Reader,

Have you ever contemplated the idea of extending your lifespan and delaying the onset of chronic diseases? Today, we’re going to discuss exactly how you can start this journey, leaning heavily on insights from Peter Attia, a pioneer in the longevity field.

According to Attia, “healthspan,” the time during which we remain free from chronic diseases, is equally as important as lifespan, if not more so 1. Imagine living well into your 90s, maintaining your independence, and continuing to experience life’s many joys without the burden of debilitating illnesses. The key to achieving this isn’t some miracle drug or fountain of youth, but rather, it’s something within your reach: consistent exercise.

Regular exercise is well-documented in the scientific literature as one of the most potent ways to not just add years to your life, but life to your years 2. Exercise is more than a hobby, it’s a powerful tool for longevity.

But how does it work? Attia suggests thinking of your body as a complex, interconnected system. When we exercise, we’re not solely burning calories or building muscles; we’re bolstering this entire system. Exercise improves insulin sensitivity, enhances cardiovascular health, and supports brain health, among other benefits 3.

One of the key benefits of regular exercise is its positive effect on metabolic flexibility, a crucial aspect of healthy aging 4. Metabolic flexibility is the body’s ability to switch between fuel sources, such as carbohydrates and fats, depending on what’s available. This ability often declines with age, but exercise can enhance it, keeping our metabolic machinery running.

Consistent exercise also promotes autophagy, a cellular “clean-up” process that becomes less efficient as we age 5. When autophagy works well, it helps to clear out damaged cells and generate new ones, contributing to overall health and longevity.

The good news is that you don’t need to be an Olympian to reap the benefits of exercise. Even moderate activities like brisk walking, swimming, or rowing can do wonders for your healthspan. The key is consistency and finding something you enjoy, ensuring that exercise becomes a non-negotiable part of your daily routine rather than a chore.

Remember, the goal isn’t only to live longer, but to live better. It’s about remaining robust, vigorous, and mentally sharp as we just as much as it’s about extending our lifespan. Our 40s are a crucial period for establishing routines that will support our health and vitality in the coming decades. It’s never too late to make the changes necessary to ensure a long, fulfilled, disease-free life.

So how do you know where you stand currently?

This is where things got real for me after reading Dr. Attia’s book, Outlive. In his book, he showed the chart below. Let me interpret this for you…

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This chart shows your increased risk of dying, of various causes, based on your fitness level as measured by VO₂ max. VO₂ max is the test you take when you run or cycle until complete failure while wearing this horrible device on your face (see me below about to enter hell).

The thing that really sucks about this test is that it restricts your oxygen to the point where you feel like you’re suffocating. Meanwhile, your’e trying to run as hard and as fast as you can until you basically black out.

At the end you get a result which shows how much oxygen you can use at your peak metabolic output, your max. That number, divided by your weight in kilograms squared is your score. Depending on your age and gender, that score ranks you in a fitness level from the chart above.

And here’s the punchline, depending where you rank is how more or less likely you are to die from any of those reasons, or by any reason at all which is known as all-cause mortality.

Here was my score…

So, for my height, weight, and gender I’m in the low category, which means that I’m approximately 2.88 times likely to die at any given moment than my friend Shane who ranks in the Elite category. And if that wasn’t enough, if there was someone were my age and gender that ranked in the elite category but was a smoker, I’d also be 2.88 times likely to die from any cause than they are, and they smoke!

This is just one aspect of fitness however, strength is the other big one, and for that, luckily I’m doing a decent job.

All this is to say, that there are no drugs that have, or will ever exist, which can help you live longer and better than getting your strength and cardio fitness levels in check.

What to do with this?

The good news is now that you have a sense of how important exercise is to your life, you can definitely make changes to it. For me, I’ve started incorporating long sessions on my rower to up my base cardio fitness. I’ve also added in rucking to help with stability (eccentric loading specifically). And of course I’m still strength training.

If you’ve got this far in the email I think you’re ready to start doing something about it also. Hit reply and let me know what you have in mind and if I have any recommendations how to help I’ll send them directly to you. Also, surprisingly enough, it turns out nutrition isn’t nearly as important as the supplement industry wants you to think. More on that next week.

Until then, Stay resilient, stay inspired, and here’s to living a bulletproof life! Ben

p.s. If you want to dive deeper into all this I highly recommend Peter Attia’s new book Outlive. You can get it by clicking here which also helps support this newsletter with a small affiliate commission at no added cost to you.

References:

1. Attia, P. (2019). The Peter Attia Drive Podcast. ↩​
2. Warburton, D. E. R., Nicol, C. W., & Bredin, S. S. D. (2006). Health benefits of physical activity: the evidence. CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association journal = journal de l’Association medicale canadienne, 174(6), 801–809. ↩​
3. Attia, P. (2018). TED Talk: Is the obesity crisis hiding a bigger problem? ↩​
4. Goodpaster, B. H., & Sparks, L. M. (2017). Metabolic Flexibility in Health and Disease. Cell metabolism, 25(5), 1027–1036. ↩​
5. He, C., Sumpter, R., & ↩​