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If you want to kick off the new year with a new look, there are plenty of ways to iron out wrinkles and suck out fat —  all without having to go under the knife.

Age, genetics and sun exposure play a role in how we look, says Cleveland Clinic’s Dr. Shilpi Khetarpal, a cosmetic dermatologist. Non-surgical options generally are divided into three categories: injectables, lasers and other procedures such as chemical peels.

While most non-surgical cosmetic procedures are fairly simple, she recommends using a physician for injections or laser treatments.

“I tell people there’s not on person out there who doesn’t want to look their best. They want to age gracefully,” Dr. Khetarpal says. Skin generally starts showing signs of aging when we’re in our 30s, and some procedures such as Botox injections can be done as soon as smile or brow lines begin to show.

When or if to begin treatment is a matter of personal preference. “Today I treated someone who is 25 and someone who is 91,” Dr. Khetarpal says.

Here’s what’s popular in Northeast Ohio:

Chemical Peels

Sure, you’re beautiful just the way you are. But even the finest artwork could use some polishing. Chemical peels are good for acne scarring, pigmentation issues, removing redness (for folks with rosacea), shrinking pores and anti-aging.

Local medical esthetician Andrea Fenda of Apex Dermatology says chemical peels tend to get an undeserved bad rap. “People think of chemical peels and they think bloody and oozy. But there are many different types and strengths. You would come in for a consult, and they see what’s best for you.”

Are they painful?

“You feel a tingly sensation, so you hold a fan to feel comfortable. You may be pink or red when you leave, but you can resume normal activity,” she says.

Brace yourself. Nearly 50 percent of people who begin an exercise program drop out within the first six months, according to Rod K. Dishman, Ph.D., director of the Exercise Psychology Laboratory in the Department of Kinesiology at the University of Georgia.

The question is, “Why?” What is it about sticking with a fitness routine that causes so many people abandon it?

Most people don’t want health and fitness badly enough. It is a simple fact of human psychology that if we want something badly enough, we’ll do everything we can to get it.

Your challenge is to find out what motivates you to get serious about fitness and stick with it.

Unlock your motivation

Bryan Reece was told by his doctors that he was minutes away from a heart attack. So Bryan decided to fight back. Even though he had not been in a gym in 30 years, he turned his life around and eventually became a finisher in the Arizona Ironman competition. You can read his story in the book, “You Are an Ironman: How Six Weekend Warriors Chased Their Dream of Finishing the World’s Toughest Triathlon,” by Jacques Steinberg.

You do not have to be part of that 50 percent of people who quit. You can stay committed and finish strong. It is all about finding what motivates you personally.

Here are some possible motivators:

1. Do it for your health. Consistent exercise and healthy eating are the two very best things you can do for your health. You will develop a strong, healthy heart, reduce your chances of many cancers, prevent diabetes, keep a sharp mind and resist dementia, and avoid many of the common ailments that come with aging. It is possible to age without decay, and the key to this is exercise and eating well.
2. Do it to look better.

As 2018 begins, and we start to work on our resolutions, shouldn’t we spend time on ourselves and our appearance?

With our teeth and lips making up nearly 60 percent of our facial expressions, this is the time to plan on getting our smiles back in shape. Below are some of the options available — many of them done digitally — and information about the time necessary to improve our smiles.

Teeth whitening

Zoom: This can be accomplished with a laser-like, in-office technique. It takes about an hour and a half, and may be followed-up and maintained with at-home whitening.

At Home Method: Whitening your teeth at home involves wearing custom-fitted trays with a gel solution. It takes about two weeks to accomplish the shade change.

Bonding

Tooth-colored composites can be used to fix chips and fractures, as well as to close spaces and change tooth color. Most “repairs” can be done in just one appointment.

Tooth-Colored Fillings

A filling material can be used to fix decayed teeth and to replace old, worn, silver fillings. Depending on the number of restorations to be done, they can often be completed in one day.

Removal of Stains, Tartar and/or White Spots

A dental hygiene appointment, combined with bonding, can eliminate most problems. This can be done in just one visit.

