When I talk with my patients about exercise, I often tell them the story of Sophie, my friend Becky's mother, who died of respiratory illness at age 83. When I flew to San Francisco to attend the funeral, I hadn't seen Sophie in 15 years. I remembered her as a vibrant, athletic woman who seemed ageless. She had been relatively active even in retirement. She played golf and worked most days in her garden. It wasn't a structured "exercise" program; she was just doing the things she loved. But then she injured her shoulder, and then her knee, requiring surgery for both. After surgery, her activity level dropped off almost to zero. As Becky related to me, her mother mostly sat around the house, depressed. Her cognitive decline quickly ensued.
This made me incredibly sad as I sat there in the pew at her funeral. Yet her story was all too familiar. We have all seen older friends and relatives go through a similar ordeal, slowly (or not slowly) weakening until they can no longer find enjoyment in the things they once loved to do. What could have been done, I wondered, to change Sophie's fate?
Had she simply needed to "exercise more"? Go to the gym and use the elliptical? Would that have saved her somehow?
It wasn't clear that the answer was that simple. I had done plenty of exercise in my own life, but by the time of Sophie's funeral, I was nursing a handful of pet injuries that I'd accumulated over the years. Fit as I was, it wasn't clear that. I was on a better path.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der Volume 3. No 2 - 2023-Ausgabe von The Oprah US.
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Diese Geschichte stammt aus der Volume 3. No 2 - 2023-Ausgabe von The Oprah US.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
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The BEST BOOKS of 2024
We all loved Oprah's Book Club selections this year (did you read them all?), but here are our editors' favorite standouts on the shelves-from the thoughtprovoking to the heartwarming to the hilarious.
The Summer I TOOK My Mom "HOME"
Whenever I tell people about the Last Trip Home I took to Italy with my 87-year-old mother and my older son last summer, everyone has the same response (\"Awwww...\"), which makes me feel like a fraud because I know they're imagining some gauzy scene. And to be fair, I'd tried to plan it that way.
PARIS Made ME DO IT
Travel maybe shouldn't be any different than \"regular\" life, but it is.
LOST And Found IN AMERICA
When I was 21, I spent the summer driving around the United States with my boyfriend. It amazes me, looking back, that I let myself go on that eight-week trip.
I WENT I Saw, HATE
Ten years ago, I went to Tokyo on a lark. I was invited to the opening of the 38-story Aman Tokyo hotel, a beautiful example of urban minimalism and a destination unto itself.
Trips That Changed US All Forever
Me, MOM, And A Thousand SEABIRDS
Dear Biohackers, The Secrets to Longevity Are Simpler Than You Think
In a world of health trackers built to optimize, we propose choosing joy over deprivation and community over navel-gazing. The research agrees.
The Menopause Makeover: For When "Aging Gracefully" Gets Old
Because literally everything-from eyelids to neck skin to boobs to butt-falls off a cliff. Here, a dozen interventions women in this life stage are embracing.
Why I Cut Off All My Hair
The author of City of Girls and Big Magic talks about how she made the bold decision to break out the clippers in order to find her own version of beauty.
The Perfect Gift Book for Everyone on Your List
Sumptuous reads that look as lovely on your coffee table as they do on your bedside table.