Longevity Tips From My Late Great Aunt Enid

Aunty Enid was 99 when she passed away in 2017 - 5 months short of her 100th birthday.  She is pictured here enjoying coffee and cake with my mum, Pam, at 90. While this remarkable woman didn't actively discuss what she was doing to live a long, healthy life, when I look back, I can see her lifestyle ticks all the boxes that modern research has shown contribute to a long, healthy life. In this post, I will share what I observed so that you may be able to incorporate some of it into your own life.

Resilient & Resourceful

Aunty Enid was born at the end of World War 1 and lived through the Great Depression and World War 2. Like many of her generation, she experienced hard times, and instead of crumbling under the pressure, she found ways to flourish and thrive. When her daughter was born with a severe dairy allergy, she bought a goat so she had fresh goat's milk daily.  She and my uncle lived on a semi-rural property on the outskirts of Sydney with other extended family to make ends meet, which they referred to as "the farm."  Milking a goat was hard work, but she did it to help her daughter. This resourcefulness carried through all areas of her life.

Passion & Purpose

Nursing was my aunt's chosen career, and she trained and nursed at Crown St Women's Hospital in Sydney. To say she was passionate about nursing and all things medical was an understatement. She quickly rose to the top of her profession and was Head Matron. Even though she had to give up her career when she married, as was the requirement in those days, it didn't stop her lifelong passion for medicine. She was always the first person my Mum. would call when any of us were sick. She read medical books and journals all her life and should have been a doctor.  She was incredibly supportive when I was studying Anatomy & Physiology in preparation for my Pilates course and loved to pore over my books with me and discuss what I was learning.

Faith & Community

Research suggests that people who regularly engage in prayer or attend religious services tend to live longer. Aunty Enid was a committed Christian who attended church every Sunday and participated in Bible study in small groups during the week. Like many women, she outlived my uncle and lived alone for many years.  Her daughter and grandchildren lived in another city, so my mum and I spent as much time with her as we could.  She had a strong sense of community with her church family and received a lot of support from them when she needed extra help as she aged. In her younger years, she offered support to others in the community.  For this reason, she never felt isolated or lonely, a state that can greatly reduce a person's lifespan.  Even when she moved to a nursing home for her last few years in her daughter's city, she still made friends with the other residents and formed a new community.

Practice Self-Care

Aunty Enid and Uncle Cedric owned a block of land down the south coast at Dalmeny, where they would go to recharge and renew. They had a caravan there close to the water, and they would regularly take time out and get back to nature. They knew the importance of self-care and made time for holidays. I don't ever remember them travelling overseas, but trips to Dalmeny were times they cherished. In this busy modern world, we could all use more time out, spending time in nature.

Prepare Your Food

Aunty Enid was an excellent cook. My uncle was a pastry chef and together they ran a cake shop in the 1950s. She also had food allergies like her daughter, so she rarely ate out and never ordered take away.  Preparing what you eat ensures you can control exactly what goes into your food, making it healthier.  She would enjoy coffee and cake at cafes occasionally, and in the picture above, she is at my sister's cupcakery when it first opened, so it was a special occasion. 

Stay Physically Fit

Like most women of her day, she kept active with daily chores, cooking, cleaning, gardening and milking goats! She didn't drive a car, so if my uncle wasn't available to drive her, she would walk to the shops. With her knowledge of Anatomy, she also devised some exercises she did regularly to keep each muscle group in her body active, which I think is incredible. She was doing her exercises right up until the end of her life. When she arrived at the nursing home, much to the surprise of the staff, she worked out a path she would follow for her daily walk. She also found a place to sit each day to receive adequate sun and light.  She was an inspiration to me and is greatly missed, but I take comfort in knowing she had a long, largely healthy life and that we can all learn something from her longevity-promoting lifestyle. 

These days, you don't have to devise your own exercises - Joseph Pilates did that for us! If you would like to start 1 on 1 virtual Pilates sessions with me email me at [email protected]. Alternatively, sign up HERE and we can schedule an appointment time. If you want to work independently, join my online Pilates program of on-demand videos which I specifically designed to help you recover from pain or injury  It would be my pleasure to assist you on your movement journey to staying strong and healthy as you age!