here are some helpful hints from the men and women who are the gold medal winners in the longevity marathon of life: 1) centenarians use their body reserves well. at birth you actually have excess capacity built into your body tissues organs and biological systems. this reserve declines gradually over time. the goal is to slow down this decrease in reserve. you’ll never guess how. yep we’re back to healthy lifestyle habits. you need to know that this decline can be insidious. that means you can actually lose most of an organ’s function before you actually experience symptoms. studies of the centenarians show that they tend to be more physically active throughout each day. they eat simply but tend to stick to whole foods. processed refined products are not a staple. 2) gerontologists have noted that you can make improvements in your lifestyle at any point in your lifespan and reap terrific benefits. if you begin to walk on a regular basis in your mid 40’s researchers have found that you can delay immobility to age 90 and beyond. get up and move already! aim to accrue 10 000 steps every day you can. 3) use it and you won’t lose it. scientists from the national institute of aging once noted that much of what we thought were the symptoms of aging are actually the symptoms of disuse. if you don’t use it you lose it. this applies to your physical as well as mental muscle. of course muscle strength declines with age. outside of athletes most of you will reach your peak muscle performance somewhere between the ages of 20 and 30. again because of that body reserve if you stay physically active you shouldn’t experience significant muscular incapacity until your 80’s or 90’s. add strength training to your physical activity routine now. if you do you’ll be able to stay physically independent and avoid disability and frailty. and whip out your sudoku and puzzles to keep your mind fresh and focused. 4) optimize your genes. i’ve got a reality blast for all of you folks who may be saying “oh heck my grandmother and mom lived well into their 90’s. i have great genes and i don’t have to try hard to live long. ” science shows that only about 20-30% of longevity is genetically determined. lifestyle is the critical factor. you can really make a significant impact on living long and well when you improve lifestyle habits. 5) wit passion and social connections keep you young. researchers with the new england centenarian study note that the majority of centenarians continue to do things they love (hey don’t knock knitting; it works! ) they’re often fun and feisty and they cherish and maintain social connections to family friends and their communities. whatever age you are today make sure you’re living a life rich with people you love to be around and that you’re out there doing professional work and hobbies for which you have a real passion. 6) aim to be a “stress shedder. ” dr. tom perls one of the top centenarian researchers noted in his book "how to live to be 100 " that the men and women he studied were “stress shedders. ” in other words they experience whatever stress occurs adapt and adjust and then move on. they don’t tend to drag the drama and trauma of life’s stresses around with them. this relieves them of mental weight and allows them to get on with embracing and enjoying life.
what's a smart way to live a long high-quality life?