6 Factors to positive ageing

RDNS NZ's Education & Learning Centre studied and gathered evidence-based research about Positive Psychology.

Our six factor ‘BE-ACTIVE’ model includes understanding what makes us feel good and finding ways to make this activity a bigger part of our life.  Doing this helps us to balance out the other (negative) stuff.

CONNECT | MOVE | BE PRESENT | LEARN | THINK POSITIVE | ENERGISE

Connect

Connecting makes us happy.

Happy people live longer, have stronger immune systems and have improved coping skills, just to outline a few positive paybacks.

Research tells us that we have a few general things in common, and money doesn’t make us happy – friendships and relationships do.

Stay in touch with neighbours, find ways to join family either in person, on the phone or online social networks.  The more we actively do, the happier we will be! Join a class, a club, or volunteer and share the gift of your knowledge.  These are all great ways to stay connected and invest in you!  

Move 

Moving boosts our energy levels and helps us sleep well.

Moving every day impacts our fitness, strength, balance and flexibility. Research shows us that exercise significantly improves quality of sleep and helps us feel more alert during the day.  As our ability to balance decreases as we age, keeping active every day can reduce the risk of unsteadiness leading to falls.  

There are many ways to move more during the day: dance to your favourite song, walk to the local shops instead of taking the car, or get off the bus one stop earlier. Stretch - try to touch your toes every morning, join a fitness group, take a friend’s dog for a walk, take the stairs, try yoga or a Tai Chi class.

Be present

Being present is about enjoying the here and now.

Mindfulness and focusing on the present has been shown to reduce stress and help us cope with anxiety.  Being present puts aside worries about the past and fears for the future, and helps us to be more aware of what’s going on around us.  Benefits of being present improves concentration, it’s easier to relax, reduces your heart rate, improves moods, boosts immunity and improves memory.

Be present by noticing what’s around you, savour the moment, experience gratitude, share your time, seek to understand friends and family, listen, meditate, breathe and enjoy life.

Learn

Learning keeps our curiosity alive.

Keeping our brain active is key to our brain health. Learning improves memory and helps our brain to strengthen its connections and work well. Our brains benefit when we learn something new, and studies have shown that higher levels of mental activity are associated with reduced risk of cognitive decline and dementia.

Actively learn by studying a favourite subject, learn to use your intuition, learn a new word daily, talk philosophy, play a musical instrument, volunteer your time, do crosswords or sudoku, read books or challenge your ideas.

Think positive

Positive thinking boosts our happy meter.

Being optimistic improves self-esteem, assists our ability to cope with difficult situations, reduces stress and increases our livelihood, energy and happiness.

Research shows that simply looking at a vase of flowers can boost positive thoughts. Focus on the positives by: counting your blessings by keeping a diary of things you’re grateful for, surround yourself with photos of loved ones, use your imagination, help others, laugh at yourself, set personal goals, expand on your achievements, do things you enjoy, smile... positive thinking is contagious!

Energise

Feel better by energising your life. Energising means waking each day with vigour and energy, feeling good and being able to do more.

Reinvigorate and gain energy  by: fuelling your body with nutritious food, learn about vitamins in food, eat breakfast, snack well, drink lots of water, stretch, sleep, cook for your friends, change your routine, wear bright colours, laugh or take time to connect with nature.