Best anti ageing tips - body and soul

[Shoeshelpplease]

Thought it would be lovely to share our best anti ageing tips here.

As I am getting older I am finding my body starting to ache and I am trying to retain as much as of my youth and health as possible.

I think that, moving into menopause, it is important to be as strong as possible and to this end I am a big Body Pump advocate. It's relatively new to me but i can see the women in my class that have been going for a while are strong, move more freely and generally look younger.

Yoga is another big one and I really need to carve out more time in my day to make this a daily practice.

My eye sight has deteriorated, it has been perfect all my life, and now I am moving things forwards and backwards to try to get focus on writing. I am going to get the correct glasses because that action in itself I find (for me) to be a classic sign of ageing eyesight.

I am slathering on the factor 50 on my face daily and have been doing for a few years now. I also heavily moisturise my neck and chest as this is an area of concern.

I don't so much mind the wrinkles, the crows feet. I really don't like jowls and am interested in any tips here. I'm going to look into shading.

I know sleep is a real biggie for ageing and general health. I wake up ridiculously early every morning and can't get back to sleep so have just invested in a Bluetooth eye and ear mask to listen to white noise and soothing myself back to sleep.

Glucosamine has helped my joint pain incredibly and I am thankful for it.

Some women you see age so beautifully and seem to have less health concerns. Weight is obviously an big factor. I think the big tummy and weight in general are big ageing signs as metabolism begins to slow.

I would love to hear your thoughts and tips.

My number one tip is too avoid dehydration at all costs. As we get older, insufficient water intake wrecks havoc on every part of our body. Ironically, as we get older it becomes harder for us to recognise the symptoms of being dehydrated. You have to make a very conscious effort to drink enough. I notice negative side effects if I don't drink enough water even for one day.

Yes, that is a very good one! I drink copious amounts of water during the day. Unless I am out and about, ageing bladder means I am more conscious of needing the loo more and if they are not always available the. Intake has to be limited.

I did read recently that over hydration can also be a problem, but I think you have to go a fair way to achieve that

And obviously smoking is the no 1 ager. Then sun exposure.

I guess alcohol to some degree too but you have to live it you would age miserably.

I think yoga is a big one because everyone I know who does yoga regularly looks about 10 yrs younger than they are

Ah yes. They don’t drink or smoke either.

Yoga for sure, maintains strength and flexibility, and everyone can do it.
Good nutrition, sleep, hydration I guess are givens.
Manage any pain issues you have, don’t just put up with niggles, work out what is going on and get it treated/managed
Healthy mind - learn to be able to rationalise, unpack anxieties and deal with them, to be mindful, manage/balance your moods, basically to be aware of your own mental health and take care of it in the same way as your physical health. Therapy might be needed for some of us to manage this.
Oh and take care of your feet - see a proper podiatrist for even the most minor foot or ankle issue, wear decent supportive shoes. You won’t get replacement feet if you wreck them.
And follow what your dentist recommends as well

I recommend them all the time, but no, I do not work for them. Future Learn runs open online courses on healthy ageing.
I took them because I do not want to end like MIL, if I can possibly avoid it and learned some suprising things.

I have a wonderful plastic surgeon ! I look 29, my boobs are under my chin , my tummy button is also somewhere up there too. and my lips are like a goldfish. [tyoed in jest, getting old is ok mostly, a few shitty bits but better than being dead ]

@Lora8
She reached pension age (65y) and then gradually stopped living.
She is still comparatively healthy, but:
She felt old using a walking aid - so stopped going out.
She felt old using a hearing aid - so didn't - now she is in her ninties and has not been able to hold a conversation for ages.
She allowed herself to become obese, which reduced her mobility and increased her anxiety over falling etc. - so stopped doing things.
She always was a comparatively passive person relying (sp.?) on external entertainment, but did not make new contacts (bc. of no hearing aids and the effort and dangers involvded) - so is bored and consequently depressed.
She basically did the opposite of what's recommended and has been living like that for the last 30 or so years.

@Prokupatuscrakedatus I've had a quick look at those courses and they look really interesting. I think I will sign up but I am always really suspicious of free courses. What's in it for them to offer this? I don't really understand the business model. Do you know much about it?

@Kyvia God I haven't really factored in the foot thing!

Strangely enough I am just having an issue and have a GP referral to podiatry!

Do you have experience of foot issues?

I'm not sure I have time for yoga. work full time and I get home to such a messy house. Two teens sprawled on sofas surrounded by wrappers asking what's for dinner. I need the yoga.

