So I was thinking. After yesterday’s post, you might be wondering how you are going to spend those extra 3.76 years you add to your life by staying a nonsmoker and getting to a healthy weight.
As you know, men and women traditionally become less physically fit with age. So adding 3.76 years may not sound like a, well, walk in the park.
But how much does lifestyle influence our fitness as we age?
Fitness levels decline with age and with greater rapidity after age 45. That isn’t great to hear, is it. 45?! 45 isn’t even close to “old” the way I think of it!! I can’t even tell you how many people I know in their 40s, 50s, 60s, and even 70s who can run circles around me. (For the record, I think you need to be well into your 80s before you start saying you are “old.”)
Then again, I know a lot of people who got old before they hit 35. And every single one of those people are still alive!! I just wonder if they’re having any fun.
So I started to write a list of what I think it takes to stay young:
How often do you think or say “I’m too old to…”?
How spontaneous are you?
When was the last time you ate an ice cream cone? In an actual cone; not a cup.
Do you feel open to new things?
Do you say “I get to X” or do you say “I have to X”?
Do you move every day? Your whole body? *Moving from bed to desk to couch is NOT moving. (Unless you’re a furniture mover and you are moving the bed, the desk, and the couch from room to room.)
Do you look forward to activity days filled with movement?
Do you have fun?
I think, clearly, that lifestyle starts with mental style. If you are mentally young, your body will more easily follow. Keep yourself active physically and your mind will be primed to stay quick and agile as well. For an uncomplicated action we get to reap amazing rewards—how great!
The study on this topic went on to confirm that being active, keeping a normal BMI and not smoking were associated with substantially higher levels of cardiorespiratory fitness during the adult life span study.
A substantially higher fitness level despite our increasing age?! Sign me up!!
Who else is in?
(As an aside, today’s study included 20,000 subjects. Nowhere near yesterday’s million, but still a sizeable pool from which to gather good data!)
I agree with being mentally young. Too many people write themselves off as being old before they really are.