A woman who celebrated her 106th birthday last month shares the habits that helped her live so long.
Katie MacRae doesn’t think there’s a special secret to getting to an old age. But she advises people to live life to the fullest, which she always has.
She was born in 1917 near London during the First World War and started working as a secretary after leaving school at 15. She and her husband followed their son, moving to Australia in 1965, and has lived there ever since.
After her husband died, MacRae lived in a retirement village for 18 years before moving to a retirement home run by the non-profit Bolton Clarke in Queensland in August 2023. She is a member of The Centenary Club, which organizes events for the elderly over 100 years old and collects their life stories.
Asked for advice for people who want to live a long life, she told Business Insider, “To live life to the fullest, smile and enjoy everything that happens to you.”
While genetics and the fact that she doesn’t smoke likely contribute to her longevity, she shared 4 other lifestyle factors that she believes have allowed her to keep smiling.
1. Gardening
“I love gardening and have always done it since I was little. I helped my father when we moved into the new house. The street had a gardening competition, and I won a prize when I was 12 or 13.”
She continued to garden throughout her life, including seeding “all” the plants at the aged care center and winning a competition.
Gardening is a pastime for many people in Okinawa, a region of Japan where people regularly live to be over 100 years old. Longevity researcher Dan Buettner said it could be beneficial for a long life because it facilitates daily exercise, exposes people to vitamin D from the sun, and provides fresh vegetables.
2. Bowling
MacRae bowls regularly and recently competed in a competition against other retirement villages. She said she hopes to have a mat installed in her current home soon so she can socialize even more with other residents. “Even people in wheelchairs can play,” she said.
Regular exercise is believed to be essential to extending our lifespan, but we don’t have to go to the gym to stay active. In fact, some of the oldest people in the world don’t go to the gym; instead, they walk a lot, climb stairs, and do group sports like bowling to make exercise more social and enjoyable.
3. Working and being busy
MacRae worked as a secretary for most of her life in both the UK and Australia before retiring. She then took on committee roles in her retirement village, organizing shows, mannequin parades and theater trips. She believes that keeping the brain active is essential to longevity, similar to exercise and a healthy diet.
In addition, researchers from LongeviQuest, a longevity research organization, said that work is common among centenarians.
4. Keep smiling
“When I was at the supermarket some time ago and someone came up to me, I smiled at them to see what would happen. She smiled back at me, so I did it a few more times, and suddenly a lady stopped and said, “You made my day to have this little conversation with you,” a MacRae recounted.
MacRae’s biggest piece of advice is “just smile, be happy and enjoy life,” she notes businessinsider.in.
2023-12-25 16:40:01
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