push yourself, yes, but not over the edge. You can do this.

So don’t fall for these aging traps; get to work. Do what you can do. Make those golden years, golden! ISI

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