Fashionably Nerdy- Proactive Aging

 

 

Normally I would not wear such an outlandish combination of ankle socks and sneakers, but I am about to participate in a game that requires comfortable feet. When I was younger I would never have worn these ankle socks with my shoes and if I did they would be very plain and nondescript. However, most of the time I would end up with sore aching feet and blisters. I paid a high price for being fashionable.

One of the great things about maturing is realizing that common sense and comfort always outweigh fashion.  Fashion may look good, but if you are uncomfortable it is guaranteed you will not have a good time. Remember a time when you forwent comfort for fashion and your feet were sore and aching? Did you really have a good time?

There is a man named Victor who I see every week when I go to play lawn bowling. He has a style for the outrageous. His colorful ankle socks rise above his brightly colored sneakers. His clothes are bright, always matching the color of his socks. But he is always comfortable in his shoes with his socks popping with colors in patterns and stripes. I always feel lifted and happy when I see Victor because he is having so much fun with color and does not give a rat’s ass what anyone thinks.

 I think I am starting to like being fashionably nerdy. My feet don’t get blisters any more. When I look down at my ankles and see them covered with bright colors I smile at what a long way I have come. It’s not the nerdy part that I like, but the part about not giving a rat’s ass what anybody thinks! I am comfortable in my own skin and my nerdy socks.

Being comfortable is the most stylish version of yourself you can portray to the world, because comfort never goes out of style. Stay fashionably nerdy and enjoy your stylish comfort. That’s proactive aging!

Doctor Lynn   

 

http://www.facebook.com/DrLynnAnderson

 

I Feel Wasteful – Proactive Aging

 

I feel a sense of waste. I am not a wasteful person. I don’t waste money, food or the environment, but I have lately begun to see myself as wasteful. Perhaps it is because I have travelled the world and seen so many have so little and so few have so much. The wealth of the world is definably disproportionate.

I am very comfortable. Some would say I am more than comfortable. I enjoy my comfort and the ability to afford some of the luxuries of life. However, I have been on the other side of life struggling just to pay the rent. I definitely prefer being comfortable, but not because of the things I can buy, but because of the stress that is removed. I no longer carry the stress of paying the bills with nothing left over for emergencies. Now my energy goes into what I choose to do with my time and my money. What I choose to do is teach others the merits of health.

Most of my friends are comfortable. Or should I say all of my friends in comparison to the world are comfortable. Some have more and some have less, but we all live a comfortable life and have more than we need.  We’ve worked hard and are now reaping the fruits of our labor. Retirement brings with it a sense of security. But I’ve begun to think about what happens when you have more than you need. It is breeding ground for waste. If water is abundant showers are long, lawns are green and swimming pools are full. Prosperity is good. But waste is foolish. “Waste not want not”, was my mother’s motto.

If I buy a pair of shoes (that I don’t need) am I putting people to work and supporting the economy, or am I foolishly wasting my money. Would it be better to just give the money away? In India I learned that to give something for nothing takes away a person purpose and dignity. Everyone should contribute to the betterment of life. I saw healthy people begging. I saw a woman with no arms selling her painting that she did with her feet. Who should I support?

I pay very high taxes without a grudge. I live well and have no problem sharing my wealth with those less fortunate. My tax dollars I hope go to feed, clothe and provide healthcare for the poor. I just hope my efforts are not being wasted by wasteful spending on things we don’t need at the expense of what we do need. With age comes certain pensiveness for things such as waste. They say so much is wasted when young. I would agree. It’s nice to finally have the time and the money to stop wasting time on the things I can’t change, focus on the things I can change, and to finally know the difference.

Doctor Lynn

http://www.facebook.com/DrLynnAnderson

http://www.doctorlynn.com

 

  

 

Girls Love to Dance – Proactive Aging

 

 

 

When asked by three women in their seventies what I teach I replied, “Spin, yoga and dance.”  Their faces lit up with delight! “Dance”, they proclaimed, “what fun!” I explained that the dance class was designed to work the entire body in a gentle and fun way. Anyone can do it and the ones who do it really love it because it is fun. Immediately they were intrigued and asked where they could find my DVD.  http://www.doctorlynn.com of course!

