Healthy Aging: Why What You Do Today Matters Tomorrow

We have the power to age well. It just takes a little insight, effort, and, of course, the right mindset.

So, the first step is identifying where we want to be at “X” age. Since I plan to live to be 120, and I plan to do it well, I have a routine in place to help me maintain my strength and mobility and hopefully even improve these areas as I age.

Staying active in youth has been linked to staying physically active later in life. For example, the Fit in 50 Years study found that men who had played sports in high school had better physical activity at age 70 and also visited the doctor less across their entire lifespan.

Change Your Mindset and Defy the Aging Process

If you feel like high school was a long time ago, and it’s too late to get active now, think again. The “openness to experience” personality trait was a major predictor of good physical activity at age 75 because of a willingness to participate in athletics and try new things. That means, no matter what age you are now, keeping an open and adventurous mind and trying new types of movement in your routine can help you stay active and healthy as you get older.

Not only does regular exercise help us stay active in our later years, but it’s also been shown to help defy the aging process. People who have exercised all their lives are more likely to have a younger person’s immunity, muscle mass, and cholesterol profile.

Healthy Aging and Preparing for the “Centenarian Olympics”

Last week, I sat down with Dr. Peter Attia to talk about longevity and as he likes to put it, training for the Centenarian Olympics. Peter explains how, when we reverse engineer our lives by choosing detailed goals for activities and awareness as we age, we are better able to reach them.

Throughout our talk, Dr. Attia shared his own story of overcoming prediabetes and obesity (despite already living a very active lifestyle) and why he needed to take an integrative approach with diet, stress management, and more in order to finally dial in his health.

Yoga practice can be an integral part of our “Olympic” training. Yoga, especially when practiced mindfully, is a healthy habit that simultaneously feeds the body and mind. Research shows that yoga practice can reverse age-related degeneration affecting the heart, brain, and nervous system, restoring them to “normal or near-normal levels of function.”

The choices we make for our health today will define our ability to stay active, sharp, present, and independent tomorrow.