Live HAPPIER Longer Podcast

This week in the 61st episode of the Live Happier Longer Podcast we say goodbye to wonderful co-host Angela McDade. We share our thoughts on doing the podcast together for the last year and a half, how much we've grown and how much we've learned about building the habits of a HAPPIER, longer life. We reflect on some of the great interviews, exceptional learning and lots of laughter and fun along the way.  Stay tuned next week as Molly unveils "Live HAPPIER Longer 2.0" or is it "1.0"? 

As we prepare for the holidays and a time of joy and inspiration we wanted to revisit some of our most inspirational interviews. In this short episode, we revisit our interview with Katherine Switzer, Pat Gallant-Charette and Cherie Gruenfeld. All of these women are inspirations athletically, but also in how they age with optimism and defy standards. We'll see you in 2020!

On the podcast this week, we talk with Sky Bergman all about the "Lives Well Lived" , the documentary she directed and filmed that was inspired by her own grandmother who lived to 103.  The film includes forty different elders with interviews conducted over four years and is a wonderful montage of their stories.  The result is a very inspiring film that proves that an optimistic attitude is always available to you and living a "life well-lived" includes several common themes.

This week on the podcast we talk with storyteller, writer, and podcaster Stephanie Rafflelock about her upcoming book "A Delightful Little Book on Aging" as well as an article she recently published called "Five Gratitude Practices to See You Through Tough Times." Stephanie believes that that a good story can transform the way you see the world. She wants to help older women find their voices, "not go quietly into the night" by focusing on positive aging.  Every day start out with saying "Thank you!"

This week we're reflecting on some of the best conversations we've had regarding gratitude. From our earliest episode on gratitude, episode #17 where we talked about the science of gratitude.From there we revisit our conversation on Brene Brown's "The Gift of Imperfection" and her guidepost for creating a "whole-hearted life" which is cultivating gratitude and joy. It's episode #39 and we loved exploring this book.We move then to episode #49 and building the habit of gratitude. Happy Thanksgiving!

We're talking about our 30 Day Ultimate Habit Building System. Pillar number one is Brain Training -Based on the self-coaching model by Brook Castillo. Thoughts create our feelings, which determine our actions and get the results that we have in our lives . Pillar number two is the PLAN. Building new habits in our 30-Day Ultimate Habit Building System is based on setting up "minimum achievable commitments" for yourself each week. We shared our January 2020 Habit Challenge and how you can join.

This week on the podcast we are doing the first of a two-part series on the Ultimate 30-Day Habit Building System!  We talk all about the "whys" behind habit-building and how our system can help you with a repeatable framework to build new habits and replace habits that don't serve you.  In our system, we dive into who you want to become, focusing on internalizing the identity of someone who incorporates the habits that you want to build into their lives. Stay tuned for next week for Part 2!

We talk with John Leland about his book, "Happiness is a Choice You Make-Lessons from a year among the Oldest Old".   Leland, shared some of his experiences with us in writing this book which started as an assignment for the newspaper.  In his own words, " In 2015, I followed six people over age 85 for a year. I expected a deep dive into the hardships of old age. Instead, they taught me lessons that changed my life: lessons in resilience, joy, purpose, gratitude and acceptance."

This week on the podcast we discuss how happiness is found in our day to day lives and not something that we look for in big, thrilling moments.  We talk about the fact that happiness is a decision of mindset in the day to day, average moments in life. We approach being happy in a deep and lasting way and not just looking for those “thrilling high” moments as proof that we’re happy."True joy lacks the wild ups and downs of an excitement-based life. It's a peaceful landscape."

Are you a morning person? This week we discuss the power of a morning routine and why it sets you up for success throughout your day. Having a morning routine has been proven to have health benefits including reduced stress and anxiety. A morning routine necessitates an evening routine and your sleep can't be compromised to build this habit. We discuss The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod. We review the six steps for a "miracle morning" and how you can start with only six minutes per day as you build the habit

This week on the podcast we pause for a moment to look back on our first 50 episodes. We take just one thought, sentence, quote or statement from each and share them. They are a mix of powerful ideas, interesting statistics and a couple that will just make you smile.  We want to say thank you to all of our listeners, subscribers, reviewers and to our family and friends. A big thank you to our editor  Erin Bryant as well. For the complete list go to: http://bit.ly/50ThingsWorth

On this week's podcast we discuss how daily habit #5, LET GO, may be the most important habit of all. Stress and worry are not just negative emotion words that we should be tossing around. They are true social trends with major health implications impacting us now and in the future. Stress is literally killing us. Beyond stress, when we talk about “LET GO” we really mean all of the negative emotions that can build up over time. We discuss strategies for building the habit of letting go daily.

People who focus on practicing gratitude are healthier, experience less illness (including depression), have stronger relationships, behave in more generous ways, and are overall happier and more optimistic.  We discuss the ways of building the habit of gratitude on a daily basis and how the mindful decision to be grateful achieves the strongest results. Practical tips are provided on building the habit of gratitude through journaling, gratitude meditation and setting a timer throughout the day. 

Science has proven that loneliness and isolation increase morbidity amongst seniors, while developing social connections is proven to increase longevity and improve overall quality of life. This is a habit that can be learned and even if you consider yourself an introvert, we have ideas for you to build new friendships. We share the negative impacts of loneliness and isolation, as well as discuss the positive health benefits of having strong relationships and practical tips to build better friendships.

This week on the podcast it's all about your brain and building the habits that protect brain health as you age!  Learn all about exercise, diet and most importantly brain activities that encourage neural plasticity and can prevent dementia and Alzheimer's.  Hear practical tips and ideas for activities that you can start doing on a daily basis to challenge your brain And have you wanted to start the habit of reading?  Molly and Angela offer easy steps to build a reading habit and their favorite books lis