I'm amazed nobody has mentioned exercise yet. Starting at age 30, you lose about 1% of muscle mass every year, and that loss will significantly speed up after you hit 60. It's called
, and there's no cure for it
. It basically means that if you want to feel young in middle age and beyond, you'll have to work for it. Muscles - use them or lose them.
Here's the fiendish double bind: The older you get, the physically lazier you become. You start to console yourself for the loss of all that youthful energy by eating more and more fatty or sweet comfort food, which in combination with decreased muscle mass will inevitably mean weight gain, which in turn will make exercising more difficult. Ageing also means a reduction of muscle-building testosterone and an increased recovery requirement between workouts; the older you become, the more will the deck will become stacked against you. It's unfair but so is life.
There's a saying in hatha yoga: "Old back, old person". It's not only muscles but also agility and balance. Doing light stretches several times a day, slowly arching your back while bending over, etc., can work wonders. You're not old unless you start moving like an old person. Can you put on your shoes without sitting down? Can you put on your socks without holding on to something for support? Can you reach over your shoulder and clasp your other hand as it comes across your back from below? Are you winded after climbing just a couple of flights of stairs? Do you have trouble navigating crowded sidewalks because you find it awkward to sidestep people rushing towards you?
Whenever I want to scare myself into exercising, I'd say to myself: "At least go for a long walk, or do you want to start rotting?" Because that's what ageing basically is unless you take active countermeasures. What's the point of prolonging life when you're weak, stiff, and plagued by preventable ailments?
