In this episode of “5 Minutes,” Dr. Robert Svoboda explores maintaining vitality after 60 through calm living, healthy routine, and keeping Vata balanced.

Many of you who are watching this may already be past 60, just as I am. Others may not yet be past 60, but if you are not, just wait. You will be soon. So this is useful information for everyone.

The most important thing to do after the age of 60 in order to maintain health and vitality is to remain calm and live life as calmly and slowly as possible. It is very likely that once you pass 60, you will realize there are many things you have not done. But you can be certain that even if you lived to be 600 years old, there would still be hundreds of millions of things you would not be able to accomplish in one lifetime.

Therefore, especially after 60, it is time to acknowledge that there will be many things you will never do. Not only can you accept this, but you can actually be happy about it. You can appreciate that there are many experiences other people can have, and you can enjoy their experiences without needing to experience everything yourself.

The most important things for remaining healthy, happy, and vital after 60 involve keeping Vata under control. The older we become, the greater the tendency for Vata to increase. Therefore, all the practices that balance Vata become increasingly important.

Maintain a healthy daily routine. Apply oil to the body. Practice self-Abhyanga. Receive regular massage. Eat properly and nourish yourself, but do not eat too much at one time. Do not subject the body to excessive demands. The time for dramatic efforts has passed.

If you still feel a need for drama, experience it in other ways. Watch a dramatic movie or observe other people being dramatic. You do not need to create drama in your own physical life anymore.

If you want to remain healthy and functional for as long as you live, and none of us knows exactly how long that will be, then after 60 the less unnecessary drama in life, the better. Maintain an even balance mentally, physically, chronically, and energetically. Continue to find the pace at which you should move through life and remain at that pace.

This is something you ideally should have learned when you were younger. If you did not, then after 60 there is no longer the same opportunity to ignore it. There is a greater necessity to discover the rhythm that is right for you and continue living according to it.

The more regular your life becomes, the better it is for the body. When you were younger, the body could adapt quickly. As you become older, adaptation becomes more difficult. Damage takes longer to repair, and returning the body to a healthy condition requires more time.

Therefore, do not become overly ambitious. Do not push yourself to accomplish things through excessive effort and enthusiasm. Many things that you wish to accomplish may still be possible, but they should be approached in a slower, steadier, and less dramatic way.