The most exciting time in most athletic events is during the fourth quarter in football, the last innings in baseball, the last few minutes of basketball, or sometimes, even in overtime or extra innings. Why can’t the last quarter of life for an active older adult be just as exciting as the last quarter of a football game? It can be, of course. There is so much to do today and so many opportunities to take advantage of.
As the 2020 football season comes to a close and with the Super Bowl approaching, I was reminded of this article I wrote six years ago. It’s as appropriate today as it was then, if not more so.
Using football as the example, the first three quarters of a game are just the preliminaries. Then, in the last quarter, when the game is close or tied, the game starts to get more interesting. The first three quarters are mostly back and forth, up and down the field, with the score either totally one-sided, or close until the end of the 3rd. quarter. Then it starts to get exciting.
One team scores, then the other. It’s back and forth down the field with a seemingly greater emphasis on getting the ball in the end zone quickly. Often the game comes right down to the last play. The stadium rocks. The noise is deafening. Sometimes the game goes into overtime.
The same can be said about life. For many, life is exciting for the first two quarters but then middle age malaise sets in for the third. For many, the fourth quarter becomes a transition from that middle age malaise into old age atrophy, deterioration and depression. Sadly, for many of us, that means sickness, bad health, shuffled gait and poor posture. Boredom and depression often leads into dementia and Alzheimer’s. All too often, we become incapacitated, incoherent, and have lost much of our functionality. I don’t want that to happen to me and I doubt you want it to happen to you. So, what can we do about it? The answer is . . . plenty!
We can remain healthy, fit, and physically functional, and have a mental clarity and sharpness to go with it. there is no need to fall into the realm of the “default” senior whom so many of us look to as the definition of getting old or aging. It doesn’t take a complete overhaul of body, mind and spirit, but a bit of rewiring might be in order.
For that to happen, you have to do certain things, take certain actions, follow certain rules that you may not particularly like, and get into a pattern of actively experiencing life as it is meant to be lived. That means you must actually exercise your body, eat nourishing foods, get plenty or rest, breathe deeply, and get some sunshine. That’s not necessarily easy. You must actively engage with and participate in life. The results will be well worth it. You will be far ahead of your peers, and will live a long, healthy, and independent life.
Sounds good to me. Thanks for reading.