happiness Archives - Page 2 of 6 - Fran's Fitness Over 50

Create a fitness goal to keep you moving

It’s really easy to go through your days on autopilot. Go from one meaningless task to another, not really accomplishing much. Then all of a sudden, it’s bedtime. Time to brush your teeth and have some downtime until you do all the nothingness again tomorrow. Do you ever feel like you’re sleepwalking through your day? I emptied the dishwasher in the morning while I watched the news. And it was basically the same as yesterday’s news. I went to the grocery store yesterday. And it was basically the same items that I bought last week. Are you stuck in a rut too? I want to feel invigorated. And I don’t want to feel like I’m stuck on a treadmill. It may be time to create a fitness goal to keep you moving.

Your new fitness goal doesn’t have to be big

A new goal could inspire you to new heights, new levels of strength, faster speeds. That new goal in one aspect of your life could spark your motivation in others. And your new goal doesn’t have to be a big one. For me, I had a goal of running one tenth of a mile faster than my previous fastest speed for a minute during my treadmill session. And to do that for 4 runs. At first I couldn’t maintain that extra tenth for the whole minute. So I lowered the speed. But then after a walk interval I bumped my speed up that extra tenth again. And kept it there longer.

That new goal will move you forward in your healthy aging. And when you’re doing something positive for your health, you’re automatically happier and more motivated to keep going.

Invigorated by success!

How did that extra tenth make me feel? Invigorated. By running just that little bit faster, I felt like I was invincible. I felt stronger the rest of the day, knowing that I met a really tough (for me) benchmark. And being successful for one day kept me motivated for the rest of the challenge.

Your challenge:

So, I challenge you to create a fitness goal to keep you moving. Make sure that your goal is specific, with measurement and a timetable. Your goal also should be attainable but not too easy. Write your goal down so that you’ll have accountability, even if it’s just to yourself. I use the worksheet from the “Get It Done” Guide. I print multiple copies of the worksheet – there’s not much on that worksheet. It seems simple, but, boy, is it powerful!

So, create a fitness goal. You’ll keep moving and be empowered to tackle even more.

Get it done even with distractions

We’ve all got stuff that has to get done. And we’ve got stuff we want to get done. There are other things that it would be nice to get done. But what if there are dogs running around? Kids underfoot? You have to stir the soup or it will burn. And the phone keeps ringing. Here are 5 tips on how to get it done even with distractions.

Eliminate the distractions you can

Turn off your phone. Put it in another room. You’ve probably heard this before. But you need your phone! Yes, you need it, but you don’t need it all day every day. For the time it takes you to get the non-negotiable thing from your list done, turn it off. 20 minutes, okay?

Identify your non-negotiable thing that needs to get done

Make a list – on paper – of 3 things that need to get done today. One is absolutely non-negotiable. It has to get done today. The other 2 should be slightly less imperative. And carry this list with you. Put it in your back pocket and refer to it often. If you don’t know where to start with this exercise, download the “Get It Done” Guide and work through the list.

How will you benefit from getting these things done?

Why do you need to get those 3 things done? Will you benefit personally? Will they make your life simpler? If it’s grocery shopping, it’ll sure make getting dinner on the table easier! Or will they enrich you financially? If one of the items is a project for your work or your business, that’s a firm “Yes!” Or will one of the items make the life of a loved one better?

Ignore the distraction or deal with it

About that distraction: if it’s a call you have to take OR ELSE!, then by all means answer your phone. If it’s a friend who you need to talk to but it will wait, then message the friend and ask if you can call back later. A true friend will understand, because there are probably times when they have to get things done.

Close the door

Close the door. Or put the dogs in their crates with peanut butter-filled kongs and tell the kids you need 20 minutes of quiet time. Set your timer. You’ll be able to get it done even with distractions. Your mental toughness will carry you through this. Your resilience is improving, and you’ll face the rest of your day knowing that you accomplished something.

3 Sure-fire ways to get big goals done

Why set big goals?

