People across the country now have the opportunity to learn the longevity principles behind Albert Lea’s AARP/Blue Zones Vitality Project during a six-week longevity initiative of their own.

In what is being called “Six Weeks to Longevity,” which started Tuesday, participants across the nation will be able to see the successes of the Albert Lea pilot project and learn easy ways to implement some of the same healthy changes into their own lives — no matter where they live.

The initiative follows along with the last six weeks of Albert Lea’s project, which ends Oct. 13. It is featured on the front page of the AARP The Magazine Web site at www.aarpmagazine.org.

“This collaboration is a unique opportunity to show America that they have a say in determining how many good years they will have in their lives and offers them the tools to extend that time,” said Nancy Graham, editor of AARP The Magazine, in a prepared statement.

During the six weeks, participants in project will learn the key themes of the project:

 Week 1: An introduction to Blue Zones and the Vitality Compass

Week 2: Creating and improving social networks

Week 3: Rethinking how you eat: Making food choices that will extend longevity

Week 4: Building physical activity and movement into everyday life

 Week 5: Identifying life’s purpose

 Week 6: Making your community healthier through changing the walkability, bikeability and food options.

There will also be daily pointers. The program will work hand-in-hand with the Vitality Compass and Vitality Coach, which have also been used for the Albert Lea project.

Amy McDonough, associate state director of communications for AARP, said participants will be tracked, similarly to the Vitality Project itself, and at the end of the six weeks, the number of years of life gained will be tabulated.

“It’s really exciting,” McDonough said. “There’s a lot to show the rest of the world about what Albert Lea has done. I feel excited that people are going to finally see what Albert Lea’s been up to.”

She said since last Friday, there have been 17,000 new hits on the Vitality Project page, which included a lot of interest following the “Good Morning America” segment about the project on Monday.

There will also be a Web letter going out to 2.5 million AARP members across the country, which will probably also generate more interest.

“Improving health is not just about what we eat and how much we move,” said Blue Zones founder Dan Buettner. “Albert Lea residents have learned that it’s about who we hang out with, about having strong social networks and about an entire community effort. Now it’s time to teach America those same lessons.”

The Web site about the initiative includes a section about Albert Lea’s history and a section about how other cities can makeover their own communities.

This includes interviews with Buettner, City Manager Victoria Simonsen and Cathy Purdie, chairwoman of the restaurant initiative.

A video on the front page of the AARP The Magazine site also features an introduction by Graham, talking a lot about Albert Lea as well, McDonough said.

The city recently asked for the rights to this video so that it can feature it on its public access channel, she said.

McDonough noted that another story about the project will be coming in the November/December edition of the magazine, along with a large story in the January edition.