We are getting older from generation to generation. Forecasts years ago predicted that - if the trend continues - a very large proportion of those born today could reach triple-digit age. At the same time, an uncomfortable question remains: are we primarily extending our lifespan - or also the years that really feel like life?
Many people intuitively sense that „living longer“ does not automatically mean „living better“. Current analyses worldwide describe a growing gap between life span and health span - in other words, between the years we live and the years we live in good health.
This realisation is no reason for resignation - on the contrary. It is an invitation to understand ageing in a new way: not just as a biological process, but as a phase of life that can be shaped. As well ageing. As longevity with meaning.
Ageing is accompanied by changes: functions decline, structures become more fragile. This can be delayed, but not stopped completely.
If we are honest, it is not just the thought of wrinkles or grey hair that moves us. It's the feeling behind it: the loss of lightness, spontaneity and resilience. And sometimes also the quiet fear of being less „needed“.
From a medical point of view, typical signs of ageing can be seen in many organ systems: Skin and connective tissue lose elasticity, muscle mass decreases, bones become more porous, vessels less elastic, the adaptability of the nervous system decreases. The immune and hormonal systems also change - many „rejuvenating“ messenger substances become fewer, stress axes can become more dominant.
How do you feel when you read such terms? Decrease, degradation, reduction? This is where the real work on ageing begins - because ageing is not just biology. It is a relationship: a relationship with your body, with your life story and with what lies ahead.
Ayurveda is one of the oldest documented teachings on healthy ageing. „Ayus“ stands for longevity, „Veda“ for knowledge - in other words, the knowledge of how we can grow older with as few complaints as possible, full of meaning and as happy as possible.
From an Ayurvedic perspective, the dominant forces (doshas) change over the course of a lifetime: In childhood, Kapha characterises growth and development; in adulthood, Pitta ensures transformation, performance and „fire“. From midlife onwards, Vata becomes increasingly dominant - and Vata brings with it characteristics such as dryness, coldness, restlessness and distraction. It is precisely these qualities that are reflected in many ageing processes.
Longevity does not mean fighting against the body. It means balancing things out early on: more warmth, more regularity, more nourishing substance - both physically and emotionally.
One of the strongest ideas from the Ayurvedic (and also philosophical) tradition is the paradox: while the body degenerates, the mind can grow in the opposite direction.
Ayurveda describes three qualities in the mind: tamas (heaviness, inertia), rajas (restlessness, attachment/aversion) and sattva (clarity, calm, harmony). Many people know this from their own biography: when we are young, we are often dominated by doing, wanting and reacting. With increasing age - if we allow it - space is created for something else: insight, serenity, compassion. Sattva.
And this is where it becomes practical: a mature mind changes behaviour. Those who become calmer inside manage their energy better, live more mindfully, cultivate relationships more consciously - and can thus minimise the „Vata peak“ in the body.
We don't just age physically. Psychologically, many people feel much younger than a glance in the mirror would suggest. This inner self-image needs time to adapt to external ageing.
Many things also change socially: after an active working life, structures fall away, familiar contacts become fewer, losses accumulate. Without new connections, there is a risk of loneliness and the feeling of being „disconnected“.
And culturally? The world is becoming faster, more digital, louder. Those who no longer keep up with the times can easily feel outdated - even though life experience can be a treasure in these complex times.
Well ageing therefore does not mean „optimising“ old age. It means developing a new identity: less defined by performance, more by values. Less about speed, more about depth.
1) Warming, nourishing, stabilising (Vata balancing)
Focus on regular meals, sufficient sleep, warm and easily digestible food, rituals and breaks. Not as a dogma - as a signal to your nervous system: „You are safe.“
2) Cultivate clarity (strengthen sattva)
Daily moments of silence - breathing, meditation, nature, prayer or simply being consciously present - act like mental hygiene. They reduce reactivity and give you an inner place that does not age with your body.
3) Stay connected (social immune system)
Plan relationship management as consciously as you plan exercise or nutrition. Not „when there is time“, but because there is time. Community, purpose and being used are longevity factors that no capsule can replace.
Perhaps the most touching promise of Healthy Longevity is not the illusion of eternal youth. Rather, it is the opportunity to become more at home with yourself with each passing year: more peaceful, more relaxed, clearer - and therefore also better supported physically.
What if ageing wasn't your opponent, but your teacher?
You decide - a little bit every day - whether it works.
If we no longer see ageing as a deficit, but as a creative space, we need orientation, knowledge and an individual compass. This is precisely where our Longevity Coaching as holistic support for people who want to take responsibility for their health, quality of life and ageing.
👉 You can find out more about our approach to healthy ageing with a synthesis of medicine, psychology and wisdom teachings here:
Perhaps you have realised one thing while reading this: Healthy ageing is not an abstract concept. It shows itself - every day. In our energy, in our attitude, in our presence. And above all, where internal processes come to the surface.
In the next article, my wife Corina looks at a place where Healthy Longevity becomes particularly visible: our skin. As a mirror of lifestyle, rhythm, stress and self-care. As an organ that does not judge - but reacts. And as an invitation to not only think healthy ageing, but to feel it.
Because before we change our lives,
change often begins where we touch ourselves again.
