You can actively pursue longevity. Yet simply living longer is not enough. Striving to stay as healthy and happy as possible is crucial, too. There are several steps you can take to achieve these goals, and doing so will boost both your longevity and your quality of life.
Adopting healthy habits is key
To help support your physical and mental health, along with your chances for a longer life, make these lifestyle choices a priority:
Let’s take a closer look at some of these lifestyle habits and how they can boost both your longevity and quality of life.
Nutritious eating
Smart food choices make up a vital part of healthy aging. Aim to eat a diverse array of nutrient-rich foods from a range of different food groups:
Staying active and exercising
Exercise is crucial when you are aiming to add quality to longevity. Being active raises your chances of living longer without disease or physical and mental disabilities. Working out and staying active can help lower the risk for heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and other chronic health issues.
Age also often brings muscle loss, lower energy, and aches and pains. But by moving more, you can lessen some of these effects of aging.
Look for forms of exercise you really enjoy, whether that’s walking, running, swimming, biking, hiking, recreational sports, or taking group cardio or strength training classes. If you are not sure about the types of activities and exercise that are best for you, talk with your doctor about safe ways to get and keep moving.
Getting enough quality sleep
Sleep is needed to support and restore your body’s functions, to fight disease, to lower the risk for chronic health issues, and to regulate metabolism.
Getting enough uninterrupted, deep sleep and experiencing stable mental health go hand-in-hand. A lack of sleep can affect your mood. Chronic insomnia is associated with depression and anxiety.
Your sleep quality affects your quality of life at any age. As you aim for longevity, sleep will help you feel good and will allow your body to function in healthier ways—for many years to come.
Supporting your mental health
Mental well-being is recognized as essential to one’s quality of life with numerous health care resources dedicated to supporting mental health. It plays a crucial role in health and longevity, as well.
Mental health relies on good physical health, as well as emotional and social well-being. Emotions affect how you think, feel, and act. The social aspect of mental health determines how you relate to others and the depth of the bonds you share with them. A healthy mind also helps you better handle stress.
Some signs of mental health problems are milder in their impact on daily life. You may feel a bit down, for example. Or you may have trouble sleeping. More severe symptoms include:
If you’re experiencing any of the above signs, reach out to your doctor or a mental health counselor right away.
Managing your stress
Stress, if not managed, can age you faster. Conversely, another part of moving into longevity in the best health possible is learning to handle stress. The good news is that by learning to control your emotions and reactions, you can lessen the negative effects of stress on aging.
Find what relieves stress for you. It may be meditation, deep breathing, journaling, yoga, listening to music, or connecting with others. These are helpful tools. But it can also help when you learn to shift negative thinking. This may mean learning to adapt to, or accept, things you can’t change. These shifts in thinking help you put your problem-solving skills to use so you can cope better with stress.
Finding your life purpose
Finding and fulfilling your purpose in life is one of many steps that can help you thrive. Your unique life purpose may entail filling your life with memorable experiences, rich social times with friends and family, and activities that bring you joy. It may mean pursuing your passions and goals to help you find meaning in your life. Living by your values—the people and things you cherish most—can also help you align with your life purpose.
If you’re not sure how to find your life purpose, keep in mind that it’s what inspires and fulfills you. It’s what drives your life and gives it meaning, direction, and focus. Research shows that purpose in life is a strong predictor of longevity and well-being throughout life.
Purpose can take a lot of forms and is different for each person. Yours might mean working for a cause you care about deeply. It might mean traveling to new, exotic destinations. It could mean spending more time with friends and family. Or it might mean learning new skills, like playing a musical instrument or learning a new language. Your life purpose might also be a combination of many things. It can also change and evolve as you go through life.
Have faith that you will unearth your life purpose and the best steps for nurturing and fulfilling it. Doing so is worthwhile. After all, finding, strengthening, and following your purpose in life can shift the course of your life in a positive direction. It can help support the health of your mind and body along the way. And it may lead to a longer and happier life, too.
Developing greater optimism
Optimism is the expectation that things will likely work out and that you have some control over the outcome. It’s the faith that problems can be solved and that the future is, for the most part, bright. It helps you see the glass (life) as half-full rather than half-empty. It gives you the confidence to overcome challenges and barriers.
Research suggests that optimism may also offer a host of health perks—both mental and physical. Findings also suggest it may lengthen your life.
Want a couple of practical ways to cultivate optimism? List your life goals, then imagine a future where they've been reached. Or keep a running list of 3 good things that happen to you every day. Take note of a bad situation that turned out all right, in part to your problem-solving efforts. When an upsetting event happens, tell yourself it will be all right and you’ll get through it.
Nurturing your social connections
Social connections are vital to successful, healthy aging. Relationships form a basis of support that some research suggests is the largest single factor in overall well-being at any age. Loneliness and isolation, on the other hand, can leave you more open to health issues.
To thrive as you age, make the effort to get together with family and friends. Laugh together and revel in the company. Nurture deeper, more meaningful bonds with them. You’ll find your quality of life rises and your stress melts away, too.
Live long and thrive
As you can see, it’s better to do more than just rack up additional years of life. Paying attention to your physical and mental health is a lifelong focus that can bring joy and richness for as long as you live. Healthy habits such as eating fresh, whole foods, getting quality sleep, and staying active will pay dividends. To nurture your mental health, practice optimism, pursue life purpose and meaning, manage stress, and cultivate an enjoyable social life.
Always remember that you are aiming for quality of life. Longevity is a wonderful gift, and the healthier you are in body, mind, and spirit, the more you will enjoy life, no matter your age, and the more likely you’ll live a longer life, as well.
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This information is not intended to take the place of regular medical care or advice. Please check with your doctor before using this information or beginning any self-care program. Images used for this article do not depict any members of the Silver&Fit program.
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This article was written by Sharon Odegaard, edited by Gail Olson, and clinically reviewed by Elizabeth Thompson MPH, RDN, on March 20, 2025.