Aging gracefully – a cooking pot and twisted tales

I stumbled across an old photo taken on a holiday trip to Strasbourg in 2000 and did a double take. Me. Younger of course. More energetic and much slimmer without putting in any effort. Twenty plus odd years ago, I never thought I would have to fight middle-age spread with gusto, come to think of it, in my teens and twenties, I truly never gave much thought to what older adulting entailed. I just lived life as it was, somewhat through rose-colored spectacles and very high expectations from life. Oh well!

Fast forward to present. I have hit the older lady age and it’s been a struggle to maintain a healthier body weight and lifestyle. Doing so is absolutely important, as it helps to keep many ailments at bay. The quest to lose the excess pounds has been an uphill task for me especially as it appears that just passing the confectionary aisle whilst shopping causes my scale to wince from extra pounds gained just by looking at cakes and cookies, coupled with the fact that some body parts are no longer as efficient as before.

To my surprise, keeping my balance has surreptitiously become a concern. It seems like I have unlocked a new fear; the fear of falling down and breaking something. This phenomenon started after my bout with plantar fasciitis 2 years ago, which thankfully, I’ve defeated through various lifestyle changes and losing over 10kg. However, one of the outcomes of this experience is that nowadays, I always think carefully about footwears that I purchase and how to pair them with my outfit before stepping out of the house.

Although I fancy thinking of myself as a fashionable lady, when it comes to my shoes, I truly have to consider not only what is suitable for the occasion but also its comfortability. At this point in time, as much as I admire those strutting around in heels and would love to do same every given moment, there’s no sense in me perching on stilettos and then hobbling back home with broken toes.

One thing I can say for sure, as a fashion enthusiast, I am never ever going to let myself fall to bits. No matter how old and wrinkly I grow, so long as I have my faculties ticking along, I will always do my best to look well put together. The teens and twenties were surely wonderful, but there’s a whole lot of magical years ahead and I will move with the times, creating my own rhythm and new balance.

Isn’t it just wonderful when your body starts having aches and pains out of the blues and for no just cause. These days, I can step out of the house with no troubles and come back home limping – not due to a fall or such thing, but simply my aching joints choosing to protest.

Photo by Chevanon Photography on Pexels.com

I recall yesteryears when I could twist myself into a pretzel, do deep squats without needing the ambulance and hold yoga poses that would make my present older self hyperventilate. If I must say so, getting older definitely requires more maintenance and one cannot slack off if they wish to age well and not have rigor mortis set in whilst they are still alive.

I have tried to cultivate the regular habit of exercising for at least half an hour or more, but my default mode is that my brain tries to get out of the exercising if it can. Since my gym subscription has expired and I am yet to renew it, I have resorted to good old-fashioned walking in the interim and for the first time, today, I did some chair yoga though I didn’t complete the session, I hope to carry on with it on a daily basis and see how that goes.

Honestly, a whole lot of stuff that we often took for granted when we were younger becomes a lot more hassle with time that right now, I find that I am so much more grateful for the little, mundane things that I never used to bother about before.

Hope you are keeping body and bones together. Much love.