Planning your health goals beyond 2023

It seems counter intuitive to me to set new year resolutions/goals in January.  I like to work with the natural rhythm of the earth, and given it has poured with rain for most of January, I have remained in hibernation mode as long as possible, enjoyed it immensely and didn’t feel remotely guilty.  I slept an extra hour a night too.

For me, the spring Equinox is the time to start implementing new health goals when the earth begins to wake up.  I have been giving them quite some thought whilst catching up with a few health related podcasts whilst out walking.

I listened to two longevity experts with two very different perspectives on nutrition; one advocating high quality protein intake from good quality meat sources, coupled with a high plant intake (but not grains), and supplementation (nutraceuticals), as the way to go; the other advocating a mostly plant-based diet, with beans every day.  It was respectful and actually they have much in common.  They both said that a high plant intake, time restricted feeding, good sleep, a sense of purpose and strong social connections are all science supported.  All true. 

Then I listened to a third longevity expert who to me, made the most sense of all.  He challenged his listeners to think about how old they wanted to live, what they hoped to be doing, and then to work backwards in order to achieve those goals.  This approach may differ depending upon how old you are now and how long you want to live!  So for example, if you want to be playing with your grand/great grandchildren in your 90’s, you need a particular level of fitness to be running around, so it might not be a bad idea to get a better handle on how fit you are now by getting checked out, ideally by a fitness professional who can calculate your bio-age from a few well known exercises and put a plan together for you.  In fact for him, fitness was more important than nutrition.  What he meant by that is that you can have a fabulous diet, but if you are not physically fit, what’s the point of it if you can’t lift yourself out of your armchair?

Make your plan and do it daily, and consistently – every 24 hours.  What’s missing?

There are five things we should be aiming to do every day to maintain our physical health and mental health.   There is no replacement for these things.  How many of these do you already do and where do you need to put the work in?

Sleep.  I have written about sleep on these pages before and my website has lots of tips on how to optimise it.  Most people need between six and eight hours a night.  Teenagers more.  Coupled with sleep is sunlight, sometimes known as circadian light therapy.  Get out in the sunlight, ideally in the morning. Exposing your eyes to sunlight helps to align your circadian rhythm and produce serotonin, which in turn helps to make melatonin, the darkness hormone.  This helps you feel more tired in the evening improve sleep and feel more awake in the morning. 

Hydration.  It is not that well known that we need to increase our hydration as we get older.  It plays an essential role in many health issues.  Good hydration plays a key role in mental health, sleep quality and cognitive ability.  Dehydration in the elderly is very common.  Between the age of 20 and 80 years, there is a 15% reduction in water volume in our bodies which is why the elderly get dehydrated faster.  Lower water volumes mean a poorer response to temperature regulation and an increased strain on the heart.

Movement.  Ideally an hour a day.  Learn about NEAT (non exercise activity thermogenesis), aka fidgeting.  Try to do something every day that gets your breathing rate up.  You will live longer and you will feel better.  Get assessed professionally if you can to get you focused.

Nutrition.  Try and get 75% to 80% of your food from minimally processed foods.  As we age, the need for protein increases.  This is because we are less efficient at using protein compared to younger adults.  If we don’t meet these increased needs we can lose muscle and lean mass and have a lower immune function; all of which play a role in increased risks of frailty and illness.  Consult a professional for personalised goals or where you have specific health concerns.

Social Connection.  Do what you can to make the interactions that you have in reality with friends, family, as well as online as healthy as possible.  Some people are more introverted than others, so do what is meaningful for you, so long as it is high quality social connection.

I guarantee that if you do these five things, your health will benefit.  Now set your long term goals!