Baby boomers seem gifted with perpetual youth. But they are also people of passion. From the moment this generation arrived on this earth, they seemed to be bringing a mission and a different vision for society than had existed before. This sense of knowledge and of vision accounts for the incredible drive baby boomers have shown throughout their adult lives which have resulted in changes to society so profound that life in America today only faintly resembles how we lived in the 50s and 60s.

Each era of life has brought its own challenges to baby boomers. As parents, baby boomers were committed to having a different kind of relationship with their children. They are more hands on, participatory and interactive with children in a much greater way than generations before. In a very real way, baby boomers parents sought to be both parent and best friends to their children. The outcome has not always been positive but you do see a sense of family unity and emulation of parents in children of boomers that is even more committed than the family model of the past because baby boomers viewed parenting as a mission and job one of their lives.

As baby boomers move out of the parenting role, at least in terms of having youngsters at home, they now have an opportunity to define in their own terms what it means to be a grandparent. Becoming grandma and grandpa may be a bit difficult for a generation that has always fought the coming of aging and resisted even adulthood much less old age. But if baby boomers embrace the concept of being the kindly and wise old grandparent and filling that role in the lives of their children and grandchildren, they can have an influence on another generation beyond them to pass along their insights and guidance in ways that only grandparents can do.

Children see grandma and grandpa in a different light. Naturally they love them and love the opportunity to visit their grandparents if for no other reason than grandma always has cookies for them. But sitting on granddads knee and hearing his stories or just enjoying his love and teasing is part of growing up that children cherish long into their adult years. And it is a time that even baby boomers can embrace and thoroughly enjoy.

There was a great book out not long ago named “If I knew being a grandparent was this much fun, I would have done it first.” This amusing concept reflects that the joy of being grandpa and grandma to your children’s children is fulfilling in ways that even surpass the important role baby boomers had as parents. Children listen to their grandparents because they are wise and old and it gives them a sense of security to see that it’s possible to go through life successfully and still be full of life and fun even when old age is upon us. That is why children intuitively know that there are things grandparents know that they want to learn while on granddads lap and they cherish the lessons they are taught from a revered elder.

It’s good when baby boomers embrace this new role. Just as when boomers embraced parenthood, they threw themselves into the challenge with a passion that changed the definition of parenting for the better. So too, baby boomers can bring their passion, their sense of deep commitment and their love of family to the role of grandparent and give their grandchildren the gift of a wonderful grandma and grandpa who not only always had love and fun for them but also always seemed to know the right answer.

Look to your time with your grandkids as a time to pass along the wisdom that 50-60 years of life has given you. While children need the guidance and knowledge of their parents, the role of teacher, disciplinarian and rules maker sometimes clouds the parent relationship. That is why grandchildren are open to hearing what grandma or grandpa has to say because the relationship is more clear cut and they see their grandparents as fountains of wisdom always given in love.

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Baby boomers are tremendously health conscious.  That means that they are, as a group, baby boomers are highly aware of health issues and the need for plenty of exercise and a lifestyle that includes good diet as well.  But there is a big difference between being health conscious and becoming active in a healthy lifestyle.  Many times we may be well aware of what we SHOULD do to be healthier so we can live a longer and healthier life but following through on those goals is much more difficult than just knowing about them.

This is why having a partner in working out and making healthy decisions can make all the difference in the world.  Baby boomers have seen a lot of changes to the marriage relationship occur over the years.  This is not just because of women’s liberation.  It also comes from huge changes to way the work world functions as well as new parenting models and cultural shifts that have called for a real partnership in a marriage to cope with the new world we live in.  That is why the marriage partner is the best possible choice for someone to encourage you along in your path to a healthier lifestyle.

This is a good reason when you do make that New Year’s resolution to start working out and exercising regularly that you don’t keep your decision under your hat.  Share your goals of a healthier you with your spouse.  Almost certainly you will discover that he or she also has wanted to start a regimen of exercise and a sensible diet but they also were hiding that from you.  Why do we do that, even from our marriage partner?

Well part of it is that once you commit to a program of exercise and losing weight and you tell someone about it, you are stuck with going through with it.  You take away your backing out factor by giving someone else the opportunity to hold you accountable to your zeal later on when maybe sitting and watching TV is more appealing than hitting the track.  But another part of it might be that what a good workout looks like to your spouse may not line up with how you want to exercise.  So that independent spirit makes you want to go it alone rather than allow your spouse to hold that office in your life as your work out partner and accountability team member.

These are not very good reasons not to engage your spouse as a partner in a healthier life style.  Disclosing to them your intentions is actually the best thing you can do because if you “stick your neck out” and let him or her know what you want to do, you will be accountable to do that next week, next month and routinely throughout the year until you hit your goals.  You will regret your decision when you feel your spouse is forcing you to go to the gym but you will celebrate your decision when you are coming home from the gym and you feel great from having a great workout.

Working as a team for a healthy lifestyle and weight loss is crucial when it comes to diet.  Exercise is great and even if you don’t lose any weight, starting and continuing an exercise program is good for aging bones and muscles and improves stamina.  You will be delighted when you actually can squat down to pick up something off the floor and stand up again without help after a few weeks of exercise.

But if you are going to seriously lose weight, you have to change your diet as well.  And that is impossible to do unless the spouse is helping you.  If both members of the marriage commit to a diet of healthy foods, eliminating deserts, chips and soft drinks and making foods from fresh ingredients, then you can keep each other on track by only allowing those foods in the house.

This is good for both of you.  And as you see the scale report that you are actually losing weight for the first time in many years, you will have someone to celebrate with that the program is working.  Make it a healthy celebration but a joyful one because you both deserve it.

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