It’s been all about goal-setting the last few weeks here. If you don’t have goals, then you’ll coast through life. That’s fine unless you want to accomplish anything. If you have dreams about your home, your family, your finances, then you need goals. But why set big goals? Aren’t small ones good?

Small goals are good

Of course, small goals are good. They’re what gets us through the day. The small goal of spending 2 minutes training my dog is better than not training him. Or sitting straight in my chair for 2 minutes rather than slumping is good for my posture and my spine. Planning what to make for dinner is certainly a laudable goal.

But big goals turn the world

All of the small goals mentioned above could be part of much bigger goals that could help you achieve more. That’s why we set big goals. Setting small, intermediate goals get our big goals done.

For example, if I train my dog for 2 minutes every single day, then at the end of a week we’ll have the foundations of a remarkable trick. After a couple weeks of training just 2 minutes a day, he’ll know how to retrieve something. At the end of a month I can think about training more behaviors to enter a competition.

If I sit straight in my chair for 2 straight minutes 3 times a day, my core will be more stabilized. I’ll be walking better. And my balance will improve. I’ll be breathing better, too.

And if I plan dinners for the family a few days in advance, I can plan my shopping to include more nutritious options. We’ll be healthier and perhaps lose some weight.

Big goals are more achievable

When we set big goals and approach them the “SMART” way, they have a better chance of being achieved. Not only that, but Edwin Locke’s famous theory argues that the more challenging the goal, we work harder to achieve it.

SMART goals

That is, in order to have a reasonable chance of success in achieving a goal, it must be Specific, Measurable, Assignable (or Acceptable), Realistic, and Time-based. And studies by Locke and associates have actually found that the more challenging the goal, within reason, the better the chance of succeeding.

Big goals build self-confidence

We need to be working toward meaningful goals. And writing them down helps provide us with a sense of direction and purpose. Plus, the more achievable but stretch-worthy goals we work toward, the more likely we are to build self-confidence, resilience and happiness. All attributes worth striving for.

So, why set big goals? We need those big goals to move forward in life with assurance and optimism.

Reach your biggest goals one step at a time

Last time we talked about stuff you had to get done, no matter what. For those tasks, you just have to buckle down and do it. But what about your big goals. How can you achieve the things that there’s no deadline for, or that you’d really like to have happen but hadn’t started yet? It can seem overwhelming to have pie-in-the-sky goals, but they’re really necessary. And you can reach your biggest goals one step at a time.

We all want big things, and we usually want them as fast as possible. But the best, most life-changing goals take time. We have to plan the steps that it takes to get to the ultimate goal. Why not just dive in? Because for many goals, we’ll never get there. And for the goals that we do reach, they may be set too low and there may be further achievements that we’d miss out on.

Take the time to plan

Three-time Olympic gold medalist Gabby Douglas spent eight years away from her sport. But now she’s back in training. In fact, she recently qualified for the U.S. Championships with hopes of making it to the Paris games this year. She stepped away after the Rio games because the training, then the Games themselves, took so much out of her. She said, I went through hell x2 and i lost my joy, i lost my passion, my fire, my love, and then myself.”

So, then what happened? How did Douglas find her passion in gymnastics again? She said that she did a lot of reflecting and journaling. Then when she decided to go back to training she just took a deep breath and stepped into the gym. “Remember, you don’t have to get it all done in one day. Take baby steps — I definitely did.”

One step at a time

And that’s good advice for anyone with a big goal. Douglas knew what it took to achieve success. And she knew that it was a lot. So she took it slow. One step at a time. That’s what we all should do when faced with a really big goal. For me, to reach the goal of a side plank with my leg raised, I modified the move, got stronger, and finally was able to do the full pose. Planning for one step at a time keeps you motivated to continue.

Break it down

Consider that goal, and everything that it will take to achieve it. Then think about the logical steps to take to get there. All of them. Write it down. And then plan – concisely, every step, every milestone, with deadlines. Use your “Get It Done” Guide to help you plan! Then do it. And when you reach a milestone, celebrate! That’s what keeps you motivated to continue toward that big goal.

That’s what Olympic champions do.

