Elizabeth Atkins, Author / Screenwriter - In this spring’s global blockbuster Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Captain Jack Sparrow searches for the Fountain of Youth in a tropical land.
Legend promises that drinking from it restores youth and promotes longevity. This promise is so alluring, that for centuries, explorers have ventured around the globe seeking the Fountain of Youth.
But you don’t have to journey to some lush exotic locale to find it.
“You’ve found the Fountain of Youth in Michigan!” my classmate exclaimed at our 20-year reunion for The Journalism School at Columbia University in New York.
“You look exactly the same!” a female friend marveled.
“No, you look better than you did 20 years ago,” a male classmate said.
“What are you doing?” they demanded.
I was stunned for a moment, because I do have more lines around my eyes and on my forehead than 20 years ago. And I’ve had no botox, fancy creams or facials.
“I eat a lot of spinach,” I giggled to my classmates.
Meanwhile, their reactions made me wonder: If I’ve found the Fountain of Youth, what exactly is it?
It’s what you eat and drink, how you move your body, and how you think.
Period.
The Fountain of Youth is in the fresh produce section of your grocery store.
It’s in your gym shoes, and the number of times you lace them up to get your sweat on (unless you’re swimming or doing yoga).
It’s in a glass, and whether you guzzle water, sugary drinks or booze.
It’s in your lungs – whether you opt to take deep, calming breaths or suck down carcinogenic smoke. And it’s in your brain — whether you prefer to think positive or drown in pessimism.
Basically, everything you do, every day, adds up to whether you’re drinking from the Fountain of Youth – or not.
“I don’t eat processed foods, fast food or anything fried,” I told my friends. “And most of the time, I avoid sugary desserts.”
I also don’t smoke, and haven’t had a glass of wine in weeks. I chug water, exercise most days of the week, and live on whole foods like vegetables, fruits and nuts. High-protein Greek yogurt, honey, oatmeal and olive oil highlight my daily regimen. In restaurants, I order sea bass or salmon, or shrimp in veggie stir-fry at Thai places.
Turns out, this regimen is packed with age-defying foods loaded with anti-oxidants and vitamins. Tons of fiber keeps my system cleansed of toxins.
“Let food be your medicine,” said Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine. Those words inspire my exercise and healthy eating regimen – to prevent cancer, diabetes and hypertension. I also make time for fun, relaxation, socializing and spiritual devotion. And by indulging my passion as a writer, my whole body tingles with the joy of doing what I love.
Of course, genes play a big role in aging – or not. My mother is 64 and runs most mornings on her treadmill. She’s got the energy of 10 people, and she skipped menopausal hot flashes altogether, her doctor said, thanks to decades of exercise and healthy eating. Sadly, my father died at age 68, of cardiac arrest after two strokes and kidney failure. A heavy smoker for 30 years (he quit when I was a toddler), the autopsy revealed early lung cancer.
That’s very sobering inspiration to stay as healthy as possible. I’m not saying it’s easy. Getting enough sleep is challenging. Sometimes the schedule — and fatigue — makes it hard to exercise. My doctor says I could lose 10 pounds, even though my blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar “numbers” are great. Not easy, but worth it.
If you think it’s too expensive to eat healthy, it’s much cheaper than paying for a zillion doctors’ visits and expensive prescriptions, years down the road, when an unhealthy lifestyle results in diabetes, high blood pressure or cancer.
Plus, you can find farmers markets are all over Metro Detroit. And if you head to Detroit’s amazing Eastern Market on a Saturday, you can buy a week’s worth of produce for a fraction of what it costs at the grocery store.
So if you’d like to drink from the Fountain of Youth, pile your plate with fresh fruits and vegetables. Lace up your gym shoes and take a vigorous walk. Try to look on the bright side of life. Drink more water. Quit smoking. And have fun!
Join me, Living in 3-D for a very long time!
Elizabeth Atkins writes and speaks from the spectacular human spectrum that she embodies as the daughter of an African American judge and a former Roman Catholic priest who was English, French Canadian and Cherokee.
She is the author of White Chocolate , one of her five novels featuring mixed-race people in provocative plots.
Now Elizabeth is writing the screenplay based on her second novel, Dark Secret — a sexy thriller about a biracial woman “passing” for white.
The Oprah Winfrey Show featured Elizabeth’s 100-pound weight loss! She wrote Fat Family, Fit Family: How We Beat Obesity and You Can, Too, for a family featured on NBC’s The Biggest Loser; the book debuts in March 2011
