I recently remembered a show I saw on Oprah last year about the “Blue Zones” which are 5 areas in the world that have more people over 100 years old than any other areas. One of the reasons these people say they live so long is their connection to community and nature.
This summer our family took a vacation to the Trinity Alps (where the top photograph was taken). We slept together in a cabin, spent most of every day swimming in the river, took showers outside in the woods, and ate outside every night. There was no TV, minimal internet, no cell phone. It was heavenly. Of course every vacation is heavenly, but these vacations (we go every year) are ultimate because of how very simple they are.
One of the reasons centurians said they lived so long was because they felt a purpose to their life. When I think of people who live long and joyful lives, I don’t think of the ultra successful billionaire living in a mansion with maids and a butler, I think of a simple, hard working farmer who still gets up and plows the field or milks the cow. It makes me realize that all the “stuff” in our world is not only fairly useless, but actually could be detrimental to our health. I’m going to explore that more…
Here is a clip from the show: http://www.oprah.com/article/oprahradio/moz/20080527_oaf_moz_lessonslivinglonger
Dan shares the core practices of people who live the longest:
- Move naturally. Think about walking, gardening and playing with your kids to ensure daily activity. “Set up your environment so you are always bumping into the opportunity to move [around],” Dan says.
- Focus on having the right outlook. Know your sense of purpose, and schedule in times when you can downshift.
- Forget diets. Diets rarely work after six months, Dan says. Instead, he says the key to staying slim and living longer is eating wisely. He recommends a plant-based diet that minimizes (not eliminates) meat, eating fewer calories and consuming a glass or two of wine per day.
- Connect the right way. Investing in your family is huge, Dan says. “In all Blue Zones in the world, people put their loved ones first, and we think that is associated with more good years of life.”
- Reconnect with religion. People who go to church live two to three years longer than people who don’t, Dan says.
- Create your own culture of longevity. Pick out friends who have healthy lifestyles and put more energy into those friendships.
