40 and up only!

The body is an outstanding machine; though we may act invincible from our teens to our thirties, life starts at 40. Life begins catching up with our bodies, and the extensive damage we may have done to it over the years.

Rather than focus on what CAN’T be changed; let’s move on to habits that may prove beneficial for us in our 50s, 60s, 70s … up to hundred! These are little things you may do or change about yourself in order to brace yourself for the rest of your life. Time to get tough; this is for people who are 40-and-Up only, not for the weak of heart!

Train the Mind

Right now you may be split in a decision over what to have for lunch; but the untrained mind may spend his older years deciding on whether going to the bathroom is necessary … sometimes without knowing it.

The mind can only work to its peak performance when it is used extensively --- watch the Discovery channel, solve a crossword, or do some meditation; by your later years, its going to be useful.

Train the Stomach

Your metabolism will have changed by the time you get to your 40s. It won’t be the same eat-what-you-want-and-not-gain-weight anymore. By eating meals that are varied, and have the right vitamins and minerals, it will ensure you that you’d have less of a problem dealing with what you ate 20 years ago.

A dietary supplement may be in order too --- multivitamins, minerals and fish liver oil are just some of the bigger, important ones.

Train the Heart

Literally and figuratively --- you’d have to be accepting of how old you are in the present --- be grateful. You’re a champ because you’ve made it this far, and that also means that muscle in your chest has made it too!

Consult a trainer to know what kind of exercise is right for you. Mix up your routine from day-to-day, so that the body doesn’t become complacent, and will learn how to be adaptable.

Put all these three combined and you’re pretty much on the way to polishing the great machine that is the body.

40 and up only!

The body is an outstanding machine; though we may act invincible from our teens to our thirties, life starts at 40. Life begins catching up with our bodies, and the extensive damage we may have done to it over the years.

Rather than focus on what CAN’T be changed; let’s move on to habits that may prove beneficial for us in our 50s, 60s, 70s … up to hundred! These are little things you may do or change about yourself in order to brace yourself for the rest of your life. Time to get tough; this is for people who are 40-and-Up only, not for the weak of heart!

Train the Mind

Right now you may be split in a decision over what to have for lunch; but the untrained mind may spend his older years deciding on whether going to the bathroom is necessary … sometimes without knowing it.

The mind can only work to its peak performance when it is used extensively --- watch the Discovery channel, solve a crossword, or do some meditation; by your later years, its going to be useful.

Train the Stomach

Your metabolism will have changed by the time you get to your 40s. It won’t be the same eat-what-you-want-and-not-gain-weight anymore. By eating meals that are varied, and have the right vitamins and minerals, it will ensure you that you’d have less of a problem dealing with what you ate 20 years ago.

A dietary supplement may be in order too --- multivitamins, minerals and fish liver oil are just some of the bigger, important ones.

Train the Heart

Literally and figuratively --- you’d have to be accepting of how old you are in the present --- be grateful. You’re a champ because you’ve made it this far, and that also means that muscle in your chest has made it too!

Consult a trainer to know what kind of exercise is right for you. Mix up your routine from day-to-day, so that the body doesn’t become complacent, and will learn how to be adaptable.

Put all these three combined and you’re pretty much on the way to polishing the great machine that is the body.

What Cardiovascular Diseases Will I Be Prone To?

Often, there are no symptoms of the underlying disease of the blood vessels; a heart attack or stroke may be the first warning signs of cardiovascular diseases.

How scary does cardiovascular disease have to be, for a heart attack to be a warning sign? Cardiovascular diseases are absolutely terrifying. Cardiovascular diseases may develop from years of tobacco use, an unhealthy diet and physical inactivity --- combine that with your 40s and you become a volatile cardiovascular disease surprise.

According to the World Health Organization, “Over 80% of cardiovascular disease deaths take place in low-and middle-income countries and occur almost equally in men and women. Cardiovascular disease risk of women is high particularly after menopause.”

Here are the top three causes, and what cardiovascular disease you may expect from them.

Tobacco User/ Smoker – At first you’d be surprised to find this at the top of the cardiovascular disease list, because for one, you’d expect cigarettes to harm your lungs, not your heart, and for two, it isn’t immediately obvious to people that smoking is bad for the blood.

There’s the carbon monoxide --- it interferes with the transportation of oxygen, and less oxygen means a higher potential for cardiovascular disease. There’s nicotine too --- it decreases the amount of good cholesterol which makes fat become deposited on the walls of an artery. If you’re a long-time smoker, you’re at risk of a stroke or a heart attack.

