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MUSCLE & LONGEVITY Overcoming Our Fitness Crisis—and Aging Well Approached wisely, building muscle and staying fit are very doable. Get on the right track and you won’t want to get off—extending your healthspan in the process. * * * Carol brought our fitness crisis to my attention. We'll start there. A new study at Tufts University found the less than 7% of our nation’s adults have good cardiometabolic health. This includes five key components of health: blood pressure, blood sugar, blood cholesterol, adiposity, and the presence or absence of cardiovascular disease. Sadly, we’re on a steep decline. In 1999, one in three adults had a healthy weight. By 2018, that number fell to just one in four. At the same time, three in five people were free of diabetes or prediabetes. By 2018, more than six in 10 adults had one of these conditions! “These numbers are striking. It’s deeply problematic that in the United States, one of the wealthiest nations in the world, fewer than 1 in 15 adults have optimal cardiometabolic health,” says Meghan O’Hearn, a doctoral candidate at Tufts. “Disease is not the only problem,” O’Hearn added. “We don’t just want to be free of disease. We want to achieve optimal health and well-being.” (While this study is yet to be published, you’ll find many more details in a July 4, 2022 article by Chris Melore: https://www.studyfinds.org/us-adults-cardiometabolic-health/ ) * * * That brings us to an earlier study from UCLA finding that the more muscle mass older Americans have, the less likely they are to die prematurely. We also have an interview of orthopedic surgeon Howard Luks, MD, regarding his new book: Longevity...Simplified. His breakthrough revelation is that exercise doesn’t need to be hard, but constant. Both were called to our attention by John F. Cusic, a physical therapist in Baltimore, MD. They speak to our fitness crisis. Build Muscle & Live Longer New UCLA research suggests that the more muscle mass older Americans have, the less likely they are to die prematurely. The study is the culmination of previous research by endocrinologist Preethi Srikanthan, MD (FEL ’04), that found that building muscle mass is important in decreasing metabolic risk. Dr. Srikanthan says. “Our study indicates that clinicians need to be focusing on ways to improve body composition, rather than on BMI alone, when counseling older adults on preventive health behaviors.” We conclude that the measurement of muscle mass relative to body height should be added to the toolbox of clinicians caring for older adults. Future research should determine the type and duration of exercise interventions that improve muscle mass and potentially increase survival in healthy older adults. Muscle Mass Index as a Predictor of Longevity in Older Adults: American Journal of Medicine, February 18, 2014 * * * That spotlights the interview of Dr. Luks on GQ.com regarding his very timely book Longevity...Simplified. I’m going to relate the doctor’s most helpful insights, and then urge you to read the entire interview—and his new book about longevity goals and why they are achievable. The Key to Aging Well As noted earlier, Kuks’ main revelation is that exercise doesn’t need to be hard, but constant. That tells us where he's going and suggests how we get there. “I don’t want people to think they have hypertension, elevated cholesterol, type 2 diabetes,” Luks explains. “They have one problem, really, with a root cause: mitochondrial health." The mitochondria are the powerhouse of the cell. They provide you with ATP to drive muscle, heart and brain function. To work more efficiently, mitochondria prefer to burn fat. “Low heart rate exercise promotes fat oxidation by improving your mitochondrial flexibility. Your mitochondria will increase in numbers, the capillaries in your muscles will increase to bring in more blood, and a lot more processes will ensue that will help your mitochondria to burn fat again, and thus improve your health." * * * “After treating people for 2.5 decades, it’s obvious that most people view exercise as work. It’s hard, sweaty, people can’t do it or are worried about how they might look. There’s the distinction, too, between a runner or triathlete who doesn’t sleep or eat well. You really need to do everything, or otherwise you’re still at risk. If you run three miles before work and sit all day after, you’ve lost most of that benefit. “Our bodies need to move throughout the day. I say, Just move, move often and occasionally with ferocious intent. Park far from the office, walk the two flights to your desk, get up from your chair and squat." How does this tie into base building—of moving regularly below our heart rate max, and how that builds us up? “Good question. Peloton culture tells us our highest heart rate is our best one. That’s getting the wrong message across. Fat oxidation is important. If you jump on a Peloton or do a tough Orange Theory class, you’re jumping straight to glycolysis, and passing fat oxidation. It’s low intensity work—going out for a walk or a hike—that provides the most health benefits. High intensity effort is necessary, but far less than anyone thinks. It only has to be 3 to 5% of our overall effort: bike for an hour, and for the last five minutes, add in some nausea-inducing sprints.” The key in the book for resistance work seems to be effort. Do weights need to be heavy, or is it reps? “There’s a genetic-related process called sarcopenia, where once we’re over 35 we start to lose a certain percent of muscle mass and strength per year, which accelerates into our 50s and 60s. It manifests as poor mobility, and we lose our balance. These are natural processes, but it’s easy to prevent. Doing weight-bearing exercises for our legs, quads, glutes and hamstrings helps us avoid falls as we age. The more muscle mass you have, the more mitochondria you’ll have, and it affects how they work. And muscle mass cushions you. Drs. Stuart Phillips and Brad Schoenfeld, who are in the muscle development space, make it very clear: as long as the volume is the same, weight doesn’t matter. You don’t need to push your one-rep max. Most people recommend doing 60 to 70% of that max and getting to 8 to 12 reps, with the last one being challenging.” What’s the role of a doctor with these common sense, simple and holistically intuitive solutions? “Incidences of metabolic syndrome and insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes and obesity are increasing. The life expectancy of a white male has diminished a few years in a row now for the first time in history. So the need for medical doctors is not going away any time soon. People with medical conditions will need to check with their doctors before starting exercise programs, and will need them to help them manage their medications, since if they do these programs, they’ll need less medication.” For more, here’s the link to the interview: https://www.gq.com/story/why-metabolic-health-is-the-key-to-aging-well?fs=e&s=cl&fbclid=IwAR12TGftC65wt4DYp4OlMx6lSPjtqPC3gAiorACE5PfKVjijK-5VpT9uRgQ My Take The above studies and Dr. Luks' timely book confirm much of what I've been doing and writing about in our books and website. This in large part explains how I’ve been able to continue training at a high level after many others have curtailed or stopped training. Carol has done the same thing, walking and training with more drive than ever before. Many high level lifters and bodybuilders lose interest when their competitive years come to an end. I was just getting started. I looked as good or better at 60 than when I won the Most Muscular trophy in the Past 40 Mr. USA.
Photos by Pat Berrett at 60 My Ripped column in Joe Weider’s Muscle and Fitness required new photos with each issue—and then Carol and I launched our website, which required more new photos, most recently for my every day condition photos on my birthday at 76 and soon to be 85.
I realized that few have these incentives, but all of us have reasons to keep training. Key on what makes you head for the gym. Looking at what happens to those who don't take care themselves is reason to keep us all going. You'll find them in every doctor's waiting room. A Success Story this month includes a gentleman still going strong at 87—and Carol and I almost never miss a workout. Our main workouts take sets to the point of challenge--and we keep moving on most days in between. My Saturday weighing continues to show a constant bodyweight and muscle mass. (Carol also weighs, but the results are top secret.) The ever widening gap between those that train and those that don't gives us all reason to keep training. Why not stand out in the crowd? August 1, 2022 Comment on this article: FEEDBACK Ripped Enterprises, P.O. Box 51236, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87181-1236 Home | Products Index | Ripped Bks | Lean Adv. Bks | Lean For Life | Recommended Bks | |Consultations | Tapes | To Order | Feedback] Copyright © 2022 Clarence and Carol Bass. All rights reserved.
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