How I’m Planning to Live to 110: A Longevity Mindset Inspired by the Blue Zones

Hiking in Stowe, Vermont

I turned 50 last year, and people look at me funny when I tell them I’m at least five years away from my midpoint.

Yup, my plan is to live to at least 110.

Living to 100 makes you a Centenarian.

Living to 110 makes you a Supercentenarian.

That’s my plan. It’s really a mindset more than anything else. I eat right and try to do all of the things that will keep me healthy, but I don't go overboard. I do eat cookies and drink wine occasionally, but for the most part, I live a healthy lifestyle.

There is also a concept called the Blue Zones. For those of you who haven't heard of it, years ago, a person named Dan Buettner, and his team went out to research areas in the world that had the longest living people. On their paper map, they circled the areas in with a blue marker, hence, the coined term, Blue Zones. The initial locations were Okinawa, Japan; Sardinia, Italy; Ikaria, Greece; Nicoya, Costa Rica; and Loma Linda, California.

Key themes from the Blue Zone locations included a plant-based, whole-food diet, frequent natural movement, strong social connections, stress reduction rituals, and a sense of purpose. Basically, eat beans, move frequently like walking, limit stress through practices such as meditation, and have a sense of purpose, such as helping people.

By subscribing to the concepts in the Blue Zones, I started putting beans into my daily smoothies, walk frequently and try to get a much movement as possible, connect with friends and family, focus on meditation and other stress related activities like walking without my phone, and offering help to people, such as publishing this website to have people get closer to sensory experiences they had when they were kids.

As well, if you read many of my other stories in each of the sections, you can follow along to the activities and mindset I follow. It didn't happen overnight, but it does make a difference in how I approach life.

Regardless of your age, enjoy life!

For Transparency: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. If you purchase through them, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only recommend products I truly love and use myself.

Cover photo by Alex Skobe