I am 60+ years old. I love my life at this age. This is the time when we baby Boomers can enjoy all there is to offer in life without restraint. When I say without restraint, I mean there are no children to care for. Some of us are single either by way of divorce or widowhood. Some of us are retired. Life at this stage is a blissful state of being if you’ll allow yourself to live in the moment.

How do you enter this blissful state? For me it’s doing the things I enjoy. For example, I love riding my bike, so I hooked up with a group of like-minded people on Meetup.com that enjoy bike riding. I like horseback riding. I found a horse stable that offered horseback riding lessons and I took them. I also like to travel. I just came back from a solo trip to Tybee, Island.

The point is being 60 years old and above is a great age to explore and enjoy life to its fullest. There are so many things you can do to find pleasure in life. Why not go for a walk in the park or go to a museum on the days they offer free entry. You can also join a meetup group in your area. There are hundreds of interesting groups you can take part in. Just go to meetup.com

and search for a topic of interest in your area of the country. I belong to six groups.

So why are you waiting to live your best life. The time is now to do the things you’ve always wanted to do. Life at 60+ is so much fun. Try it you will surly like it.

Being over 40 is such a great experience. We are at the point in life to where we can practically do whatever we want to do. Instead of thinking about ageing gracefully consider this as the time in life to LIVE. That said, here are 7 ways to age successfully.

1. Eat Clean – I know I’m on my proverbial soapbox here. But eating clean requires you to eat more fruits and vegetables, hormone free meats and to drink plenty of water. Your body doesn’t burn off calories as fast as it use to. So you have to watch your carbohydrate intake and portion size.

2. Exercise – Proverbial soapbox again. You gotta move. It doesn’t matter what type of exercise you do just do something. Dance, jog, bike, hike, canoe, take a self-defense class, or do yoga all of these will get your heart pumping. Making it fun will help you stick with it.

3. Remove Stress- A lot of people are concerned about job, children, grandchildren, retirement, and their love life during this time of life. To age successfully in this century we need to remove these obstacles. How? Do your best on your job. That’s all you can do. Our children and grandchildren should be old enough to take responsibility for their own actions. So lets allow them to do that.

Adult children should pay rent or be given a deadline as to how long they can stay in the nest. For retirement, find a counselor that can help you budget enough now so you won’t have to struggle when you decide to retire. As for your love life, get out of the house. Meet people. Try a dating service.

4. Enjoy Life – It’s time for you to enjoy life. Travel, even if it’s just to another part of the state where you live. Go out with friends. Go to a coffee shop to just have a cup of coffee. Take a book or your computer along. Join a chess or scrabble club. Whatever you like doing just do it.

5. Laugh – “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones” Prv 17:22. Laughter is good medicine. It dispels stress. Find a friend or family member to get together with and laugh about old times. If you can’t find a friend, rent a comedy and laugh until you cry.

6. Socialize – There are so many meet-up groups that you can join online. There are also hundreds of social networks that are available. Think of something you’re interested in and join a group.

7. Love Who You Are- Unless you’re a twin there is no one else like you in the whole world. You are special. Don’t worry about other peoples opinion of you. They will get over themselves. You just live the best you can and love who you are.

Enjoy this time. We are “old enough to know better and still too young to care”.

A heart healthy diet is one that has the best interest of not only your heart in mind, but every other aspect of your body as well.

The functioning of your arteries and organs are also key to heart health, and when these are in good condition then you are less likely to suffer from any non-hereditary heart conditions.

a heart healty diet

As a rule, anything that contains high amounts of bad fats should be avoided. This means all fried and fast food, as well as most processed foods.

It goes without saying that these are not ideal items to have in your everyday diet, whether you are trying to lose weight or not. Excess cholesterol is a precursor to almost certain heart problems.

The type of fats you consume can be confusing as far as whether they are harmful or not. The American Heart Association offers information on the recommended intake of various types of fats.

They recommend that saturated fats should make up under 7% of your daily calorie intake, and trans fat should be under 1%.

There are some super foods which can contribute to the health of your heart and arteries. These include blueberries, soy protein, spinach, flax seed, salmon and oatmeal, just to name a few.
Omega 3 fatty acids are a vital nutrient required for the health of the arteries and heart. It can be consumed naturally either through oily fish, or flax seed products such as flax seed oil (an oil you can drizzle on food, but not cook with). Getting enough Omega-3 in your diet is the first step to a heart healthy diet.

A heart healthy diet is not difficult to implement and maintain. Including plenty of vegetables and whole grains in your diet, as well as a good quality source of omega-3 fatty acids will ensure you are doing everything you can to minimize your chance of suffering any serious heart conditions later in life.

Fitness equipment can be extremely expensive. Buying high quality, well made gym equipment can literally cost an arm and a leg, that is why so many people opt to go to a gym instead.

used weight loss equipment

So what equipment should you buy? It depends upon your goals. If you aim to lose weight, then a treadmill should be at the top of your list. Remembering however weight training also leads to weight loss, some strength equipment is also a good idea.

Dumbbells and barbells and single weights to go on them are generally priced low enough to buy brand new from a store, however you could find them even cheaper second hand on eBay or Craigslist.

Most people searching for used exercise equipment however, will be wanting to find some of the more expensive gym-quality machines or cardio machines like treadmills and exercise bikes. These can cost hundreds, or thousands of dollars to buy brand new so it’s worth your while to search for a quality used product.

