"Blue Zones" & the Link to Long, Happy and Healthy Lives
Written by Dr. Madolyn Linka | November 12, 2020
I recently stumbled across an article about the healing nature of the world’s “Blue Zones”, which describes five distinct areas of the globe that have the largest population of centenarians, individuals of 100 years or older. The people of these regions were found to engage in similar lifestyle habits, such as eating a plant-based diet and having a tight-knit community encouraging strong social connections and networks. Mr. Dan Buettner, who coined the term and led scientists into these areas wrote a book all about it called, “The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer From People Who’ve Lived the Longest”. There must be a connection between living a full and long life and the absence or tolerance of chronic pain… here is my experience in one of the world’s “Blue Zones”.
I had the honour of travelling and spending a month of my life in one of these regions in 2016. The Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica is home to pacific beaches, endless surfing, lush mountainous rainforests and some of the most wonderful locals. In the past 20 years it has become a hub of eco-tourism, where expats come and live out their retirement and where the people of this beautiful region are happy to show you what makes their home so special in regards to happiness and longevity. If you’re lucky, you’ll even meet a grandparent who is close to triple digits and helps run the family mango stand or surf shop.
I spent most of the month along the coastal area of Nosara, in a beach town area called Playa Guiones, which is home to locals and their multi-generation families, retirees who have opened businesses or spend the days surfing, and yogis (such as myself) who made their way to this precious Blue Zone for it’s healing environment. It was a perfect backdrop and sanctuary to dive deeper into a daily gratitude and asana (physical yoga) practices. I stayed at an eco-resort called Blue Spirit, very well coined for location in this Blue Zone, giving its visitors the ability to heal in many ways - physically, emotionally, spiritually. Throughout the two weeks of this advanced Modo Yoga teacher training, I was surrounded with like minded yogis from around the world. We had two asana practices per day, lectures in yoga philosophy, teaching/skill workshops and opening/closing circles. We spent all the time we weren’t engaged in our learning, roaming around the beautiful landscape of the Costa Rican rainforest, spending time in the ocean, and engaging with people that surrounded this amazing villa atop a hill on the pacific. We walked to the local village daily for coconuts, we surfed every other day, we ate healthy and plant-based meals, we sang and laughed and danced and practiced yoga together as a group and as a community. It was a really special personal learning experience, where I was able to tune in and sync up with listening to my inner voice. I was able to take the time and give myself permission to shed layers that no longer served me and healed my heart from past experiences I thought I’d dealt with.
Everything I felt I took away from this beautiful Blue Zone was aligned with what this place offered - healing, longevity and happiness. This is what Dan Buettner wrote about in his discoveries, the things that allowed the people of these unique regions in the world to live the longest, happiest and healthiest lives. Here are some of the “power nine”, features that make these regions special and it range true in my own experience: natural movement - getting out and moving, whether it was beach walking, yoga, surfing - it was a daily practice of moving your body that made you feel connected to yourself; a sense of purpose - having a reason to wake up in the morning, for us it was our daily 6am practice, which was meditative as you watched the sunrise through the rainforest and listened to the howler monkeys sing; stress management - getting away from the commitments of your daily life can help to put things into perspective, why you do what you, why you love who you love; plant-centric diet - I ate completely plant based for a month and it was the best I’ve ever felt - no alcohol, no coffee and all the good nutrient dense foods grown locally in this lush biosphere; social networks - being in a yoga training is the best way to make friends, you’re all there for the same reasons, you all have something in common and it’s nice to be surrounded by individuals that are also as passionate about the things you love; spirituality - this for me is a sense of purpose, a sense of belonging and an overarching idea that we are all here for a reason, we are here to serve a purpose and the more you spend time discovering your purpose, the more you can share that with the world.
Check out FullScript’s article for more info into various Blue Zone regions in the world… it might just inspire you for your next travelling experience :)
Dr. Madolyn Linka
Chiropractor
Acupuncture Provider
Yoga Instructor
