When we think of investing in ourselves, we usually picture doing something now that pays out for our future, older selves. Like investing money, buying a house, getting an education, because nobody wants to go into bankruptcy. But do you ever think about investing in your “physical” nest egg–I’m talking about your body, that beautiful temple in which you reside. While we all realize we need to plan financially for retiring from jobs, we don’t recognize that our bodies are also brought into retirement over the years.
Unfortunately, the average individual reaches their peak level of fitness between 25 – 35 years old. Then during midlife, our muscle and bone strength declines, our capacity to perform moderate exercise becomes more difficult, and we’re more likely to develop a plethora of chronic diseases.
Fortunately, all is not lost! Whether it’s building your physical nest egg through midlife, or catching up in your later years–no matter the age–“physical” investments pay immense dividends by reversing some of the declines our bodies suffer due to inactivity.
Here are two ways you can protect your future physical assets:
1) Move!
Our bodies are built for movement. When we sit, we tell them to get ready to shut down and prepare for death. Unfortunately, the average American adult is now sedentary 13 hours an day; that’s 80% of our waking time. As a result, we’re active a mere 3 hours a day! This increase in sitting time has only happened in the last 100 years, since we’ve adopted many labor-saving devices and moved into desk jobs with long commutes.
Now so sedentary time has become a major public health problem. In fact, the amount of time you sit may be a more important indicator of poor health than the amount of time you engage in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. That’s because sitting increases the risk for developing:
- type 2 diabetes
- certain types of cancers
- dementia
- cardiovascular disease
- depression
- and earlier death from all causes
What you can do: Stand! Reducing the average amount of time you sit down to less than three hours per day can increase life expectancy by two years. Here’s why: within 90 seconds of getting up after prolonged sitting, we begin moving blood fats and blood sugar (glucose) out of our bloodstream and into working muscles to be used for energy. This helps decrease the risk of developing type 2 diabetes and heart disease. In fact, the American Diabetes Association now recommends that people with diabetes get up and move every 30 minutes.
2) Pump iron!
Cardiovascular exercise, such as walking, is great and important for lots of reasons to help maintain wellness as we age. However, the only way to strengthen your muscles to stay strong and independent is through strength training–lifting or pushing weight against progressively challenging resistance levels over time.
This is because a process called sarcopenia begins in our 30s. We gradually begin to lose muscle mass, as much as 3% to 5% each decade. This increases the proportion of body fat we carry and the risk of chronic diseases.
Sarcopenia robs us of our strength and independence, and ability to carry on activities of daily life:
-
-
-
-
- taking stairs
- carrying groceries
- getting up from chair/car unassisted
- loss of balance
- playing with grandchildren
- ability to withstand falls
- quality of life
-
-
-
Most people are not aware of the benefits of lifting weights, beyond muscle strength. These include improved bone density, strong heart health, better blood sugar usage, and better blood pressure control. Additionally, there are many proven mental health benefits such as improved memory, less depression and anxiety, and improved self-esteem and confidence.
What you can do: Pick up light weights or cans and “pump” or walk with them. Start light and gradually increase the amount of resistance. Or use your own body weight–perform push-ups against a wall, do squats, or stand from a chair without pushing with your arms.