It’s not uncommon for many elderly people to tell you that they still feel as young as ever. Sure, the body doesn’t cooperate and can be achy and sick. But, when your mind is sharp, there is no reason your later years can’t be as full as your younger ones.
Every phase of life has its benefits that can only be enjoyed when you are at that age. So, when you are doing things when you are retired that you enjoy, your life will bring you a lot of satisfaction.
The trick is to grow old gracefully and keep a purpose. It is easier said than done and will require some effort. But, this effort is what will keep you enjoying your life until the very end.
Be proactive about your health
It will be very difficult to enjoy your life if your health is not good. That’s no big surprise. But, many people just wait until they feel ill and then get checked out by the doctor. With the high cost of health care, this is, sadly, the norm.
Now, with Medicare, you have to have supplemental insurance to make sure that you can be seeing your doctor regularly to stay on top of your health and not have huge bills to pay afterwards. Do your research as to the best plan for you and your budget as there are differences.
When you are seeing your doctor regularly, you are much more likely to stay healthy as opposed to going once in a while.
Yoga and meditation
Keeping your mind sharp and your body pain free is the ideal combination towards enjoying your later years. And the ideal way to achieve this is to do plenty of yoga and meditation.
When you meditate, you are able to clear your mind of stresses and stay very focused. This reduces stress and encourages the production of serotonin that will help you feel calm and happy.
Yoga ties these two things together by keeping your body limber and loose to help prevent many common injuries that happen when your muscles and joints are tight.
Get out of your comfort zone
There is a certain freedom that comes from not caring what other people think of how you do things. Which makes your retirement years the perfect opportunity to do things that would normally be uncharacteristic of you.
It could be the perfect time to take up riding a motorcycle, or traveling to places where many tourists don’t go. Or, it may be something more extreme like bungee jumping. Even George H.W. Bush was skydiving when he was in his 90s!
If there is something you’ve always wanted to do, but felt that it wasn’t right for you when you were younger, then this is a good time to see if you would like it.