Life should be bright, fulfilling and long. 7 great examples and best quotes about nutrition and lifestyle from centenarians.
This project began with the fact that journalist and photographer Vladimir Yakovlev spent several years traveling the world and meeting people who managed to maintain happiness, health and pleasure from life at 60, 70, 80 and even 100 years old. Now the project is reading young people on Facebook, presenting the book "The Age of Happiness" to their parents. We've picked 7 great examples and the best quotes on nutrition and lifestyle from it.
Fauja Singh, 102
Fauja started running when he was over eighty. Shortly before that, he was widowed and moved from an Indian village to his son in London. Sitting at home all day long seemed to the former farmer unhealthy and, moreover, depressing. Then he went outside and ran. After eight years of training - a year before his ninetieth birthday - Fauja took part in the London Marathon and completed it in less than seven hours. Three years later - at 93 - he ran a marathon in 5 hours 40 minutes and set a world record in the age category over 90.
Unsurprisingly, after this event, Adidas invited Fauja Singh to participate in its Impossible Is Possible ad campaign. So, in his 90 years, Fauja Singh became a world celebrity and began a sports career.
To stay in shape, he walks and jogs 15 kilometers every day. He does not smoke, does not eat fried food, adheres to a vegetarian diet, avoids alcohol and, if possible, meeting bad people. He also smiles a lot.
It is the smile, Fauja Singh admits, that allows him to keep in shape and overcome marathon distances.
Jacques Fresco, 84 years old
When biochemist Jacques Fresco was 75 years old, he made a fantastic discovery that could completely change humanity's understanding of the aging process - he determined the internal mechanisms of DNA self-destruction.
The 84-year-old scientist expects new discoveries that will help to find the root causes of many diseases and, possibly, the aging process in general.
Jacques Fresco began to study the aging process in the body when they tried to retire him for the fourth time.
Hedda Bolgar, 104 years old
Hedda Bolgar is a renowned psychoanalyst. She lives alone in her home in Los Angeles and sees patients 20 hours a week. Gives lectures, goes to professional conferences. "You know," she replies seriously, "I've done little sports for the past 80 years." True, a little over a year ago (that is, at 101 years old) Hedda became interested in yoga. Now a teacher comes to her home.
Her secret is not physical activity. According to Hedda Bolgar, in order to live happily ever after, you need to eat right (she herself has been a vegetarian since the age of 14), get enough sleep and, most importantly, accept what is happening and not worry too much about difficulties. Especially because of what hasn't happened yet.
You need to eat right (she herself has been a vegetarian since the age of 14), get enough sleep and, most importantly, accept what is happening and not worry too much about difficulties
Jia Daozhang, 100 years old
Jia Daozhang works as a hermit. For the last thirty years he has lived in a cave. He left to live in a cave when he turned 70. Now Jia Daozhang is 100. In order not to create hell for himself during his life, one should not do evil to people, smile as often as possible (“a smile rejuvenates for ten years”) and not strive to have more than a person needs.
It is important to monitor your health, but the main thing is to live correctly and communicate correctly with the world. Jia Daozhang himself (formerly an ordinary peasant, now a monk) trains every day, starting at four in the morning.
If I had money, I would constantly tremble over it, I would be afraid to lose it. And when you have nothing, then there are no problems either … The main thing is to eat well
Yuan Tianzeng, 79 years old
If Yuan Tianzeng lived in America, and not in China, he probably would not have been called a Taoist monk, but a psychotherapist. And very successful. At 79 years old, from early morning until late at night, he has been receiving visitors at his home, where he has lived since the Red Guards destroyed his monastery thirty years ago.
Yuan Tianzeng helps people who find themselves in a variety of situations: from family strife and financial difficulties to physical ailments and existential problems. True, unlike practicing psychotherapists, he works practically for nothing - he takes from his visitors only what they themselves offer him. “No matter what happens, you shouldn't be angry with anyone. It is harmful".
“A person can only be considered old after a hundred years,” he says. - I don't feel old. You just need to lead a healthy lifestyle and eat more vegetables - this is good."
Buster Martin, 104 years old
Throughout his life, Buster Martin observed a "strict sports regime": every day he drank at least three liters of beer and smoked 20 cigarettes. Buster always preferred red meat in food, but in life - everything that brings pleasure. After beer and cigarettes, work brought him the most pleasure - Buster Martin's total work experience was about 90 years. It was an amazing combination of a desire to work and a relaxed, light attitude towards life. It seems that at work he did not get tired, but on the contrary, he was resting.
At 97, he tried to retire, but quickly got bored and got a job as a van washer. At 101, he ran the 40-kilometer London Marathon. It took Buster Martin about 10 hours to cover the marathon distance. “I didn't walk or run most of the way - I danced,” he explains. True, there is documentary evidence that Buster periodically interrupted this dance to drink beer. Your beloved, black. And always with a slice of orange.
The oldest marathon runner, however, did not become Buster Martin: his achievement was refused to be included in the Guinness Book of Records due to the suspicion that he was “only” 96. Mr. Martin could not find any documents confirming his age.
Every day Martin drank at least three liters of beer and smoked 20 cigarettes. Buster always preferred red meat in food, but in life - everything that brings pleasure.
Ball-Bar Lama, 86 years old
There is always a queue to the Ball-Bar Lama. And when he worked as a doctor in Buryatia. And when he received patients in Mongolia. And now, after he opened the Jude Shea Medical Center in Moscow in 2011. Now, to get an appointment with him, you need to make an appointment a month in advance. “People are designed in such a way that their minds rush about. Thought jumps all the time. It takes a lot of energy. But you can't rush about. We need to think about one thing. About the path you want to go. For this you need to train your consciousness. Mind training is the most important thing … If you give in to your mind, you can stumble and go the wrong way. " And this is not surprising. Bal-Bar Lama is a Buddhist priest, a monk, although he lives in the world. He is 86 years old, of which 50 years is his continuous medical experience. He himself uses his own techniques and therefore is a living example of how these techniques work. If it seems to you that 7 hours of meditation every day is a rest, then try it yourself somehow and you will immediately understand everything.
He always walks, even in bad weather. Bal-Bar Lama is sure that you need to walk a lot to stay healthy. It is especially important to walk after meals. If you ask Bal-Bar Lama what to do to maintain health and mental clarity after 60 years, he will say that it is very important to eat well at this age. Be sure to eat fish, poultry, meat (except pork), ghee and, which is very important, honey. You need to eat 4-5 times a day, but little by little, do not overeat. When choosing products, you need to take into account both physical activity and the region of residence. In the Nordic countries, Bal-Bar Lama believes, it is harmful to be a vegetarian.
Be sure to eat fish, poultry, meat (except pork), ghee and, which is very important, honey. You need to eat 4-5 times a day, but little by little, do not overeat.