Unhealthy Diet – An unhealthy diet gives you the risk of developing cardiovascular disease. The heart and the blood vessels stop working properly if an unhealthy diet leaves a build up of fat deposits on the inside lining of the blood vessels. These fat deposits cause the blood vessels to become narrow, thereby blocking off the blood flow.

Of the cardiovascular diseases that may get someone with an unhealthy diet, a stroke is most likely. Someone who experiences a mini-stroke while being overweight still has a potential for full recovery, but it would involve losing weight to prevent further cardiovascular disease.

Physical Inactivity – Currently there are studies being performed linking physical inactivity to cardiovascular disease. It’s not a direct result of the sedentary lifestyle, but it would still affect you indirectly. Long bouts of physically inactive bodies might develop arterial stiffness, and for the body to develop a resistance to insulin. It has also been found that cases of these happen to people in their 40s.

The metabolic dysfunction that follows is closely-tied to cardiovascular disease. No doubt, there is an increasing need for regular physical activity while you’re young, since the metabolic dysfunction only develops after years of inactivity. A heart attack or a stroke’s risk is high among people living highly inactive lifestyles.

Keeping the Fire in Your Belly

Fires. Bellies. I think keeping the fire in your belly denotes that you are a dragon, and that keeping that fire alive is a priority.

I think a more succinct interpretation of that statement is keeping the spark alive for when you’re over 40 --- the passion for life and living --- the thing that keeps us going. Rather than let it get blown out like a birthday candle off a cake for every birthday we get, we keep on fanning the flames to nourish the fire.

What can you do to keep the fire in your belly alive?

TLC – Tender loving care. Scratch that --- TLC is the Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes diet. It’s for people who have heart disease, have a high risk of getting it, or just have high cholesterol. Even if you don’t have them, it’s better to be prepared than to be catching up when it’s all too late. It means having less than 7% of saturated fat DAILY, with 25-35 percent of the day’s meals solely for the calories from fat. It means having to have enough cholesterol to be able to maintain a healthy weight.

Become the “Cause” – In cause and effect, are you often standing in the effect side of the situation? Are you riding life based on reactions? Become proactive, this is part of keeping the fire in your belly. Will you let situations ride you, and not the other way around? This means taking action and taking responsibility for them. You are never a victim of circumstance.

Define your life’s mission statement – Its funny how most people go through life without knowing who they really are --- and in keeping the fire in your belly, you have to be able to define who you are. It could be a tag line, for who you wish to be seen as. It helps you stop procrastinating, and will make you focused on the more important goals. It could be as simple as, “Being the one who looks after the family.”

My Midlife Health Concerns

In my 40s, I find that the more I try to fend off my midlife health concerns from the world; the biggest fears come from me instead. Not that I’m not careful about my personal health, it’s that I’m not entirely the “super-health-lifestyle” guy.

I’m trying my best to keep track of what my body takes in on a daily basis. I find that all the worrying about health only serves to make me even more worried about the threats my midlife health concerns couldn’t predict. So I trimmed down the list of concerns:

Regular Check-Ups – Before, medical check-ups were things to be taken for granted --- I mean, if you don’t feel sick, there’s no reason to go for a test, right? Unfortunately, some of the more deadly midlife health concerns are the quiet ones, the ones you wouldn’t see coming; the ones you don’t expect. You may live a health-oriented lifestyle, but you have to admit your age --- you may be sick and not know it yet.

Preventive Meds – It is absolutely crucial, that, after those check-ups, you find out if there’s any sort of preventive measure to be taken. This includes preventive medicine like statins, aspirin, ACE inhibitors, etc – and you better remember to take ‘em.

Smoke Gets In Your Eyes – If you’re a smoker, make it a point to stop now. If you’ve quit smoking entirely, there’s still the issue of second-hand smoke --- it’s even worse than if you’ve had the cigarette --- avoid smoking areas at all cost, not for the temptation, but to shield you from all the burnt poison that you might inhale.

Diet and Exercise – Set up a diet and follow it religiously --- if you can, exercise at least 3-5 times a week --- these activities are healthily tedious, but doing so proves to be a much cheaper alternative to being hospitalized. Both of them work by preventing obesity and/or diabetes, some of the very real culprits behind your midlife health concerns.

Risk Factors – Get informed. Talk to your family about your health concerns, and they may do the studies for you. Not only will this lead to a healthier lifestyle for you, it also encourages an even healthier lifestyle for the rest of your family. Know what’s right for you and cut down on your possible risk factors.

