Accountability

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I believe it’s important that I not only suggest improvements to your lives, but that I practice what I preach. So here goes: exercise, sleep and learning a new language.

Back in February, I told you I’d started going to a fitness program in January of this year. It is a combination of yoga, fitness and stretching done in a 37°C studio. I started going because, while I had been doing well losing weight, I was still feeling creaky and tight. Having tried various routines over the years, from a gym to an in-home treadmill and weights to YouTube videos, I’ve finally found the program that works for me. We’re all different, so what works for me may not work for you but I encourage you to keep looking until you find the magic.

Six months in and I’m definitely seeing results. While my membership permits one class each day, I’ve found that three times per week is my sweet spot. Today I did an Asian squat for the first time. I wanted to scream out loud with joy, but settled for an internal giggle! I can’t hold it for long but I did it, and I’ll build from there. For the fitness portions, we use 5 lb weights, and in the early days, the number of reps of bicep curls, dumbbell rows, tricep kickbacks, shoulder presses and so on was probably half what the class asked for. Now I do them all. I still need to work on the balance exercises because tipping over is real, but thankfully, I’m not alone. Some of the yoga poses, like pigeon, that are supposed to be comfortable, are far from it for me, so I take the alternate poses instead. One important takeaway has been learning how to truly relax my body, especially at bedtime. Even when I think I’m relaxed, I can tell myself to let go a little more and feel a deepening that helps me fall asleep faster.

Speaking of sleep, I had become frustrated with getting only six hours, if that, of sleep and having even that disturbed by frequently waking up. If I woke up a little too much, my mind would start working, and I’d end up awake for two or three hours in the middle of the night. I worked with my acupuncturist in an attempt to improve the quantity and quality of my sleep. Acupuncture has worked for me before, and my current acupuncturist is also a Chinese medical practitioner, so I asked how treatment might help my sleep. She has worked to quiet my mind, move energy around and relax my body. Together with her work, I’ve altered my sleep patterns. I used to head for bed around 10 pm. My ideal seems to be a little earlier. 9:00 or 9:30 pm has been working better for me. Do I feel like a child going to bed while it’s still light out? Yes, I do. But the results are more important. I generally fall asleep quickly and now find little issue with getting at least seven hours of sleep. Often eight, which thrills me to no end! I still wake up often through the night, but for a couple of minutes instead of a couple of hours. There are nights when my bedtime is later due to meetings or social engagements, and I pay the price because I wake up early regardless, but now I know how to get back on track and have some quality sleep.

Last but not least, my language learning. I’ve been studying Mandarin in a program since January and the progress has been decent. They’ve started me on weekly speaking sessions with a native speaker. Extremely intimidating but one doesn’t learn a language by not speaking it. Thus far I’ve had four speaking sessions. The first one was nothing short of embarrassing. I knew the words but putting them together in proper sentences was challenging. The fourth session last week was amazing by comparison. It’s still fairly simple Mandarin. Probably grade three level. I had a major breakthrough with my speaking tutor in my understanding of sentence structure and felt like all the doors and windows to the next level flew open! I will become fluent in a year or so, but between now and then, the learning keeps my brain engaged and active, building new connections. That’s the goal, whether your choice is language like mine was, a new musical instrument or perhaps you do crossword puzzles or Sudoku daily.

Whatever your choices are, I encourage you to actively make decisions that keep your mind and your body moving. Look for non-pharmaceutical solutions to issues like sleep (it’s a popular one) that frustrate you. Age is just a number, and I am constantly reminded that today’s 70- or 80-year-olds are not the same as my grandparents were at 70 or 80 years of age. By and large, we are far more active and involved in our communities, many still working by choice. The longer we work to stave off age-related deterioration, the healthier and happier we will be. I’m living it right beside you and determined to live my best life every day.

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