No Regrets

LIFE HAS NO GUARANTEES – BUT WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE

“A man is not old until his regrets take the place of his dreams.”
~Yiddish Proverb

Regrets – we’ve all had them. “I wish I had more education.” “I wish I had waited longer to get married.” “I should have traveled more before I settled down.” Should have, would have, could have… But we all know, we can’t change the past, and living those regrets just keeps us hung up in the past preventing us from moving forward.

A friend of mine recently shared that a 60+ woman she works with was looking at photos of other employees during a company outing, and this woman commented about a younger 30 something woman who was overweight. Her words were “She needs to lose weight.” Then she went on to say, “I know I am fat, but I’m old.” Wow…You see this woman was about 50 pounds overweight herself, but because of her age, she accepted the way she was, chalking it up to the fact that she was 60+.

You may have heard the Serenity Prayer that begins with: “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.” That’s a great prayer and something we hear quoted quite often, but have you ever thought about the reverse – accepting what you CAN change? I think that’s called a “cop-out.” You see we can always make excuses about what we haven’t done, or aren’t willing to do, and we do a pretty good job at convincing ourselves. Accepting the way we are just because we’re a certain age - whether it’s being overweight, out of shape, or chalking things up to our “genes” are all cop-outs. Yes we are all aging – that’s inevitable, but is there a way to age healthy? I believe so, and it starts with you and your choices.

Most people live their lives regretting more of what they didn’t do rather than what they’ve done. We’ve all made mistakes and hopefully we’ve learned from them. That’s what life experiences are all about, and that’s how we grow. But have you reached a place in your life where you may be regretting that you didn’t start earlier on reaching potential goals? Maybe you feel like it’s too late to go back to school, meet someone new, start a new career or even get back in shape. If that’s the case, then I’m here to encourage you to stir up your dreams and your goals, no matter what age you are.

I’m a firm believer that it’s never too late to start working out, even if it’s beginning with 10 minutes a day and increasing gradually. Everyone knows that exercise is good for your heart and keeps you slimmer, but did you know that exercise also:

• Improves your balance
  
• Helps you sleep better
  
• Keeps you in a better mood
• Increases your energy level
• Improves your sex life (maybe I should have had this one at the top to keep your interest!)
• Keeps you living longer!
  

My point being - Don’t let your life be a life of regrets. You are not a victim of your DNA, your culture or the fact that you’ve slacked off a few years. Let today be the day you make a pact with yourself to become a healthier you, whether you are 20, 50 or 70! The small steps you take in the right direction will become easier tomorrow and even easier the next day.

None of us are guaranteed how long we are here on this earth, but the benefits you will reap through exercise will certainly increase the quality of your life while you are here. Your life is a gift – so don’t wake up tomorrow regretting what you could have done today that could mean the difference between years of disability or years of healthy aging. I’d love to help you get back on track.