Aging Capably

Photo by Ketut Subiyanto: https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-holding-an-orange-ball-while-doing-push-up-4720542/

There’s a common conception of aging as an inevitable gradual decline in physical capability. While getting older is (if all is going well) inevitable, but becoming frail and disabled in later life just due to the passage of years is not.

Although we tend to conceptualize aging as a slow, steady downward slope in physical capability, some studies have shown that, more often than not, the data graph looks more like a downward staircase than a smooth downward line. The steps in the staircase are things like an illness, an injury, or some other event that takes us out of our routine of exercise and activity.

Each downward step is a limit on physical activity that, depending on the degree and duration of the limited activity, may lead to lasting deconditioning - leaving one at a “new normal” of decreased strength and resilience for a time, until the next step occurs.

With each downward step, exercise and activity tolerance is further reduced, leaving one at progressively decreased levels of health and vitality – what a lot of people accept as “getting old.”

On the other hand, the staircase goes both directions. You can choose to turn around and make the effort to step back up after a setback. But taking those upward steps is often hard, and it’s tempting to procrastinate, making it harder and harder to turn things around. You might tell yourself that you’ll get back to your routine next week – but you wind up doing that every week!

So, most people wind up on a path of repeated downward steps, becoming less and less physically capable, and getting debilitated to the point where overcoming it is, while still usually possible, an extremely difficult and painful process.

Avoiding this ongoing decline in physical capability is not easy, but it is relatively simple – be consistent with exercise and physical activity in general when things are good. The better shape you’re in before you get sick, hurt, etc., the less debilitated you’ll become after such an event and the easier it will be to recover your strength and endurance afterwards.

Get some challenging exercise at least 3 times per week when things are good, and if you do experience a setback like an injury or illness that takes you out of your routine, get back to doing some physical activity as quickly as possible and build as you can from there. Commit yourself to work towards getting back to where you were before the setback – or possibly better. Be prepared for the likelihood that it’s going to be tough to do – and may even cause you some pain as the body protests being made to work again.

The bottom line is to remain physically capable for life, you’re going to have to work at it. But making exercise and physical activity a habit is well-worth it in the long run. Not only does it keep your body physically capable, it helps keep mental function at a high level as well, leading to a much more enjoyable life at any age!

Life is going to throw you some obstacles, and it’s normal and necessary to rest and heal at times. The important thing is to not let what would be a temporary downturn in your activity become a permanent loss of health and vitality.

Until next time…

George F. Best, D.C.