Porcelain Veneers

These tooth-colored restorations can be responsible for a dramatic change in one’s smile, covering the surfaces of the teeth and wrapping slightly over the edge. This conservative treatment generally takes two appointments of a couple of hours each.

Partial or full dentures

Made completely out of a light but strong material, these non-metal prostheses are more comfortable and natural than ever. Impressions, try-ins and placement can require three to four appointments.

Implants

Used to anchor individual teeth and/or dentures, implants resemble natural roots of teeth.

Legal

It’s fun to make a bucket list of all the exciting things you want to accomplish before you die. Personally, I want to travel overseas.

You also need to have a legal bucket list of documents that must be signed now — before life’s inevitable curveballs come your way.

What You Need

Everyone should have the following Core Four documents in place before a health crisis happens: a Last Will and Testament, Financial Durable Power of Attorney, Health Care Power of Attorney and Living Will Declaration. Let’s review each of those documents.

A will is a written document formally signed in which you describe how your assets should be distributed at death and who will be in charge of your estate. Your will directs what happens with your probate assets, which are assets in your sole name alone. A will simplifies the probate process and gives authority to the executor to handle legal issues. Without a will, the probate process is more complicated and costly.

Most people want to avoid probate. Solely owned assets have to be probated because there is no beneficiary connected to the asset. For example, if your assets listed as joint and survivorship, Payable on Death or Transfer on Death are in a Trust Agreement or name a beneficiary, your assets won’t have to go through probate and will go the people named to receive them. If assets are titled correctly to avoid probate, then you don’t have to use a will, but it’s still a good idea to have a will just in case of a snag.

The Financial Durable Power of Attorney is vital because it names the person who will oversee your financial matters if you become mentally or physically unable to take care of them yourself. Many people think that spouses don’t need to have these for each other because they are married, but that is not true.

By Dianna Hosta-Stickney

Now that you’ve made the decision to move, the next big decision is finding a Realtor. After all, most of us don’t have the time or the expertise to market our home or to navigate the complicated maze of buying another one. It’s likely your largest investment, not a time to make mistakes.

Finding a good Realtor, one who suits your personality and understands your needs, can be tricky. If selling or buying a house is on your to-do list this year, here are a few tips and factors to make a good Realtor match:

• Who sold you the home you’re in now? Did they keep in touch over the years? Was the experience positive? That real estate consultant may be a good choice if you’re staying in the area.
• Check out real estate websites to see reviews and ratings.
• Consider a consultant who is active in the local chamber of commerce, Rotary or other civic organizations. Those connections can be vital for marketing your property.
• Does the Realtor have certifications such as SRES (Senior Real Estate Specialist), CRS (Certified Residential Specialist), GRI (Graduate Realtor Institute) or other designations? This indicates a level of expertise.
• Ask friends for suggestions. If they had a good experience, you probably will, too.
• Interview Realtors. A good relationship usually depends on the intangibles. Do you like the person? Are they easy to talk to? Do they seem trustworthy?
• When interviewing a consultant, details matter. How will they market your home? What tools do they use? If you’re buying, how available are they to show you houses? Get a fee list.
• Experience counts. How long have they been in real estate in your targeted area? How many properties have they sold?
• If you’re selling a home, ask about the list price versus sale price for similar properties they’ve handled.

Regardless of the weather, our cover couple, Rosalie and Tom Franek of Hiram, find plenty to do outside throughout the year.

Well-known throughout the running community in Northeast Ohio and beyond, they’ve coached hundreds of athletes. Physical fitness is important to the Franeks. They live what they believe — and a big part of their time is spent outdoors during Northeast Ohio’s long winters.

Ages: Tom, 53, Rosalie, 54.

Married: 30 years.

What they do: Rosalie is a licensed massage therapist and owns Right Path Massage & Fitness, LLC (rightpathmassage.com) in Hiram. Tom teaches horticulture and arboriculture at Kent Roosevelt High School and is a certified arborist and owner of Butternut Hill Farm, a cut-your-own Christmas tree farm.