Just buckle down and do it

I’ve been writing about motivation lately. How you can motivate yourself to do things you don’t want to do with “little treats” (which works really well!), and about different kinds of motivation that have been identified. And that the motivation that’s inside you is more compelling than outside factors that may motivate you. But sometimes you have to just buckle down and do it. Whatever “it” is.

Procrastination only goes so far

Sometimes it’s hard. You don’t want to do it. You procrastinate for as long as you think you can. But then the time comes and a deadline nears. And you have to just buckle down and do it.

Let’s say you have company coming for dinner tomorrow. And there’s evidence of dog paws on the living room couch. And the rugs need to be vacuumed. You hate to dust, so there could be spots that you missed last time. But you’re having people over tomorrow. That doesn’t leave much time to get it all done. You have your menu planned, you’ve shopped and listed all the cooking steps so dinner gets on the table. But there are people coming tomorrow and you don’t want them to think you live in a pigsty.

Just buckle down and do it

This is where the rubber meets the road. Your motivation is clear. You know what needs to be done. So you get the spot cleaner out. You put your earphones in and get to work with the furniture polish. Plug the vacuum in and do it.

Chances are your onerous housekeeping chores didn’t take as long as you thought they would. Sometimes it’s just a matter of recognizing the task and doing it.

It takes all kinds

Why do we procrastinate doing certain tasks? Everyone has different likes and dislikes. There’s nothing that’s more satisfying to me than adding a column of numbers. My sister thinks that’s crazy. I let piles on my desk grow until I have to find something. Other people think that’s nuts too. And that’s the way of the world. There are tasks that you love doing, I’m sure, that I dislike. But sometimes I have to just buckle down and do it. And sometimes that’s motivation enough.

Think of it as your job

When we have tasks that we need to accomplish, sometimes, too, it’s helpful to think of those tasks as our job. When I was working in the corporate world, there were plenty of aspects to the job that I didn’t care for. But I did them. For our “home tasks,” though, we have to change our mindset to see tasks as our job. Instead of a paycheck, though, we’ll get the satisfaction of not having to face that task again – at least for a while.

The example here is a short-term one. When you’re facing a task that has more long-term consequences, though, a different mindset is needed. And I’ll look at that next time.

People in recovery turn to fitness

Why people who are recovering turn to exercise for motivation

First off, this is a no-judgment zone. People who are recovering need our support, not our opinions. It’s all too easy to try substances that your friends try, then when it’s too late, discover that it’s nowhere near as easy to stop that substance. People who are recovering absolutely require other outlets for their interests. They need all the tools that the world can give them for that recovery. I learned that people in recovery turn to fitness which can provide the distraction and motivation they need.

Fitness is a community

Movement provides “transformational” mental and physical health benefits, according to Scott Strode, founder of a national “sober active community.” Fitness also brings people who are different in many other ways, together.

Physical and mental benefits

We know that exercise provides benefits from improved health, to better cognition, to more quality sleep. It also improves mood and reduces the risk of depression. But according to a 2023 study, people who jogged and did weight training, who were also being treated for addiction, were more likely to reduce their substance use than those who were not active.

From the results of this study, there were non-quantitative physical, emotional and brain-based benefits that led to positive change. We’ve seen before that exercise can produce that “runner’s high,” even though we’re not running. Exercise encourages the growth of brain cells, andl that leads to the release of dopamine. That mood boost is yet another reason for why people in recovery turn to fitness.

Fitness provides more positive outlets

Strode says that “movement and exercise helped him redirect subconscious neural pathways related to early childhood trauma at the root of his substance use.” Other studies have shown that exercise leads to an increase in the brain’s neuroplasticity, or the brain’s way of reorganizing thought patterns. This can help someone who’s recovering to find other, more positive, outlets.

And fitness provides routine

A fitness routine can also help someone who’s recovering find structure and grounding. We’ve talked about how to start (and continue) a fitness routine, to form the healthy habit of exercise at any age. It’s another good reason why people in recovery turn to fitness.