I created Doctor Lynn’s Anti-Aging Yoga Dance as part of my recovery from cancer surgery, but mostly as a dance yoga program that would give the participant the most bang for the buck. It includes yoga moves for balance, strength and flexibility, as well as low impact easy aerobic dance and a short meditation at the end; combining all five components of the perfect workout.

Flexibility, balance and strength are all components for keeping us fit as we slide into the later years of life. Lose one you will surely lose all. Keep practicing and you will retain your balance, range of motions and stability. We also need to add the aerobic component to keep the heart strong, the brain humming and weight under control. The meditation is like the icing on the cake. It is sweet and smooth rounding off the texture of this recipe for good health and fitness.

Girls love to dance. No matter what age; girls love to dance. Something about music turns quiet mice into roaring lions. So girls - get up and dance because the best way to stay young in body, mind and soul is to kick up your heel, throwback your head and move your body.   When it comes to aging, be proactive. Balance, flex, strengthen, dance and relax.

Doctor Lynn

http://ww.doctorlynn.com

Helping an Elderly Woman – Proactive Aging

 

 

Today I was taking my morning walk when I came upon a taxi van waiting for an elderly woman. As I approached I saw her struggle twice to get into the van and each time almost fall. The step up was too much for her. She needed something to lean on. So I approached her and asked if she would like some help. She smiled and said, “Yes please.”

I told her to lean on my shoulder and I would help her lift herself into the van. We did it together, I closed the door and away she went. I did my good deed for the day, even though I never intended to do a good deed.  I was just walking when the opportunity presented itself.

Actually as I approached the van I thought about my own mother who is struggling with arthritis and unable to walk far without assistance. Recently my family met in New York where I rented a wheel chair for her. She was very grateful as this made it an easy trip through the maze of NYC.

I also thought about myself and wondered if I would someday be struggling to get into a van? Would someone stop to help me? Then I proceeded along with my walk ever so grateful for the ability to take long walks. My mother used to love to walk. I spent many afternoons taking a walk with my mother chit chatting about nothing and yet what we talked about was everything.

What does proactive aging have to do with helping an elderly woman into a van? It reminds me to be appreciative of where I am and what I still can do. It is so easy to complain about your aches and pains. It takes a little proactive energy to focus on what you can do instead of what you can’t do.

When you help someone you get the benefit of doing a good deed. It makes everyone feel good to do a “random act of kindness.”  Helping others reminds us to give. Everyone benefits from a good deed. So if you want to feel younger, help an elderly person get into a van and then appreciate that you still have the ability to get into the van by yourself. Know that your good deed will not go unrewarded. When that day comes that you need little help (and it will), a walker will walk by and lend you a hand. It’s good karma!

Doctor Lynn

http://www.doctorlynn.com

http://www.facebook.com/DrLynnAnderson

 

 

http://www.facebook.com/DrLynnAnderson

Proactive Aging – The Familiar

 

 

 

 

What I love about traveling is that just when the familiar starts to get boring you change the scenery and get a fresh look on life. Something about traveling keeps you young at heart. I think it is the sense of adventure that feeds my soul. It is like being a child again and learning something new. Every time I travel I am always amazed at what I learn. Most times I return with such a different point of view.

Most recently I went to Nashville and Memphis. What I found was a slower and a friendlier pace. I had just come from New York where the congestion and noise slightly over whelmed me even though I live in LA. It’s different in New York. Life is moving at a fast pace.

 The people were so friendly in Tennessee. The whole state was so clean, upbeat and vibrant with life. The history was deep. Did you know that at one time Tennessee was the western border line for the U.S.? The heart and soul of American music was born in Tennessee and is still alive today.

