BoomerGirl Diary

Boomer girls, listen up. You might be suffering from what health experts are calling "boomeritis." It's a physical leap from where you are and where you feel mentally, but reality says you need to take your undeniable age into consideration when dealing with your body.

"My mantra is I want to age as well as I can," baby boomer Dr. Nancy Palmer said.

And she may do that, but it's going to take some extra work. Palmer is a professor, she works hard and takes her boomer age in stride.

"It's exciting, you find yourself in a place in life where you've been on a journey and you've learned a lot of things and you've figured some things out," Palmer said.

But there is a downside.

"At the same time, it's challenging. One of them is keeping physically fit because you have more aches and things to go with that," Palmer says.

Those aches and pains are what inspired doctors to label this new found ailment. It happened when a sudden influx of active baby boomers started flooding doctor's offices with sports related injuries, ranging from tendonitis, arthritis and bursitis. And training expert Michael Ramirez has seen his fair share.

"Some of these people are experiencing injuries now like arthritis, bursitis. It's something they experienced years ago when they were 20 or 30 and just kind of blew it off, and they didn't take care of it. Now they're paying for it down the road," trainer Michael Ramirez said.

That's why Palmer stays on top of it now.

"I do cardio, everyday. Sometimes I work out here. I have a therapy dog, I walk my therapy dog. I do weights two or three times a week. Combine that with good nutrition, eating right, low fats, lot of vegetables, good protein," Palmer said.

And there's another important connection she makes.

"Then I do spiritual practices that help my physical, mental and spiritual well being. It's a holistic approach to staying well and healthy," Palmer said.

And meet John Mullican. At 43, he's a Baby Boomer, but he doesn't let that stop him.

"I'm certainly mentally tougher. I can go out and run where, when I was younger, I didn't want to do that. If I hurt, I stopped. Now I move through the pain," Millican said.

And he moved through that pain when he ran in the New York Marathon just a few weeks ago.

"The training alone is killer. It takes about three to six months, but I love it. I get into the zone and just run," said Millican.

But John's case isn't always typical.

"One of the things we worry about is the wear and tear, and someone who doesn't listen to their body. What we like to use in the health care profession is a paper clip. You keep bending and bending eventually that thing's going to break," says Ramirez.

But there are ways to help curb the problem.

"So when you start having different changes in your body throughout injury, you need to customize your workout, take vitamins, minerals, take calcium, stretch properly and cool down properly afterwards."

And that's exactly what Nancy and John plan to do.

"Now that I'm older, I'm probably in better shape and I'm certainly wiser."

"When you feel better, life feels better."