There are only a few things in life that stay with us from birth to death. For many of us, we will lose our hair, our teeth, and even our minds between now and then. But over the years we’ve learned that the more we take care of ourselves the longer we seem to last.
It’s simple really. If you brush your teeth three times a day and floss then your chances of keeping your teeth forever become really good. If you stimulate your mind often and also give it adequate rest your mind is more likely to work better longer.
These things are almost common sense, right? The real question is would we rather risk the joy we can experience over a life time for happiness that is experienced only today. So what are we really saying? Well, let’s use the brushing your teeth example from before. Let’s say you skip out on brushing for a night because you’re very tired from a long day. While that may bring you short term happiness, too many nights of that could lead to gumming your food earlier in life than you want.
Sometimes it is worth remembering that our health, much like life, is more a marathon than a sprint. Establishing and maintaining a routine to keep your mind, body, and spirit at it’s best during your marathon could be the most generous and thoughtful thing you can do for your future self.
Here are some things we've added to our routine:
Dedicating a few minutes per day to meditate, pray, or think deeply about nothing
Light stretching one or more times a day
Scheduling your routine check ups with your providers
Keep your list realistic. After all you can't sprint the whole way through your marathon.
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