There you have it --- some of my weekly midlife health concerns --- because sometimes, we all need a little reminding from time-to-time.

What Should I Watch Out For When I Get Over 40?

When you get over 40, there’s this obvious risk of getting any disease. Some are even surprising --- the people who have don’t ingest toxic substances suddenly getting sick?! If we ourselves have a drink or a smoke from time-to-time, how safe are we? What should we look out for?

Tobacco smoke – This is the silent and deadliest killer. The media has informed us repeatedly that cigarette smoking is bad for the health --- I mean, even the packs of cigarettes themselves have the warning --- so how could it still creep up on us? If you’re over 40 and you still smoke, then maybe it’s time to quit, or even lessen the number of cigarettes you light up daily. If you’re not a smoker, remember: second-hand smoke is oftentimes more dangerous than first-hand smoke. Better stop hanging out with friends who smoke, or walking through smoking areas --- it’s toxic!

Alcohol – We can make up all the excuses like red wine being good for the heart, but alcohol is still alcohol --- have too much and it’ll haunt you for the rest of your years. You could claim that you’re not an alcoholic, that, instead, the alcohol follows you, but you should take responsibility when you drink. When you’re over 40, binge drinking is harder to recover from, and is harder to escape. If you have an alcohol problem, it can contribute to higher triglycerides, cancer or heart disease. Enroll yourself in a program if you can’t handle it on your own, or, better yet, condition yourself to drink less.

Weight – When you’re over 40, it’s harder to notice that your metabolism has slowed down to a crawl. You may claim that it’s just the beer weight, but any additional weight is just added load to your heart. Plus, chances are, if you start gaining weight, it means that you might possibly have higher blood pressure, higher blood cholesterol, and a higher risk for diabetes or a heart condition. It may also signify inactivity, are you moving less? Join a weekend exercise class, or jog before going into the morning shower --- it’ll do your body good, too, with the endorphins.

More info about your health? read other blogs posted here or go to over40andfighting.com

Enjoying Life Over 40

Quit your job! No one should have just a job when they are over 40. It’s time for fun --- and it’s not just me saying that. Doing so will be good for your self-esteem.

Life over 40 sure is different. Some days, it feels like your kids, (and I love mine) are ingrates. Some days, I feel like I don’t want to pay the bills anymore. Some days, I feel like my job isn’t as important as I once thought it was, seeing fresh-grads taking over the big, active jobs in the office.

Do you ever think like that? Well, you’re not alone. We are running on the tightrope of midlife, and the damages we’ve done to ourselves are manifesting their cracks now that we’re over 40.

What do we do about it? Well if you’ve gotten over 40, then you must’ve learned about being patient along the way. Being patient is crucial, because now, you’ll make plans for the rest of your life.

Open up a notebook --- time to reassess your goals. Write up the years ahead on the top, and write down your goals for that year. If you’re over 40, you find that the years just seem to go by faster than when you were a kid, which also signifies that there’s no time to waste.

So, say, for 2009, your plans are “Healthy Body 2009” --- after that year, you recheck your notebook if you’ve gotten that goal down. Of course hoping won’t do the work alone, you’re over 40, you should know this by now. This includes eating more organic foods, getting proper rest, daily exercise, drinking 8 or more glasses of water, finding time to relax after stress, enjoying life with family and being happy.

Did you get your wish? If you didn’t get what you wanted exactly, reassess your goals for the next year if its doable, and slowly, you’ll be finding the ways to make that goal come true. Future projection is pretty important too --- your goal must be REALISTIC for you. Would you be left in a state of “unbelief” once you do get to drive that Ferrari? If you don’t believe it can happen to you, then it’s not REALISTIC for you.

Life may get easier over 40, but that doesn’t mean you have to be a slacker. Time’s running and your goals and dreams are now, more than ever, within your reach. Time to put it down to writing -- Being over 40 doesn’t mean you have to stop being a dreamer.

http://over40andfighting.com/

My Battles With Daily Temptation

Everyday is a good day to be alive.  Not that the world becomes perfect overnight --- it’s just that the amount of possibilities is staggering.  So does the daily temptation.

Being a little older than some of my colleagues, it’s easier to see why things seem easier for me.  I know better, and that “last” bottle of beer?  I know it’s going to haunt me --- if not in the morning, but for months or years to come.

