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Fountain-of-Youth
Fountain-of-Youth ~ Anti Aging
Found: The Fountain-of-Youth
The no drug, surgery free way to look and feel younger...fast.
In 1976, Lawrence Golding, PhD, a professor of kinesiology at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, began a groundbreaking study.
He started tracking 20 men, their average age, 47.
They enrolled in a 5 days-a-week exercise program.
Two decades later, Golding discovered something remarkable:
These men were as flexible, as strong, as fit, and as lean, as they'd been when they began the fountain-of-youth program.
"These men had none of the changes in fitness or body composition that we attribute to aging."
"A man who was 54 when he started is now 82, and he can outperform most 25-year-olds."
Many studies confirm that people 50 and older can halt, and partially reverse, the loss of flexibility, strength, balance, and fitness that we chalk up to aging.
Though the study looked at men, research has found the same holds true for women.
(They had enrolled women as well and got spectacular results but not enough stayed with the program for him to include in his final tally.)
Regardless of gender, exercising can help you lose fat, build muscle and bone, and lower blood pressure, cholesterol levels, and risk of heart disease, stroke, osteoporosis, and diabetes.
That's not all:
Exercise can help stave off "age-related" declines in immunity, according to a recent University of Colorado study of 46 men ages 20 to 79.
Even your brain benefits:
I read recently a 2004 University of Illinois study of 29 adults ages 58 to 77 where researchers found that just 6 months of aerobic exercise bolstered brain function.
Most of the negative things we associate with aging aren't a result of chronological aging, but rather, a lack of physical activity.
So what are "You" waiting for...
...isn't it time to discover yours.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that a third of all Americans age 50 and older are sedentary.
Let yourself slide into the comfy chair of inactivity, and you can find yourself noticeably out of shape by the time you hit 50.
After age 30, you start losing 10 percent of your calorie-hungry muscle mass per decade.
Skip bone-building weight training and weight-bearing exercise (such as walking) and your bones can thin dangerously, a process that accelerates in women after the hormonal changes accompanying menopause kick in.
In a study of women ages 50 to 64, nearly a third had bone density low enough to run an increased risk of potentially debilitating fractures.
But you can get fit far faster than the time it took to fall out of shape.
That's what Golding finds as he signs up new participants every year:
"When new people join our exercise program, they look at the young volunteer leading it and think, 'When I was her age, I could do that.'
In a few weeks, they realize they still can."
What's more, research suggests that older adults can make bigger, faster gains than younger, fitter people once they start exercising.
A 2001 study found that women 50 and older lowered their systolic blood pressure 12 points more than the youngest women after starting a 20-week cycling program.
"If you're not fit and start exercising, you gain more quickly."
Getting Started...Now!
Get clearance from your doctor before you begin.
Then try this fountain-of-youth approach:
Focus on four.
A well-rounded exercise program includes aerobic, strength, flexibility, and balance training.
See our "Mix-and-Match Exercise Options" chart below, for some possible choices.
Found: The Fountain-of-Youth
Start easy.
If you haven't exercised regularly since the first Bush administration, walk just 5 or 10 minutes a pop, a few days a week.
When that feels easy, bump up your time by about 10 percent; if you were walking for 10 minutes, make it 11.
Or go a little faster; if you were walking a mile in 20 minutes, try finishing in 18, then 16.
Add days as well: If you start working out three times a week, add a fourth session.
Here's a respectable target for your fountain-of-youth time:
Monday, Wednesday, Friday: 10 minutes flexibility training, 20 minutes aerobics;
Tuesday, Thursday: 10 minutes flexibility training, 5 minutes balance training, 15 minutes strength training.
(That's 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week and if you're loving it, you can always do more down the path to your fountain-of-youth.)
Found: The Fountain-of-Youth
Know what to expect.
Some gains are longer in coming than others.
Strength improvements come first.
In 8 to 10 weeks, your newly burnished muscles should make daily tasks such as carrying groceries easier.
Your balance will improve along with your strength.
Aerobic gains are noticeable after about 4 months and by then, it'll be way easier to climb a flight of stairs.
Flexibility gains take the longest.
But take heart: "I've had people who can barely reach down to their knees at the start and are able to touch their toes in 9 months," Golding says.
Mix and Match Your Fountain-of-Youth Exercise Options
Below is a list of exercises that you can try.
After getting clearance from your doctor, choose a variety to get all four benefits, aerobic, strength, flexibility, and balance.
Found: The Fountain-of-Youth
Activities that do double or triple duty will shorten your workouts.
Yoga, for instance, covers flexibility and balance.
Workout = Aerobic, Strength, Flexibility, Balance
Cross-country......Yes............................Yes.............Yes.................... skiing
Elliptical..............Yes..................................................................... machine
Gardening............Yes............................Yes.....................................
Golf....................Yes............................Yes..............Yes.................. (no cart) Hiking.................Yes............Yes............Yes..............Yes................
Housecleaning......Yes............Yes...............................Yes................
Skating...............Yes................................................Yes............. (any type)
Strength..............Yes...........Yes..................................................... training
Stretching............................Yes.............Yes...................................
Tai-Chi.................................Yes.............Yes....................................
Tennis.................Yes.............................Yes......................................(singles)
Walking................Yes.......................................................................
Yoga....................................Yes.............Yes.....................................
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