Favorite outdoor winter activities: For both, it’s cross-country skiing, ice skating, running, mountain biking and hiking.

Favorite places to explore outdoors in the winter: Backyard trails around their farm and in Hiram Township and village, Chapin Forest and Girdled Road Reservation (Lake Metroparks).

How do you stay fit the rest of the year?

We run, mountain and road bike, hike, cut and carry wood, dig trees, sheer trees, plant and maintain the garden, push a wheelbarrow, etc.

We do two days per week of functional arm, leg and core strength. We stretch and use a foam roller daily and get regular therapeutic massage. We truly believe that one of the keys of maintaining fitness, weight and energy levels throughout the years is not only to “exercise” regularly, but to pick leisure, recreational and social activities that keep you moving.

Tell us about your kids. Fitness runs in the family, right?

Bridget, 30, is a women’s distance coach at the University of Akron.

Josh, 27, is a Sherwin-Williams store manager in Baltimore, Maryland.

Both competed in track and cross country in high school and college, along with other sports.

I’m suspicious of any activity that requires a signature on a liability waiver.

I’ve gone years, in fact, finding plenty of things to do that don’t require a waiver. I’m rethinking that. Northeast Ohio has had an indoor recreation boom recently, and the activities look like a lot of fun.

Trampolines, rope courses, climbing walls, indoor cycling. All are great winter-busting activities and don’t require layers of clothing and boots better than the ones I already own.

Here are a few places to try, either with some friends, alone (if you’re self-conscious) or with a grandkid or two.

Play: CLE is an indoor adventure park in Avon with the added bonus of serving both food and alcohol. It’s got a zip line, a rope course and a climbing wall. playcle.com

Sky Zone in Boston Heights offers an indoor trampoline park with ladders, climbing walls and other activities. skyzone.com

Zip City in Streetsboro has an indoor zip line, a trampoline park, a ropes course, a Ninja course and two Ninja laser mazes. zipcityusa.com

Ray’s Mountain Bike Park in Cleveland is open October through April. Don’t have a mountain bike? Rent one there. The course is user-friendly for folks of all skill levels. raysmtb.com

The Golf Dome in Chagrin Falls has an indoor driving range, mini golf and batting cages. thegolfdome.com

Get Air Cleveland in Middleburg Heights is just what it sounds like: a trampoline park with foam pits, trampoline walls and other indoor adventures. getaircleveland.com

Marie Elium fell off a mini-trampoline in middle school and hasn’t been on one since.

Why do some people thrive after retirement, while others seem to fade away?

The difference is often between those who continue to seek self-improvement with a sense of purpose and those who fall into a state of basic routine. The deciding factor in each pathway is one’s sense of self, otherwise known as self-image.

Who are You?

According to the Cleveland Clinic, self-image is the personal view — the mental picture — that you have of yourself. Self-image is your collection of your characteristics, how you describe yourself: intelligent, beautiful, ugly, talented, selfish, kind. These represent your assets (strengths) and liabilities (weaknesses) as you see them.

Self-image changes over time, affected by early childhood influences plus accumulated experiences with teachers, coaches, friends, family, coworkers and even strangers.

These relationships reinforce what you think and feel about yourself, for better or worse. Your sense of self is entangled with your sense of purpose, and both are shaken when children leave the nest, you lose a loved one or you face retirement.

A Retirement Roadmap

Dr. Dudley Tower is a human and organizational systems expert from the Dynamic Aging Institute, a nationally recognized program based in South Carolina. Tower says we live in an era of age-defying opportunities created by longer lifespans and delayed physical and mental decline.

Despite the apparent advantages of a longer, healthier life, many retired older adults are not motivated to pursue purpose in self-actualization or try to reach their full potential. Instead, some people spend retirement in a state of “mindless routine and busyness,” he says.

The problem is that retirement is unnatural, Tower says. The type of work you do should simply change, not stop. A growing population of older adults has retired around age 65 and now faces another 20 to 25 years of life expectancy.