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Aging and activity go hand-in-hand

Age is just a number and that saying is ringing more true than ever before. Canada reached a demographic milestone in the last decade. According to Statistics Canada, “Seniors accounted for a record high of 14.

Age is just a number and that saying is ringing more true than ever before.

Canada reached a demographic milestone in the last decade. According to Statistics Canada, “Seniors accounted for a record high of 14.8 per cent of the population in Canada in 2011.” For the first time in our nation’s history, there were more people aged 55 to 64, typically the age group where people leave the labour force, than aged 15 to 24, typically the age group where people enter it.

Colin Milner, founder and CEO of the International Council of Active Aging (ICAA), has spent over a decade informing the public on our changing age demographics and how people need to prepare to live longer, active and healthier lives.

During a public seminar held at Elevation Place on Wednesday (Oct. 9), Milner shared a 10-point presentation with the audience, which broke down key elements in maintaining health into your senior years.

“What we’re going to do today is looking at these 10 tips to actually increase your health span and not just your lifespan,” Milner said. “Because I can tell you – living to 100 in ill-health is not really appealing.”

Milner’s first tip was expectations. “Now we have this new stage of life, where we’ve added 30 plus years... we have all of this extra time and the question is what do we do with that and how do we maximize that from a health perspective?”

He says lifestyle is the driving factor. If you choose to stay active physically, intellectually and emotionally from the beginning, you will carry these positive traits into your golden years.

The second point was maintaining enthusiasm. Milner used the seven points of wellness to reinforce his point of not only staying physically active, but also intellectually, socially, environmentally, spiritually, emotionally and occupationally. “Sixty-two per cent of baby boomers want to work well into their 70s now,” said Milner. He pointed out you must tap into all your passions for well-rounded health.

Thirdly, he said, you have to keep energy levels up to be able to enjoy all your activities. “You need to manage your time so you can find balance in life to regain the energy that’s being zapped from you,” said Milner. He pointed out stress, depression and boredom are elements that people don’t realize lead to draining energy levels.

Another two factors pointed out were, of course, nutrition and exercise. “You want to be able to fulfill aspirations and your dreams, and exercise is going to help you reach that,” Milner said. He pointed out the average person, “loses 50 per cent of strength between the ages of 37 and 70. Milner says you should strive for two to three sessions of strength training a week and have a goal of 150 minutes of cardio in a week.

Points six and seven were also very symbiotic in relation to overall health. Be engaged in your community and keep your emotions positive. “It’s as easy as putting one foot in front of the other and walk out the door to be engaged with life,” said Milner. He added volunteering is always a great way to stay active in the community and to socialize.

Education is a never-ending life pursuit, and Milner pointed out that statement is just as important into senior years. “The 50-plus age group is the fastest growing audience on Facebook,” Milner used as an example of people wanting to learn to be technically savvy and keep updating new skills. “Taking courses, journaling and artistry will all help in keeping the mind active.”

Milner rounded out his 10 points by reminding the audience none of the other steps are going to matter much without good old-fashioned positive effort and enjoyment. “Sometimes you see people who have lost the enjoyment, you need to have a purpose in life... Stop and think how you want to age – what changes do you need to make?”


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