What activity do you refuse to give up? How do you adapt to age?

There are three things that I love that I’ve had to adapt to a back gone rogue on me: gardening, hiking and yoga. Fortunately I also have indoor hobbies of quilting, sewing and knitting that so far aren’t impacted by my aging body. (I’m almost 75.)

We had our front courtyard and backyard re-landscaped a few years ago. Our backyard is on a slope and has flagstone steps. After tripping and falling downwards, hitting my hip on the edge of one of the steps (a hip that had been replaced the prior year…no damage to my implant thankfully), I was gifted with three minimally displaced fractures in my pelvis…we hired an ironworker to put handrails down the steps on the right side of the yard and now I use those steps. No more racing down the like I’m 20 years old.

More importantly, all of our in-ground plants and many of our pots that hold annuals or roses, are on a drip system. We also installed three waist high raised beds for growing vegetables and my herbs. My husband put in a drip system for those as well and although we have to manually connect the hose and set a timer, it still means not having to stand there and water.

My husband still hikes but my back limits my mobility. However, we live in a community that has a system of paved trails that run through the community and into 75 acres of open space. I bought the pricey but worth every penny, Swedish designed Trionic Veloped. It will go up steps, over curbs and I’ve even had it up at the Caldera and on mountain trails. That wonderful mobility aid allows me to be outdoors in nature and to walk my dog each morning. Without it, with a cane, I’d be lucky to get a quarter of a mile in but I easily go a mile each morning with my dog. If I’m willing to have some work done on my back, actually discouraged by the neurosurgeon here, I might be able to go further with ease. I expect to buy the Trionic rollator/walker in the future for a more portable option for around town.

I used to practice Iyengar yoga but my back no longer allows that. I discovered Sherry Zak’s online Yoga Vista classes, aimed at the over 50 year old and fell in love with chair yoga and chair yoga dancing. Extremely affordable, available online, 24/7 and you can save your favorite classes so that they are easy to find. Hundreds of classes to choose from. My best friend who lives in another state tried them and fell in love with them too and subscribed.

That same friend reminds me to not despair over the things we can no longer do, but to enjoy all that we can still do. It may require adaptation but it’s worth finding ways to adapt something that you love doing into a way that still allows you to do it.

I can’t imagine Not gardening. It has been an important part of my life for more than 60 years. I love getting my hands deep into the soil. I love thinking about what next in winter. I love sitting among the flowers. I even love garden maintenance. It fills my soul with joy and gratitude. I’m 76 and while my ability to do All the work in the garden has decreased, I’m still outside wrists deep in the luxurious soil.

Iyengar yoga was hard!!
I was introduced to the Integral Yoga system when I went for Yoga for the Special Child training. I still teach those with special needs too. I didn’t even open my yoga studio until age 50.
I have recently tried Yin Yoga. The practice is all on the floor, so only up and down once to get on and off the mat!
I truly believe we have to keep our interest up in things we like as we age. It can be a struggle to keep active, no matter what the activity, and way too easy to say “later” or “tomorrow”. I know I have that struggle regularly. It took a lot of letting go of ego to show up at a class, to say nothing about teaching a yoga class, with oxygen! But I did it. And even as I struggle to keep motivated on some days, I am so glad to do what I can, and if I need to rest, I rest. I am grateful yoga can be adapted to so many conditions and issues. These days though you have to search for the appropriate teacher. I recommend Subtle Yoga with Kristine Weber. She advocates for slow, mindful yoga and movement and does chair programs.
Be well everyone.

I will have to look up Yin yoga, thank you. And yes, we are so much better off if we learn to adapt our interests to what we can do and not be embarrassed if we need to use “aids” like me with mobility aids and you with your oxygen. I remember watching my husband play mixed doubles tennis (all of them older players) with a woman who wore a portable oxygen tank on her back. I was so impressed! We live at 7000 ft altitude. No telling if one of us might need oxygen as we continue to age if we want to stay here. I’ve made a lot of “friends on the trail” in my community because of my all terrain Veloped. It’s rather cool looking and unusual. I had one person ask me if it was motorized. I said “only by me.”

And going up steps with the Veloped.

Thanks for your insightful comment. I'm not familiar with the term "natural mulch" which would not involve bark (of some species) chips. What is the material that you are referring to as a natural mulch. I live in Oregon and here about all we see is bark mulch.

So, this is the ultimate lazy, frugal gardener mthod. Imagine,saving labor, conserving soil moisture, suppressing weeds, feeding your garden naturally, and not needing to buy and spread new mulch every year or two.

Natural mulch is the practice of allowing leaves, pine needles and fallen plants to remain in the garden and provide ground cover. When weeding, trimming plants and deadheading, the vegetation is drlopped on the ground as well. Exception - weeds that have gone to seed (don't want to grow more!) and any diseased plant material.
In the fall, perennials are left to go dormant naturally, and the debris, unless excessive, is left on the ground in Spring.
All of these serve to feed the soil. If vegetation is very slow to break down, I sprinkle a little well-rotted compost on and water it in, or water with "compost tea".
Two added benefits - if you leave old flower stalks standing, solitary bees can winter in the hollow stems, laying eggs there. Drop them on the ground in late spring and new bees emerge. And, those poky stalks discouraging browsing by deer on the tender new plants as they emerge.

The only downside - you must accept a slightly less manicured and more natural look.And once in a while, I need to remove exceptionally heavy leaf fall, grind it up with the mower and spread it back in the garden.

Thank you so much. It was a term I haven't heard before. Here we call it litter (the remains of plants from which you can still determine their origin (leaf, needle, cone, etc.) or duff (decaying organic matter whose origin is no longer destinguishable).

Yes, those are the terms for the plant matter. But the whole process is natural mulching.

Thank you for being so inspiring! Love to you and your husband! May you both be well!