It’s easy to think back to easier times, when, after a day of solid work, I’d go thinking how a couple of bottles of beers, cigarette breaks or a heavy meal might do me some good --- but now, these things are part of the daily temptation I try so hard to avoid.

 

Alcohol – I never believe in alcohol abuse.  The alcohol doesn’t abuse the body of the drinker, but when the drinker decides to abuse the alcohol, that’s when things go horribly wrong.  Part of the daily temptation is knocking back a few after a hard day’s work.  I used to think that I deserve that shot, or that bottle --- but now I consider that I deserve MORE.  I deserve my health, for what lifestyle changes I put my body through.

Smoking – I tried it when I was younger.  My advice is, if you don’t smoke already, don’t even try it.  It’s a nasty habit that leaves your teeth stained and your hands constantly smelling like burnt excess.  Daily temptation is storming out of a conference call and lighting one of these up in the designated smoking area.  Most buildings have designated smoking areas that just make you feel bad about smoking, like an empty rooftop.  If that wasn’t a sign enough already, consider your health.  I considered mine.

Heavy meals – A good meal is something to be valued, treasured, even --- for a meal only happens once in your life.  But constantly binge eating only reinforces the bad habit as instant gratification.  It makes your body ill and makes you think less of yourself.  I can’t think of a time when something deep-fried or buttered isn’t a daily temptation, and I’m not bound to try and decode why --- I don’t want to confess these sins from a hospital bed, see.  :D

Habits that put you at risk

Here are so-called lifestyle choices/habits that are dangerous to your health.  But you knew that already, so here’s what’s topping that list.

It could be one of those bad habits you might’ve picked up from youth, or something that you’re taking too much of, without realizing that it’s doing the body harm.  If you are guilty of any of these, and find that it’s too hard to quit, remember, health is a commitment not only to yourself, but for your family.

Smoking.  Think about it, other than probably making you look cool when you were younger, what else is smoking good for?  Every time you puff on a cigarette, you are inhaling about 400 different toxic substances, most of them carcinogens.  Cigarettes are just bad for your heart and lungs --- unless you want an intervention, give yourself and your family the gift of quitting the habit. 

Alcohol.  Alcohol is a twisted wonder --- enough of it will provide you with pleasure, but abuse the drink, and you’d have a lifetime of troubles.  While it’s been proven that a moderate amount of alcohol is actually good for you, but remember, alcohol is a depressant; however fun a night of drinking is, there’s no guarantee that a smile will still be on your face once it catches up in the morning.  Excessive drinking also puts you at risk for several types of cancer, heart damage, high blood pressure and heart damage.

No exercise and improper eating habits.  Lack of activity and an unbalanced diet is a killer.  If you’re always substituting junk foods for proper meals, combined with hours in front of the computer, you are more likely to become overweight.  Eating mostly processed foods may lead to type-2 diabetes, and having more weight puts you at risk of many types of cancer and heart disease.

Breaking the rules you make.  By far, this is the most important habit that’s affecting your health today.  Every time you say, “just another bite/sip/stick,” you’re putting your life at risk once again.  The first step of any life-change is acknowledging what areas in your life you want to change.  Next is coming up with the proper regimen, remembering to set aside time for exercise and planning your meals.  The third is sticking with it.  But if you keep telling yourself to do better next time, then what’s the point?  Sticking with a lifestyle choice can give you something that lasts longer than the cheap thrills of a bad habit.

Healthy habits for those in their 40's

When you’re older, you tend to realize that every feature about prolonging health on a magazine or television special almost always leads back to diet/exercise combo.

Old age may be quite a gift --- but along with that gift comes the many health problems and brand-new health risks for you. Proper diet and exercise? Those are a given. Here’s a few more tips that’ll probably double what you may consider to be “old age.”

6 Glasses of Water a Day – Six?! Wasn’t it eight? Water cleanses the body and helps the heart to function well. It wards off potential kidney and bladder problems. You’d have to drink at least six glasses a day, since you get 2-3 cups of water from your meals.

Take Supplements - Fish oils, alpha-lipoic acids and acetyl L-carnetine will help in maintaining your energy. 

Take a walk – Daily, if possible. Instead of starting up the car and wasting gas, try walking down the block if your errand is within walking distance. This light exercise reduces the likelihood of diabetes, cancer, depression and dementia.

Be happy – Play with your kids! Watch funny movies and shows. Getting angry increases the risk of congested arteries.

Visit your doctor – In our age, we should look after our health. We may feel okay most times, but let a professional be the judge of that. Follow any health suggestion / precaution by your doctor.

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