Everyone wants a “magic bullet” about healthy living and staying fit.

But the truth is, there simply isn’t one.

Still, successful active agers do share a few traits, along with the basics of exercising regularly, eating well, sleeping enough, and managing stress.

Here are 5 truths among them:

1.  Slow Progress Is Ideal. You’ve learned that consistent effort over time brings the best results. If we want too much right away, we risk getting frustrated and quitting.
2.  Success Is a Journey. Don’t focus on “results” as much as “doing.” Appreciate the activity you perform each day, knowing that you’re getting closer to your goal.
3.  Compete with Only Yourself. You’ll always see people who seem to be doing better than you. They’re stronger, slimmer, more attractive… more WHATEVER. And we do not care! Focus on you.
4. Accept the Blahs. Sometimes you just won’t want to go work out. Sometimes you just won’t want to eat right. Sometimes you won’t have as much strength or energy as you’d like. DO IT ANYWAYS.
5. Avoid Complaining about Aging. We’ve all lost too many people who would’ve liked the privilege of getting older. Instead, embrace gratitude for all your blessings, including your physical abilities and the wherewithal to improve them.

How do we know so much about what helps people get and stay fit after 50? Simple: We see plenty of them here every day, living life on their own terms and feeling good. Join us by starting our 21-day longevity and strength program.

What’s So Funny? Laughter Really Is Good for You, Even If You’re Faking It

We could all use something to laugh about these days, right?

Well, we don’t need anything funny to get the health benefits of laughing.

Like everything else in health and fitness, we just need to do it.

Laughter brings physical health benefits to active adults. Laughing is great for the cardiovascular system, muscular development – and it even releases endorphins often described as a “runner’s high.”

Research also shows that simulated laughter is just as good as laughing at a good joke or comedy show. You can fake it and still take all the same benefits.

Master trainer Celeste Green started LaughActive to teach exercise coaches in assisted living facilities on how to bring these benefits to their residents.

“Simulated laughter may be ideal for older adults with functional or cognitive impairments,” she says. “The mental stimulus required for humor takes a high mental function, like paying attention and having a quick memory. But with self-initiated laughter, people don’t have to ‘get the joke’ to reap the benefits of laughter.”

How do you fake it till you make it? Just mimic the physical motions of laughing – a good, hardy belly laugh. You might feel a little silly at first but go with it.

And if you need some classic comedy stimulation, here’s the American Film Institute’s Top 10 comedies of all time, easily found on cable or streaming services.

1. Some Like It Hot
2. Tootsie
3. Strangelove
4. Annie Hall
5. Duck Soup
6. Blazing Saddles
7. M*A*S*H
8. It Happened One Night
9. The Graduate
10. Airplane!

Laughing more may be good for your physical health and we do love to laugh at Your Personal Best Training Studio.

We’ve all heard that laughter is the best medicine, but you may not know this: Negative emotions can increase *blood-sugar levels, while positive emotions–expressed through laughter–can have a beneficial effect on **immune function and overall hormonal environment.

In a recent study supporting this idea, researchers sought to determine the effect of laughter on blood-sugar levels in both healthy people and type 2 diabetics. Test subjects listened to a boring lecture on one day and a comedy show the next. Following the comedy routine, type 2 diabetics showed a significant decrease in their typically elevated blood-sugar levels.

Researchers suggested this could be the result of more muscle being used during laughter, which would require glucose uptake for energy, or of the positive emotional state affecting the hormonal environment such as reducing the abnormally high blood-sugar levels. So go ahead and laugh more: It may be good for your physical and emotional health.

• Laughter is good for your health.
• Laughter relaxes the whole body. A good, hearty laugh relieves physical tension and stress, leaving your muscles relaxed for up to 45 minutes after.
• Laughter boosts the immune system. Laughter decreases stress hormones and increases immune cells and infection-fighting antibodies, thus improving your resistance to disease.
• Laughter triggers the release of endorphins, the body’s natural feel-good chemicals. Endorphins promote an overall sense of well-being and can even temporarily relieve pain.
• Laughter protects the heart. Laughter improves the function of blood vessels and increases blood flow, which can help protect you against a heart attack and other cardiovascular problems.

“Like” us on Facebook and receive a 1/2 OFF Coupon for a Body Composition and Fitness Analysis!