Sparking joy in exercise

I’ve said it before: “I don’t like to exercise.” And yet I do it 4 or 5 times a week. Every week. For years, now. You’re probably saying, “She might say she doesn’t like it, but she does. Deep down, she likes it.” No, I don’t. While I don’t exactly dread putting on my exercise clothes, once I’m in them and into a workout, I just keep going. And it’s true, if I really hated it, I wouldn’t do it. No amount of positive mindset-changing can do that. One kind of exercise, though, has always tried to elevate that positive feeling. Jazzercise’s mission is to spark joy in exercise.

Changing with the times

You may say that Jazzercise is outdated. You tried it years ago And, while it’s true that this style of exercise started in the 1970’s, it’s still popular, and not just among people who did it when it was first introduced. Jazzercise centers around a dance-based aerobics routine, but now there’s a strength training component. The music has changed with the times, as has much of the choreography, so Jazzercise is not your mother’s workout.

If it’s not fun, you’re not going to do it.

As I’ve said many times, if exercise isn’t fun, you’re not going to do it. Even if a certain workout has every single benefit you want – like instant weight-loss, a fix for your memory, and getting rid of flabby arms – if you don’t enjoy doing it, you’re not going to do it beyond a few days.

So, I say if something can spark joy in exercise, by all means, do it. If Jazzercise was your thing back in the ‘80’s but you haven’t thought about it in years, get back into it. Classes are streaming now, in addition to classes that you can attend in person.

Lots of options

And if Jazzercise isn’t your thing but you’d like other choreography-based workouts, there are plenty available. Search YouTube for instructors and music you like before you sign up for pricey classes. Or perhaps a gym near you will let you try out a class.

While it may take a lot to spark joy in exercise, you can find enjoyment in it. Any exercise you do is better than none. You’ll get physical as well as mental benefits, and it’s essential for your healthy aging. If you like dressing up, you can do that to your heart’s content too. Just be prepared to sweat!

A strong core eases back pain

Having back pain is the worst. You can’t do anything when your lower back hurts. Upper back pain is bad, too, but movement is usually at least possible. When your lower back hurts, you can’t walk comfortably. Forget about standing up when you’re sitting. And when you’re standing you can’t sit back down. And leaning over or bending is impossible. I speak from experience. Up until a few years ago I had sciatica pain that was unbearable for weeks at a time. The sciatica pain blended with the hip bursitis pain on occasion to create spasms of pain and breathlessness. I don’t like to think about that time. Then I read some studies that led me to work on my core. These studies indicated that having a strong core eases back pain. And in some cases prevents it entirely. Less pain means we can be happier every day.

Physical therapists agree

I still get newsletters from Athletico, where I did physical therapy for my knee a number of years ago. The latest newsletter (February 2024) highlights the correlation between a strong core and lessening back pain, in fact. “The goal of core stabilization exercises is to improve your abdominal strength and increase the stability in your lower back or lumbar spine, which can help alleviate aches and pains you’re currently experiencing.” So the key to easing back pain is not pain medication or even rest, it’s simple core exercises. This is great news for our healthy aging regimen.

The simplest core stabilization exercise

A simple core stabilization exercise is the plank, done on your forearms or the palms of your hands and your toes. Look straight ahead, tighten your core and keep your back in line. Don’t sink down or have a rounded back. If even a forearm plank is difficult for you, try an incline plank with your hands on a table, your kitchen counter or even a wall. As you get stronger, you can go lower. And you can add variations, like the “Renegade Row,” which challenges your core even more.

Other good core stabilization exercises include “Dead Bug,” which I talked about just a couple of weeks ago, and a simple pelvic tilt.

My goal, when I started working on my core, certainly was not to get a “six-pack.” I’ll be happy if no one else ever sees my abs. They’re strong and my back doesn’t hurt, and that’s all that matters to me. A strong core eases back pain for life. It doesn’t take long, if you’re consistent, and it’s certainly worth the few minutes to do the exercises most days.

