Lately I’ve come to realize that as my age is increasing, I am actually becoming more youthful both spiritually and physically. This is because now at age 37 I am far more energetic, vital and playful than I was when I was 20, and thus it has caused me to radically question the notion that we are to begin to ‘grow older’ as we increase in number, and that instead, through a few simple lifestyle habits and choices, we can choose to ‘grow younger’ instead.
Awesome it is that the word ‘youth’ in the English dictionary is defined as “the appearance, freshness, vigor, spirit, etc., characteristic of one who is young.” Therefore here we have legitimate proof that, “youth” does not need to be associated with someone in a particular age group. Even further proof of this is given to us by Pablo Picasso, who stated that “youth, has no age”.
Growing younger 101 –
Think and Act
Neuroscience has revealed to us that our brains are plastic in nature and thus we have the ability to rewire our neural pathways! This means that if we have unhelpful beliefs about growing older, we have the power to input new and helpful beliefs instead.
This may sound like a daunting task, however it need not be. One way to input better beliefs and behaviors is by participating in a program such as the TeamUp Triad Experience, whereby one can undergo this rewiring process within the support and comfort of a team. This is an incredibleonline coaching program that teaches us how to become more mindful of our thoughts and actions and thus become better in the areas of life that matter the most.
Reprogramming our neural patterns and pathways can be fun and exhilarating! We can defragment all kinds of boring and outdated belief systems – who knows how long they may have been passed along from generation to generation, until..…. bam! – we were born and saw through the veil, and mindfully chose to input new beliefs, pioneering the way forward up the family tree.
The next time you look at yourself in the mirror, notice if there is any age related dialogue that emerges in your self-talk? How do you perceive your silvering hair and facial lines? Do you see them as a shining sign of your refinement and your incredible feats of accomplishment?
Lately I have been affirming and strengthening my beliefs about my youth each time I look in the mirror. I tell myself that I am becoming “younger and younger, and more and more beautiful” each and every day. After I do this the associated feelings arise causing me to think and act differently too.
We’ve all heard the saying, “you’re only as old as you feel”. Inputting new youthful beliefs, results in a new and youthful feelings arising too, – it works like magic.
Try it out and see how it makes you feel! If you haven’t done it before, it takes a little practice until you’ve have washed away any resisting or opposing thoughts. If your mind protests, just tell it that it’s for fun, and that no harm will be done.
Move and Breathe
Are you familiar with the 5 Tibetan Rites? These are exercises that are practiced by Tibetan lamas in monasteries in the far reaches of the Himalayan mountains. They have an amazing effect on getting our chakras spinning at an optimal speed. It is this optimal spinning speed that keeps us youthful. Some of these lamas have lived for well into their hundreds (if not more) from practicing these Rites every day.
I have been doing them now for several months, and I love them. They are easy to learn and I have become increasingly proficient with practice.
My own body type loves a large amount of movement and exercise to feel optimal. Thus I vigorously practice hatha yoga, laughter yoga, dancing, as well as, swim, hike and walk out in nature as much as possible.
My own journey inside a body has definitely not always been a pleasant one! At age 24 I developed a really strange and unpleasant painful symptom which was unidentifiable by both doctors and healers. As a result I suffered greatly with physical pain and discomfort in my 20’s and early 30’s. This unremitting pain served as a massive motivator. I was determined to locate the cause and after a considerable journey, I did.
It is now to my amazement just how enjoyable an in – body experience can be!
Laugh and Play
When was the last time you felt like a playful 3 year old?
When I was in my 20’s I was an incredibly hard working type. I used to think that anything I did needed to have a specific and measureable outcome, and I frowned down upon activities that I deemed too frivolous. Years of this lifestyle and the result? A miserable me.
As I have grown younger I have also become a little wiser. I now see that every single thing I do has a measurable outcome, and that the more frivolous and fun the activity, the higher return. These fun-filled activities make me younger, less inhibited, more creative, more light-hearted, expansive, energetic and open-hearted, – which all add up to a healthier and happier me.
There are many simple, easy and free things we can do that are just for fun. Here are a few of my favorites –
Singing along with a song I love, putting on a dance track and prancing around the room, having a conversation with an animal or a plant, laughing for no reason, drawing a picture and sticking it on the fridge door, pretending to be a horse and galloping around the garden (you can try this one out with your own zodiac animal).
I would love to know what your favorite frivolous activities are?
Eat
The way we eat contributes to a longer and more vibrant life. This is because some eating habits provide the body with energy, while other eating habits take up energy.
Unfortunately I had to learn this the long and hard way! After many years of eating too much bread, peanut butter and processed food, I developed severe candida in my early 20’s. I initially tried to eliminate it with pharmaceutical drugs, until I finally submitted to an extremely strict diet, eating only vegetables, nuts and gluten free grains, removing all sugar, fruit, meat, white flours and processed food. It took a long time to adjust to this way of eating!
Each of has a unique body constitution, we can learn how to optimize our eating style for maximum efficiency. It took me quite a few years to learn this, but finally I became skillful as to how to eat healthy and right for my own constitution.
I am very inspired by the eating style of the Tibetan lamas. Although they are vegetarian, they do eat eggs, butter and cheese in sufficient quantities. One of their secrets is to eat only one food type per meal. For example, one meal would comprise entirely of bread, another entirely of vegetables. Different food types, these lamas say, require different types of digestive processes in the stomach, and therefore combining more than one type together in one meal means that neither type is fully digested, resulting in wasting valuable energy in the body.
I love this idea, and I’ve been reducing the number of foods I eat in one meal. It’s saving me a lot of time.
“Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” Hippocrates
And So,…
Could it be possible that we are in fact age-less beings, or,… beings of a self-determined age?
The experience of life may feel a little different,… when it is completely liberated from all age-bound restrictions. If it were possible to do this, would you give it a try?
I have now decided to ‘de-age’ and ‘re-age’ myself according to how I feel, meaning that, if someone asks me my age, I will check-in and respond with a number that I feel I am at that moment. Ask if you dare!
I am so much loving this process of ‘youthing’, that I’ll be sharing these, and other fun, simple and easy practices in an exciting new workshop, for anyone who would like to ‘grow younger’ along with me.
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