The Key to Staying Young? It’s Simpler (and More Fun) Than You Think

Caroline Paul shares 5 key insights from Tough Broad: From Boogie Boarding to Wing Walking―How Outdoor Adventure Improves Our Lives as We Age.

As you get older, the culture — and even your body itself — may tell you to slow down. Take it easy. Relax. But there’s a strong argument that the opposite is true. Aging bodies may well benefit from being pushed a bit harder, and an active life is likely to be a longer, healthier and happier one. That’s the message Caroline Paul shares in her new book Tough Broad: From Boogie Boarding to Wing Walking―How Outdoor Adventure Improves Our Lives as We Age. Caroline is an author of fiction, nonfiction, and memoir, and a lifelong adventurer. Read or listen to 5 of her key insights.

5 Key Insights

1. The way we look at our own aging predicts how well we will age.

2. The outdoors is the single best antidote against toxic ageism.

3. Cultivate awe because it's really good for you.

4. Mother nature is medicinal.

5. We can, and must, learn something new at an older age.

1. The way we look at our own aging predicts how well we will age.

One day, when I was surfing in a cold winter swell, looking around, there were no middle-aged women out there. There were lots of middle-aged men, some as old as 75, but no women. You see the same thing if you look around at people skateboarding or even flying—plenty of middle-aged men and older, but no women.