Malaysia is so proud to have the world’s oldest prime minister, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad. He never fails to surprise us with how active he is in his role despite turning 94 soon and even puts to shame many of us who complain about being too tired for work. So, what’s his secret?
“Less sleep and stay active,” he said.
I thought less sleep will shorten one’s life expectancy?
Well, he goes on and explains, “If you are not active, then you become weak. When you sleep, you weaken yourself. When you do exercise, you are using your muscles more. But when you lie down, you fade away.” Hmm, makes sense.
According to The Star, he said that sometimes he can’t climb the stairs but still believes in looking after his physical health. He adds that he doesn’t overeat, doesn’t grow fat and is always active. Seems like good advice!
When asked how many hours of sleep he gets nowadays, Dr Mahathir said he tries to sleep from 11pm to 6am, although on certain days he is unable to as he only comes home at 2am. He can only have a short sleep before he has to go to work again the next day.
“If you get tired and go to bed and do not think, do not conceive ideas, do not argue, you don’t find solutions to problems, if you don’t use your brains – it loses the capacity,” he said.
“I sometimes forget words – in speeches or in answering questions. I have to make up with other words. That is an ageing process. But you don’t have to age faster by lying down.”
This dialogue happened at 8.30am on Friday (19 April) at Yayasan Albukhary in Kuala Lumpur where there was a line of people waiting to see him.
Well, I guess it’s time to stop complaining, get off your lazy a** and work work work!
Also read: Report: Tun Mahathir Instructs All States To Raise Minimum Marriage Age To 18 Years Old