The Way Things Used to Be

On the radio, I heard a woman say, “I just want things to be the way they used to be!” That mirrors the frustration that I read from emails people send about being older. I don’t necessarily mean those over 60; I get the same type of frustration from 30-year-olds who find that their bodies don’t respond the way they did in their teens.

Things can’t be the way they used to be. Your body is a miracle, plain and simple, but it’s designed to run its course. It’s the original planned obsolescence. Hormones change. Joints wear. On top of that, we don’t do ourselves any favors with our lifestyle.

Things can’t be the way they used to be and that’s good. We remember what was good about those times, but we forget what wasn’t good and idealize the rest; we don’t remember the zits, the braces, and the awkwardness of inhabiting a body we weren’t used to using.

This goes back to the last two messages. You have to decide who’s in charge and then work to be the best version of you that you can be. Forget about the way things used to be—make your body the best that it can be today.

Spend some time examining your health habits. You may think you’re eating well, but it may not be enough of the right nutrients and that’s keeping you too thin or too heavy. The exercise you do may not be the best for the body you have today. It’s going to be trial and error, but you’ll do your research, consult the experts, and figure it out one piece at a time.

Stop wishing for a body gone by. Make what you have the best it can be right now. Who knows? It may just be better than you ever imagined it could be.

What are you prepared to do today?

Dr. Chet