But what I love the most about traveling is missing the familiarity of home. It always feels good to get back to the comfort of my own bed, my own tattered slippers and my comfy robe. Back on the couch watching the familiar TV shows appreciating the comfort of home. Traveling makes me feel the youthful tug of adventure and coming home gives me the warmth of the familiar.  That’s why I like to travel. It reminds me to stay open and inquisitive while grounded and secure because no matter where I wander I always know there is no place like home. Want to stay young? Travel because around the corner there is always something new to learn.

Doctor Lynn

http://www.doctorlynn.com

http://www.facebook.com/DrLynnAnderson

Proactive Aging – it’s in the soul

 

 

Recently I took a trip to Nashville and Memphis. This part of the country is the heart and the soul of the American music scene. The blues, rock and roll and country music all sprung out of the south. I did the tourist things visiting all the great music museums, as well as Sun Studios where the first blues song was recorded and rock roll was born.

One of the great blues singers was Muddy Waters. As soon as I heard his name I flashed back to my younger days when my ex-husband and I and a group of friends spent hours listening to Muddy Water and the Blues. I suddenly felt very young, hip and in the groove.

I looked around the room and noticed that most of the people on this tour were over the age of fifty. Everyone was nodding and swinging to the small excerpts of music our guide was playing as he told us the history of southern music. We were all flashing back in time.

After this we went to BB Kings bar in downtown Memphis. Memphis Jones was playing that night. He took us on a ride through time playing songs from all the great legends of Memphis blues and rock and roll. Again I looked around. The bar and the dance floor were full of people just like me, fifty and older.

On the dance floor I watched a couple do the jitter bug. They were really good. You could tell they had been doing this for a long time together. The whole place was alive with youthful energy, Good music does something to your soul that electrifies the mind and makes the body get up and dance.

For a short time we all forgot about our arthritis, our aging bodies and tired souls and began to dance, sing and applaud.   Music has a way of making time stand still and agelessness a reality. It’s in the soul!

Doctor Lynn

http://www.doctorlynn.com

http://www.facebook.com/DrLynnAnderson

Gum on My Shoe - Proactive Aging

 

 

 

I left the gym today and stepped into hot melted gum that had been spit out and left stuck to the parking, lot.  How rude, I thought, that someone would spit out their gum. The pavement was hot so the gum stuck all gooey mixed with bits of dirt to the tread of my shoe, immediately I thought of Singapore where it is a crime to chew and spit gum in pubic. It should be a crime here in the US, I thought to myself.

Imagine if it was against the law to chew and spit in public. The chewers of the world would proclaim their right to chew. I would proclaim my right to not have the ground polluted with their gooey mess and to keep my shoes from sticking to the carpet of my car.

 Now I had to go home and dig the gum off my shoe. This is an imposition.  But what does this have to do with proactive ageing?

The older I get the more I am aware of how our behaviors and habits can negatively impact others. I think about respect and kindness. I don’t consider the pavement to be my right, but the right of everyone to be able to walk without having your foot stuck to the cement by someone else’s chewed and spat out gum.  Not 3 feet from the place where I contracted the gum was a trash can. Couldn’t the gum chewer at least spat the gum in the trash?

I take the attitude that every little bit that we all do to make the world a little cleaner and l a little better for everyone is a good thing. But some people take the attitude that, well the worlds a mess; I might just as well contribute to it. That seems immature to me.

This is not the first time I have had gum on my shoe and probably won’t be the last. Proactive aging means tolerance, acceptance and respect.  It also means I would like to take this gum chewer and stick hot gooey gum to the soles of his or her shoes and smile as they clean up a gooey unsanitary mess left by someone else.

Proactive aging also means speaking up when something is harmful, disrespectful and downright rude. So to all you gum chewers; it’s damn rude to chew and spit. You’re polluting the environment and you are disrespecting others. If you must chew think and chew at the same time. Swallow your gum and clog your own internal system or simply find a trash can and If you need to spit- spit in the can!

Thank You!

Doctor Lynn

http://www.doctorlynn.com