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Rituals for Longevity By James H. O'Keefe, M.D. I am coming to see an individual's life as a trajectory. Over time what you think, choose and do is what you become. It is possible to see where you are headed years and even decades before you arrive there by looking closely at what you are doing today. In particular, the path your health follows is determined much less by your genes than your daily habits. Mundane as it seems, your day-to-day routine largely determines how healthy and happy you will be, how quickly you will age, what diseases you will or won't get, and how long you will live. Many people spend their lives as though they have another one in the bank. But being alive is like being on board an aircraft flying through a storm: once you are aloft you have no option but to make the best of it. A serious oversight or mistake can leave you spiraling out of control and going down in flames without a second chance. Settling into the right routines will keep you flying smoothly for decades to come. Most of what you do in your day-to-day life is done in the context of a routine. Your health, vigor, and longevity are dependent upon habits. A routine that involves healthy habits will maintain the integrity of your bio-system and effectively repel the ravages of time and entropy. But if you develop self-defeating customs, they will drag you into the downward spiral of accelerated aging and disease. The key to making your life the best it can be is to develop the right routines, and break the bad ones. Habits start simply enough, almost unnoticeably. Sharing a cigarette with a friend at a party, grabbing a can of Coke and a bag of potato chips from the vending machine, scarfing down a doughnut in the mid-morning because you skipped breakfast, coming home after a long day at work to a big meal and then spending the entire evening watching television. When we find a pattern that feels good, we tend to repeat it. Soon a groove develops in our lives, and the action is no longer a choice, but an automatic response; it becomes the path of least resistance. These rituals that may have started as innocent whims can eventually become like chains so strong that sometimes you cannot break them to save your life. Yet good habits are as easy to develop as bad ones. Your natural predisposition to develop rituals can be harnessed in a positive sense to 'vaccinate' yourself against illness, disease and aging. If you are like most people, you brush your teeth in the morning and before going to bed. If you have been disciplined to also work flossing daily into your routine, you will almost certainly have healthy teeth and gums for a lifetime. You don't need to think about whether or not to do your daily oral hygiene, it happens automatically. My colleague and mentor Dr. Bob Conn likes to say, "If you make it your priority to eat for health rather than taste, you will develop a healthy taste"; when that happens, good nutrition becomes second nature too. Billions of people from cultures around the globe can attest to the fact that green tea can be habit-forming. And it's not for nothing that they call it happy hour - a drink or two before dinner is a routine that can bring relaxation with good health as a serendipitous benefit (as long as you limit your 'happiness' to not more than two drinks per day). Daily exercise will happen automatically if you can find activities that feel more like play and less like work. Sure, sex counts as exercise too, but you will need to find other fun activities that get your heart rate up as well. My good friend Tom Medlock has a graduate degree from Harvard University and now teaches and coaches at Pembroke Hill High School in Kansas City, Missouri. He wrote to his students in their school paper: "In cross country (running) we practice a lot; we have rituals we repeat many times. They make us stronger, faster, better, more than we were yesterday. The quality of your life practices (routines) factor greatly into what quality of life you have. Do you practice compassion for others? Do you practice self-discipline? Is there a general pattern of giving things your best? Repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, and you become. But surely repeats are not the purpose of cross country or life. On our team we have a saying: We don't train to train, we train to race. Likewise in life: we don't practice to practice, we practice to fly." Good Things First Bringing balance back to your life is a real key to health and happiness. Living in the 21st century American culture seems to promote an unbalanced life: too much work - not enough play; excessive calories - not enough natural fresh foods; too much stress - not enough fun; too much TV - too little exercise; too much rushing around - insufficient restful sleep; too much materialism - too little spirituality. As Dr. Phil would ask, "Is it workin' for ya?" I know it doesn't work for me. One of the best ways to avoid getting swept away in the tide of the modern lifestyle is to live by the mantra: 'Good Things First'. Get in the habit of prioritizing the things that will make your life better in the long run; such as exercise, good food and healthy beverages, time to play, plenty of rest and relaxation, and a chance to make meaningful connections. For example, each day you should try to eat lean protein three times, and at least six servings of vegetables and fruits; drink eight glasses (about one liter) of water, two to three cups of tea, two glasses of non-fat milk or soymilk and a drink of wine, beer or spirits (if you enjoy this, and can drink responsibly). If you are still hungry, have a treat but make sure it has no trans fats (found in doughnuts, French fries, or processed snack foods) or high fructose corn syrup (as in pop or candy). When you make it a priority to eat and drink all the good things first, you will find that you aren't constantly hungry; which makes it easier to resist the junk food temptations that surround you each day. You will also be getting all the great disease-fighting, anti-aging nutrients you need while at the same time avoiding empty calories. In truth, most folks who say they don't have time to exercise really could find the time if they had the energy and the will to overcome their inertia and get moving. The average American now watches four hours of television daily. When you sit down in front of the TV you need to think, 'good things first'; and then ask yourself, "Have I gotten my exercise today?" If the answer is no, get up and go. At first this may seem uncomfortable, but in no time you will feel your energy level improve dramatically, and after a few weeks of daily exercise, you will find yourself raring to go. A routine of 30 to 60 minutes of exercise daily will turbo-charge your energy level like nothing else can. "Somewhere over the rainbow, skies are blue, and the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true. Somewhere over the rainbow bluebirds fly, birds fly over the rainbow. . .That's where you'll find me." - E.Y. Harburg Changing a long-standing habit can be a difficult task. Sometimes a health problem such as a diagnosis of diabetes or high blood pressure or a heart attack can be a wake-up call - the silver lining behind the cloud. A reminder of your vulnerability can spur you to make changes in your life that can dramatically improve the trajectory of your future. Instead of wasting your precious time and energy on anxieties about the future or ruminating about sufferings of the past, focus on what you can do to make your life better right here, right now. There is only one instant in which you can be truly alive - the present moment. The future has not yet arrived, the past is already history. But you can always begin anew with the present moment. The surest way to take care of the future is to take care of the present moment. You can only do what you can do - make each moment count. In my case, I have turned a potential addiction into a positive health habit. I have a family history riddled with chemical dependency. I believe I have been 'addicted' to exercise from the time I was a small child. I distinctly recall the day when, as a sophomore college student, it became clear to me that it was time for me to give up on organized varsity athletics. At the time I made a promise to myself that I would continue to exercise every day, because I knew deep down that this is my coping mechanism, a crutch that keeps me happy and well-adjusted. Luck Favors the Prepared Your life is the product of your choices, actions, thoughts, and words. When you integrate meaningful positive habits into your day to day routine you will flourish and thrive. If you can make these practices a priority in your life and incorporate them into your daily routine, your excess body fat will melt away and your overall health and well-being will improve. Specific rituals can revolutionize your life and put you on a trajectory toward longevity with energy, health and vigor. Believe in yourself, make a plan and begin. "I'll spread my wings and I'll learn how to fly. I'll do what it takes 'til I touch the sky. Out of the darkness and into the sun. I'll make a wish, take a chance, make a change and break away." - Kelly Clarkson 13 Rituals to Change the Trajectory of Your Life:
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