Here are some quick tips to keep in mind when you’re out looking for some used fitness machines to purchase. As long as you follow a few simple guidelines you should end up more than satisfied with your purchase.

– Check all chains and cables and make sure none are rusted, wearing or in bad condition. This is vital as any cable breakage can be extremely dangerous. Good brands should never have this problem, but if the item has been stored outside in the rain then rust can be an issue.

– Have a go of the machine and ensure that it all works smoothly. There should be no stiffness or creaks. Minor issues may be fixed with some oiling, but if it doesn’t feel right, walk away.

– Check to see if you get the weights with the machine. Most used dealers will sell some weights, but if not it could be an added expense.

– Check to see if the item is still under warranty, and if the seller is providing a receipt. For more expensive items this can give you some peace of mind.

– Pay attention to any electronic displays on treadmills and other cardio equipment. If these are not working properly they can become expensive to fix, and also render the machine almost useless, as you will not be able to track your progress.

There are several outlets which specialize in used exercise equipment. Many of these items come from gyms and fitness clubs where they have been replaced by new models.

These are some of the best ones to pick up, as they are generally well maintained and often quite young, as most clubs like to upgrade as soon as a new model is available.

You will also find that many of these resellers recondition the equipment too and will provide their own warranty. Places such as csmfitness.com have an exceptional range of all types of exercise machines, so does UsedGymEquipment.com and PFC-Fitness.com.

It is possible to get some of the most advanced treadmills and elliptical trainers from such places, at a fraction of the brand new price.

Used exercise equipment can be just as good as buying brand new. As long as you follow these simple tips when searching for your equipment, you can rest assured that you have made a quality purchase that will be of use to you for many years into the future, while saving thousands of dollars in the process.

Walking is a “must-do” addition to any weight loss plan. Whether you walk outside or on a treadmill, it provides unmatched benefits. At its most basic, walking to lose weight burns calories.

Many people simply don’t enjoy running or jogging and that’s understandable. Running can also take a higher toll on the body, physically.

Walking on the other hand, can be incorporated easily into your life but provide exactly the same benefits as running!

Why Walk?
There are countless reasons why walking is probably the most popular form of exercise for those who want to lose weight, as well as for people who simply want to get and stay fit.

1. Calorie burning
Obviously, going for a brisk 20-40 minute walk everyday is going to contribute considerably to your calorie burning. the faster you walk, the faster your heart will pump, and the more calories you’ll burn. It is simple science which works.

2. Bone health
This is particularly important for post-menopausal women. Walking can improve bone density as well as slowing down the rate of bone less in your legs.

3. Psychological benefits
Multiple studies have found that walking to lose weight or just for fun, daily, helps to ease depression, anxiety and stress, as well as promoting a more positive outlook on life.

Similar studies have shown that regular walking also assists cognitive function.

4. Convenient and fun
Walking outdoors should be pleasant. You simply don’t have to dread your exercise if it involves being outdoors in nature; and hopefully you have somewhere you can go that is a natural, pleasant environment in which to do your regular walking.

Without a doubt, walking in a stimulating and pleasing environment certainly minimizes the “work” feeling of this type of exercise. It can even be fun!

Walking to lose weight should be almost top of the list for any weight reduction and healthy weight maintenance plan. It’s not only healthy, but fun as well.

Once you have some set walking routes in place, or a goal plan for your treadmill, you’ll find yourself becoming more and more motivated to walk every single day – for fun and weight loss!

There is a direct connection between muscle and fitness, and weight loss. If you wish to lose weight then you simply need to burn more calories than you’re consuming.

In addition, to keep weight off and to increase the speed in which your body burns fat, you can participate in strength building exercises like weight lifting.

It’s simple: more muscle mass equals faster burning of fat and thus, quicker and more stable weight loss. Bone density, muscle mass and metabolism are all affected as humans age.

While we can’t have complete control over the aging process, there are certainly things we can do to slow the consequences down and to reduce (and sometimes eliminate) their consequences.

Building lean muscle and undergoing regular weight training is one of the best ways to do this, regardless of your age. To top it off, you will lose weight faster if you are building muscle – that’s a given. It is simply the way the human body works.

Examples of Muscle Building Activities
You don’t have to be a bodybuilder to undertake an exercise program that involves muscle building.

It’s all about toning and building lean muscle mass, not building yourself up into an Olympic weight lifter (although you can do that too if you wish!). Some ways you can achieve this with muscle and fitness workouts include:

• Dumbbell lifting (upper body)
• Squats (back and lower body – use dumbbells or a barbell for extra effect but be aware of correct form and only use light weights to begin with).
• Gym equipment: all of the exercise machines at your gym provide some muscle building facility, mostly cable assisted rather than free weights. This is excellent if you are more comfortable using weight machines, or simply want an all round workout for every part of your body.

All of these exercises will help you to lose weight faster as you’re building muscle, in addition to the other health benefits mentioned.

Getting fit requires physical exertion, and physical exertion means you are burning calories. Therefore, fitness leads to weight loss.

The best type of fitness activities are those which get your heart beating faster than normal for a continuous period of time – whether that be ten minutes, twenty minutes, thirty minutes or more, depending on your fitness level.

Muscle and fitness are the two key words of weight loss – concentrate on them both simultaneously and you’re guaranteed to see results.