My Grandma turned 102 recently. And here’s the thing: she’s thriving.
I mean, thriving for a 102 year old, but she’s doing great.
She recently did a run of radio and tv interviews. I think once she did that first one, all the other networks picked up that there was this 100+ year old who was still working and very articulate. My Grandma is now a celebrity.
CLICK HERE to read the Today Show’s piece on her.
So for a gym that is focused on getting amazing results while also “playing the long game”, I love that my own Grandma can be an example of how to make it to 100 and still enjoy a body that’s strong and capable.
As a kid, I spent my summers on my Grandparents farm. I learned a whole lot about hard work, and a whole lot about life. From my early years until now, I’ve picked up some of the lessons that help my Grandma enjoy such a great quality of life. I’m not going to give you an exhaustive list, and I’ll get to why in a second, but here are some of my favorites:
“Be True to Yourself” – My Grandma hated that she was asked for a single piece of life advice when she turned 100. Mainly because everyone was trying to get her to summarize 100 years of life experience into a single statement. I get that. But she understood the assignment, and “be true to yourself” was the piece of advice that she gave. Here’s how I’ve interpreted that statement: There’s no singular definition of success. Success is simply living in alignment with your values. You know when you’re full of shit. You know when you’re not. Acknowledge it, and be true to yourself.
“Have good bones” – You can’t do much about this one, but my grandma has always said that she has good bones. I mean, she was hit by a car back in the day, and recovered from that just fine, so I guess she really does have good bones!
Stay Active and Engaged – Part of the reason my Grandma still works is because she knows it’s important to stay busy and engaged with your own life, and the community around you. She’s always had a sense of purpose connected to her work. For over 25 years, she was the local Children’s Librarian. Even now, she works in the resale shop at her retirement community. She’s essentially built all this momentum through her life that now, at her advanced age, where staying active is THE MOST IMPORTANT THING, it just comes naturally to her. If she decided to start being active when she turned 80, things wouldn’t have turned out this way. In fact, things may have gone differently when she got sick and was hospitalized a few years ago.
I need to stop here before I continue this list and end up with 102 different tips – because that’s where this would go.
See, my Grandma doesn’t bullshit.
Right about now, you might be thinking about that story of someone who lived past 100 that smoked Marlboro’s and drank Thunderbird wine every day. Good for them. Why are you trying to find the exception to the rule? Especially with something as important as this?
If you’re hanging onto some idea that you’re going to “luck” into aging gracefully, my Grandma (and I) think you’re a damn fool.
Because there’s nothing I could list out here that isn’t already obvious to you.
There’s no secret, and there never was.
You already know the things you need to do to be the best version of yourself.
Actually doing them is challenging. It takes a lot of intention and purpose.
My Grandma figured that out early and has lived a life of intention and purpose ever since.
And that intention and purpose has outlasted any spurt of motivation or inspiration that others would cling to.
My Grandma lives life to the fullest. She’s not some robot, going through the motions. Hell, if you ask her the number one reason she works out, she’ll tell you it’s because she likes her sweets!
It’s not about being perfect. In fact, most people fail specifically because they’re perfectionists.
It’s just about living your life in a way that results in an overall “net positive” for your health.
Look, none of us are guaranteed to make it to 100. There’s certainly some luck involved there.
But there’s so much that’s within our control, so rather than despair about what isn’t, let’s put our effort into what is.
Keep a positive attitude, enjoy the ride, and if you’re lucky, you just might hit the triple digit club.
