Issaquah lacrosse ©Dave Block Photography
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit. ~Aristotle
Dear heart, it's mid-February, the crowd at the gym is starting to thin, and the motivation behind your New Year's Resolutions may be starting to ebb. Time to regroup!
My exercise resolution a couple years ago was to sweat every day. I stuck to it, and it was one of the best things I ever did. If you have an exercise resolution (the only reason not to have one is because you already exercise regularly), science has found another reason to stay motivated. If you're already active, it's another reason you're awesome. You already have your current reasons to exercise (like more energy, deeper sleep, better health, setting a good example for your kids, and looking hotter by Valentine's Day). Now you can add YOUNGER CELLS. Sexy, huh?
Yup, on a real, biological level, exercise keeps you from aging. According to this New York Times article on telomeres, German scientists recently studied 4 groups of people and their cells. Two groups were active: a younger group of 20-something professional runners (most on the national track team) that trained about 45 miles a week, and a second group of middle aged, serious runners with an average age of 51 that trained about 50 miles a week. The other two groups were couch potatoes - a young group and a middle aged group. What did the scientists notice?
- The active middle-aged group looked much younger than the middle-aged couch potatoes.
- The cells of both younger groups were about the same age, according to their telomere length. Not surprising, since their cells haven't had the chance to divide much. Telomeres are tiny caps on the ends of your DNA strands, and every time they replicate, the telomere gets snipped. If they become too short, they die or become suspended. So the shorter the telomere, the more tired and aged your cell.
- The cells of the older couch potatoes had telomeres that were 40% shorter than that of the youngsters.
- The telomeres of the older active crowd were about 10% shorter than the younger subjects.
So there you have it. Exercise really slows down the aging process. On a cellular level. Yet another reason to keep your resolution stoked.
What to do - Keep Exercising!
- If you haven't been exercising, read this post on Mindful Exercise to get started.
- If you've started exercising, keep going! It takes at least 31 days to build a habit. You're probably not exercising every day, so that means 31 days of active exercise. Over the years it's become a habit for me - I feel antsy when I take time off exercise now.
- If you've slacked off, it's ok. It happens to everyone. Just start exercising again.
What I ate: vegetable juice, 1 banana, 1 cafe au lait, lots of macadamia nuts, roasted vegetables + whole wheat pasta, 4 squares dark chocolate, 1 coffee, 4 Pringles (they were sitting out at the office), cheese, 4 baby carrots + hummus, quinoa + ground flaxseeds, stir-fried bok choy + tempeh, hot chocolate, 40 oz. water
Exercise: 10 min. stationary bike + weights
