Many people still think that it`s impossible to escape the signs of growing older.
The physical changes seem unavoidable: gray hair, wrinkles, slow reflexes, increase in weight and percentage of body fat. And who isn`t dragged down by the worst enemy -- gravity?
That`s what aging has always meant. But it doesn`t have to anymore.
Does this mean that the law of gravity has been repealed? Of course not. It`s just that most of us have been taught (or maybe brainwashed is the more accurate word) to believe that the way our bodies seem to decline as we grow older is ``nature taking its course.`` In fact, this process of deterioration is neither inevitable or necessary. It`s caused by the way we neglect and abuse our bodies.
What would happen if you had appendicitis, but refused to see your doctor about it? Your appendix would burst because nature was taking its course.
There`s no law that says people can`t divert nature`s course a bit. Today, anyone who`s free from congenital disability or chronic illness is as responsible for his own decline as the appendicitis patient who refuses to see his doctor.
How do you stay youthful? Exercise and good nutrition. The gradual loss of firmness and decline in speed, strength and endurance that accompany growing older can be slowed and even reversed for a time by the proper program of physical training.
According to Dr. Ernst Jokl, clinical professor of sports medicine and neurology at the University of Kentucky Medical School, three axioms of gerontology are now well substantiated.
1. Sustained exercise slows the loss of physical fitness as you age.
2. Sustained exercise slows the loss of physique as you age.
3. Sustained exercise slows the loss of mental functions as you age.
``The body,`` Jokl says, ``is an adaptive mechanism.`` Run long distances, and you`ll increase your aerobic (oxygen-using) capacity. Lift weights and you`ll get stronger and (with proper diet) build lean muscle mass. As we get older, our bodies don`t adapt as quickly or to the same degree as they did when we were younger. But the body can often improve at a fast enough rate to offset the physical changes associated with getting older.
Naturally, some physical changes will limit what you`re capable of doing, no matter how hard you train. That`s why there are no 65-year-olds playing major league baseball (although we may be in for a surprise when Pete Rose turns 65). Nevertheless, according to Jokl, ``Old athletes up to age 80 are as fit or fitter than non-athletes half their age.`` It`s simply not important to compare your abilities at 65 with your abilities at 25. What`s important is how fit and healthy you are now, compared to the shape you would be in if you hadn`t exercised and watched your diet.
It`s not necessarily true that most people will get fatter as they grow older. Instead, neglect and inactivity are to blame. With exercise plus the proper diet anyone can burn up accumulated fat. And what about the decline of lean muscle mass that so often comes with aging? ``The average individual,`` says Jokl, ``loses 50 percent of his muscle mass between the ages of 18 and 65.`` The major factor here is loss of muscle protein, and the culprit is, again, inactivity.
The most efficient way to build and preserve your muscle tissue is through weight training. Muscles that aren`t exercised will decline in size and flexibility, and weight training exercises all your major muscle groups at the level of intensity that`s right for you.
Besides giving you the lean muscle tissue you need to perform your daily tasks, working with weights will cushion your joints with muscle. Cushioning helps prevent injuries from impact to your joints. One reason that the elderly are so prone to fractures (especially painful and debilitating hip injuries) is that they often lack this necessary muscular padding because their muscles have deteriorated.
The problem is aggravated by the fact that our bones themselves can become demineralized and porous with age. This condition is called osteoporosis (brittle bones), and it`s a special problem for women because they`re more likely than men to suffer calcium deficiency. The solution to brittle bones is proper diet -- specifically, a diet that contains enough calcium. It may not be true that every body needs milk, but if your body is a female body, it probably does.
Medical researchers have noted that the output of many of our major hormones decreases with age. But there is evidence that heavy exercise stimulates the release of some hormones, including human growth hormone. Exercise may help you maintain more than a youthful internal chemistry. Jokl says that there`s even evidence that the brain responds to physical exertion just as the rest of the body does.
If you`re going to stave off the effects of aging then it`s important to use your body by exercising vigorously. After all, that`s what your body was designed for.