Health & Wellness: Super Agers and Discovering the Fountain of Youth

Edd:  Wow, we sure covered a lot of topics on the Now It’s My Turn! TV show last weekend!

Cynthia:  We never seem to be at a loss for words. I especially enjoyed our discussion of Super Agers.

E:  Readers may not know what that term means. Harvard Medical School defines this group as "people in their 70s and 80s who have the mental or physical capability of their decades-younger counterparts."

C:  Well, that covers one of us.

E:  Ha! You’ll be joining me in a few years. And as we pointed out to Lana McAra, the show’s host, our current state of optimal health and wellness isn’t a lucky accident. A lot of intention has gone into it.

C:  Yeah, you touched on our aspiration to become Super Agers in the blog you wrote about being a septuagenarian. Regarding the mental part of the equation, I feel like living abroad in Ecuador for the past decade has greatly contributed to our well-being and unshakeable optimism.

E:  Remember that report from Humana we recently read? They found that the most optimistic people feel 12.5 years younger than their actual age! The Harvard study talked about how seniors with top mental fitness approach life with a sense of curiosity and challenge. They call it “moving outside your comfort zone.” Nothing like moving to a new country with a different language and culture to serve up a heaping portion of that! 

C:  Or starting an online business with zero tech skills. That was a bit stressful, but nothing compared to the financial stress we left behind all those years ago. Stress is so pervasive in western culture that it’s impossible to even recognize how debilitating it can be. Thinking about the physical part, not owning a car since we moved to Cuenca has improved our fitness simply because walking is part of our daily life. 

E:  Plus we live on the fourth floor of a walk-up, which is especially “fun” for me when we return from a trip and I have to lug 50-pound suitcases up the stairs. But because we have the time and desire, we do a lot more than walking. I work out like a madman, you go to yoga classes multiple times a week, and we both ride our stationary bike.

C:  You’re right. One of the gifts retirement gives you is time. Our commitment to some form of fitness activity each day greatly contributes to the quality of life we enjoy. And we’re so fortunate to live in a country where lots of fresh, minimally processed food is inexpensive and readily available. Whether cooking at home or eating out, pretty much everything we consume has been made from scratch. That day.

E:  So as we told Lana, we feel like we’ve discovered the Fountain of Youth since we moved here.

C:  It’s true...seems like we’re getting older and younger at the same time, which is such a delightful experience!