You only need one thing to enter your happy place

As humans, we strive for certain things. First of those things is happiness. Being happy and optimistic helps us overcome minor problems and be more resilient. Who wants to be doom and gloom all the time, right? And yet so many of us are not happy. Sure, some things in all of our lives weigh us down. But there are lots of facets to each of us. And most of those facets can make us happy. It just takes one thing to enter your happy place. Now, my happy place is probably very different from yours. And your happy place is different from anyone else’s. All are equally happy to each of us. What’s that one thing we need? A mindset shift.

Exercise: from “no way” to “happy place?”

I’ve said it before, I don’t like to exercise. And yet I do it every day. How do I get from moping around and saying, “I have to go work out. I don’t want to do it. Why do I have to work out?” to “I get to work out now!” How? That one thing to get to my happy place is a shift in the story I tell myself. “In 45 minutes or so, I’ll be done. I can relax and take a nice warm shower. Then I can sit down and read for a few minutes.” Notice the fact that I don’t dwell on the workout itself, but on the reward. Once I get going, I don’t actually mind the workout. I can enjoy the music and the choreography. And I know that if the weights are really heavy, then I’m probably almost done.

Except for running. I really do mind the running. And then I found something to make the running more enjoyable: audiobooks. I listen to a rollicking adventure while I’m on the treadmill and that takes my mind completely off of what I’m doing. I made something about running fun and that keeps me motivated during those workouts.

Gray winter ugly to aesthetically pleasing

This can work for other activities as well. That one thing to enter your happy place when you’re seeing gray, dirty snow on the ground in the depths of winter could be admiring the lines of the bare branches against the sky. Or enjoying how your dog romps through the stuff.

Treasure hunt!

And if you’re not a fan of organizing, but you’ve got a closet that you promised yourself you’d get to, then you need that mindshift, that one thing to enter your happy place. Tell yourself that you’re going on a treasure hunt in the closet. Because you never know what you’ll find there. You may find long-lost treasures to wear or even to sell. Schedule a few hours to do it. Yes, put it in your calendar. And get it done.

I’m no Pollyanna, but I’ve been working on putting a smile on my face every day. I’ve been exercising that mindshift to become happier, no matter what else is going on. It works for me, and discovering that one thing to enter your happy place will work for you, too.

Give your body what it needs

You may say, “Oh, I don’t need a lot. I’m happy with the way things are.” But what you really mean is, “I eat healthy and get the nutrition I need within my calorie allotment. I move my body the way the AHA and CDC recommends. I give my brain all the stimulation it could possibly need.” But, is this really true?

It’s a lot. And if it really is true, that’s fantastic! But let’s take each of these individually to see if you do give your body what it needs.

Nutrition

I’m no expert, but I know that if I eat my 3 squares a day, load up my plate with lots of veggies and legumes, a little meat, and not nearly as much potatoes or pasta as I like, I’ll be eating well. I’ll probably be within my recommended calorie range. I’ll be getting enough protein, enough fiber, and enough vitamins and minerals to keep my body fueled. Of course, I also add in a bit of chocolate to keep me happy. You’ll want to check with your doctor or a nutritionist, but I’ll bet they’ll tell you pretty much the same thing.

Exercise

You’ve heard it from me before. The Heart Association recommends 150 minutes per week of moderate aerobic activity, and even more strength work. How you get those minutes in is up to you. You know you’ll want to keep your workouts fun – because that keeps your motivation up. But, if you don’t exactly enjoy your workouts, but you know you have to keep it up, what do you do? You might want to hop on the “Cozy Cardio” bandwagon. That’s making your environment appealing. If you walk or run on a treadmill, or use a stationary bike, that’s a great way for your workouts to be more inviting. Listen to an exciting audiobook, like I do when I run, or watch a favorite TV show while you exercise. You’ll enjoy the ambiance, if not the workout.

Brain

And when you exercise, you’re also feeding your brain! Vigorous exercise improves your memory, makes you happier, more resilient and helps you sleep better.

Put like that, it’s not too much to give your body what it needs.

Make it easy to track it all every day using your Fitness Journal and Tracker!