It’s an interesting question, and one I think we are reluctant to really consider as much as we should.
Some of us at least.
Is the tendency to wait until something has happened to us before we think about taking more care of ourselves?
Do we think that we’re being selfish when we put ourselves first?
That might have a lot to do with it.
The thing is, and this is where it gets a bit morose, after we hit our mid/late 20’s, everything starts to degenerate. That is the natural order of things, and nothing to be unduly worried about.
If you go for an MRI in your early 30’s, you’ll find that some of the discs in your spine have started this process. Go again in your early 40’s and it’ll be more prominent. Early 50’s and more prominent again. The natural order of things.
Does this mean that we should accept that and stop taking care of ourselves?
Absolutely not! If we accept that things will slow down as we get older, and our bodies will follow the natural order of things, we should do all we can to support that process.
That means keeping active. Lifting weights. Giving our cardio system a good shake up regularly every week. Moving as much as possible. In fact, doing more, not less.
Keeping movement at the forefront of our minds is taking care of ourselves. Keeping as healthy as possible. Making sure that the freedom to move isn’t forgotten.
We don’t need to join gyms (but it can be a great help for some).
We don’t need to break records running 10ks or marathons.
We don’t need to achieve a lifetime best deadlifting.
Nothing to stop us though.
Taking care of ourselves should start from a young age and continue right until ‘old’ age.
It’s good for our bodies. It’s actually good for our minds too.
If anyone tells us differently, or tries to discourage us from doing our thing, we just thank them for their opinion and ignore them.
We do what we love.
Take care of ourselves
