When I was a little girl, we used to play a game, “Kick the can”. The goal was to kick the can as far down the yard as you could. The person who could get their can to the other side of the yard in the fewest number of tries was the winner.
Cute, interactive kid's game. But I’ve taken that kid’s game and made it my goal for health and longevity. How is that?
If I can kick the can of infirmity into the future, then when I get there, kick it farther out. The goal is to kick the can of infirmity so far out, that I’ve kicked it, beyond my lifetime.
What does this mean on a practical basis?
I look at some of the major factors that impact quality of life in the people around me. One of the biggest things I’ve noticed is that people usually do less as they age. We just attribute it to growing older. But it’s not just aging. It might be loss of strength, and pain from arthritis.
As the years have passed, I realize that the same thing happens to our horses. But with our horses, they don’t have the options as they age that we do. They don’t have assisted living, or family to help out with the chores. So, it becomes even more imperative that we help our horses live out their life with the best quality of life possible.
What are the things that we can do to kick those cans farther into the future for our horses?
➡ Muscles
In previous issues, we’ve talked about muscle loss and how to preserve muscle. Those hard-hitting articles discussed muscle losses and things we can do to protect our horse's strength and muscle integrity. As a recap, you can find them here:
♦ Aging muscles – fat replaces muscle
♦ Balanced protein may improve muscle mass
♦ How ALCAR helps build muscle
➡ Joints
Another thing that we can do is to protect our horse's joints, so that they can move with limited amount of pain and stiffness. There are multitudes of joint supplements available. We have briefly talked about some of those here:
♦ Devils Claw vs. ultra-micronized PEA
♦ Hyaluronic acid for joints and connective tissue
➡ Stay active
We know some of the steps to take.
» Eat right.
» Be sure to get the appropriate nutrients.
» And as important as anything, stay active.
It’s tempting for us to want to stay indoors during the cold winters, snuggled up under a comforter, reading a book or watching TV. But that inactivity doesn’t preserve our muscles, or the fluidity of our joints. As my mother one time said, “It’s too easy to sit down and not get up again.” Just like we need to preserve activity, we need to preserve it for our horse's too.
So, this is the secret in “Kick the Can”. Kick infirmity into the future to preserve our quality of life – for ourselves and our horses.
I hope to still be writing these articles when I’m 100. And I plan to do it on a Sunday, - after I’m done riding.
Disclaimer: Statements regarding dietary supplements have not been evaluated by the FDA and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease or health condition.
©Joan Kulifay 2024