Interesting that we feel thirst less as we get older. I don't drink as much as I used to. I can't face it.

I take the chill off it when I 'make' myself drink it which really helps.
My Mum has terrible osteoporosis so I'm going to start taking vitamin d and calcium. I'm 49.

I think you have to take the 'a stitch in time saves nine' approach. So as a poster above said, research and sort out health niggles early. I am eternally grateful that after having my babies I was able to have a course of osteopathic treatment that sorted my painful back out while I was still young. Ditto prompt intensive dental/period treatment when my gums gave up the ghost. All that cost me a fortune and I went without a lot of things I'd rather have spent that money on, but it was a brilliant investment because you learn so much from the personalised advice of professionals. Looks-wise I think sunscreen/hat/glasses is the most important thing, and rubber gloves for cleaning + frequent hand cream.

Yes i see a hygienest every 4 months now. I used to avoid the dentist out of fear. Interesting what you say about feet.

Im currently trying to loosen a pair of shoesi like by wearing them around the house with 2 pairs of socks. But they really are a size to small. Why whould i do this to myself!!

I do know a few women who are mad into yoga and i dont think they necessarily look years younger than they are, but they arent always rushing everywhere like i am. My only exercise is moving quickly :-/

Suncream! My friend was an avid sunbedder in her 20s she now has chest wrinkles in her 30s. I use Factor 50 every day on my face under makeup, even on cloudy days in the UK and suncream, if out and about, on my body.

I also don't lie flat out in the sun even with suncream on, don't want leathery skin.

Also the obvious, exercise and healthy eating.

@Shoeshelpplease
FutureLearn offers MOOC courses from universities mostly based in the UK - in my opinion FL is better than edx or coursera.
You only pay if you need a certificate (then you upgrade) or are doing a degree. For example I recently did courses on ASD and there I payed for a certificate and did the tests, to hand in at DS school.

I also payed for a certificate for a scrum/agility course which I handed in at work.

Apart from that I had endless hours of fun for free.

Ha! My overweight alcoholic heavy smoker mother loved yoga, practised at home daily, & extolled yoga to everyone. She didn't look young for age.

Pelvic floor exercises are important to do regularly. I guess I've known that for 35 yrs, though.

Need to use suncream for decades for it to make a difference, I reckon.

Great advice I had from BF when I was unhappy about turning 20:
Enjoy every age for what it is.

My appreciation of yoga isn’t about looking young, it’s about ageing well, getting to know your body, it’s strengths and weaknesses, maintaining it’s tone and flexibility to reduce the speed with which just age/unfitness cripples you.

My mini-obsession with feet is because I’ve had some major foot/ankle/knee pain issues which have been pretty much remedied just by wearing better shoes that support my high arches properly, and when it plays up my podiatrist & my physio taught me some taping/support techniques to help keep everything in a proper alignment. A bit of learning about my anatomy and I feel pretty confident about managing things going forward. My 89-year old grandmother is now suffering with horribly deformed ankles which are about the only thing slowing her down, she’s otherwise pretty fit and sharp as a tack, and it really saddens me. Forget skin & hair care, that’s all very nice and everything, but it’s your eyesight, teeth and feet that will get you through your old age, which will come to us all (hopefully, the alternative isn’t much fun either).

Lots of health plans that cover dental/optician fees include podiatry as well so you can just go for an annual check up, get any hard skin sorted out and get your feet checked up same as you do your teeth.

Lecture over

This is soul and mind and might be controversial but based on my parents and ILs - meet people and meet people of all ages.

My DF's last job before he retired was in a university so he was meeting a wide variety of people, professors, students etc. He was full of ideas and very in touch with what was going on in the world. Then he retired and proceeded to drive my DM insane as his world contracted smaller and smaller. Eventually she got him volunteering with a youth charity and he became alive again as he was seeing a mix of people again.

My ILs know the same people, their age - now elderly, they have always known. Their world now consists of stuff they read in the Telegraph and other people's illnesses. It's grim and my MIL who is fit, healthy and not really that elderly is one of the dullest, most limited people alive.

In contrast my DM who is heavily disabled has a range of friends, some from U3A, but also all her neighbours with young families. It makes the world of difference as she can talk about loads of things, even when she is poorly.

I only started to worry about anti-ageing a few months ago. I had nowhere to start, not a clue what I was doing and all my friends thought I was mad for even trying.

I then found this article on Lumity and actually found I could incorporate skin regimes into my everyday life.

That's my advice, try something you can incorporate into the everyday.