Friday, September 28, 2012 2:29 PM

If you were to live to 100 or even 90 years of age, how do you see yourself at 90? Do you see yourself as being physically active, strong, and flexible? Will you walk with a bounce in your step or would you be confined to a walker? If you haven’t thought about it, I suggest you do. As Stephen Covey aptly puts it “start with the End in mind” then work backwards. Remember, how we live our life today will affect how we arrive in our future. 

I’d like to share with you an excerpt from Tony Robbins, (Foreword to John Little’s Max Contraction Training, McGraw-Hill Publishing). He says “simply put, the importance of health and physical wellness is integral component in all aspects of not only the quality but the length of our lives. Strength training in particular even helps to stave off the aging process.

Each of the 10 biomarkers of aging, and the quality of each in our lives, is affected directly by strength training. Specifically, these biomarkers are:

1. Bone density -- Because calcium tends to be lost from the bones when people age, it makes the skeleton weaker, less dense and more brittle, which typically leads to osteoporosis.

2. Body temperature regulation -- The body is supposed to maintain an internal temperature of 98.6 degrees, but as people grow older they tend to lose muscle and the heat that muscle provides, thus becoming more vulnerable in their body temperature to hot and cold, which often leads to illness.

3. Basal metabolic rate – Our rate of energizing, or determining how many calories our bodies require to sustain their internal processes, declines by 2% per decade after the age of 20.

4. Blood sugar tolerance -- The body’s ability to use glucose in the blood stream declines with age, thereby raising the risk for Type II Diabetes, which is why it’s the third or fourth most common disease in the country.

5. A decline in muscle strength -- Older people are less strong because of the gradual deterioration of the muscles and motor nerves, which begins at the age of 30 for most people.

Next week I’ll have listed for you the last five biomarkers of aging and how strength training can help.

For more information about Tony.  www.tonyrobbins.com


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