USE IT OR LOSE IT
The Principle – If you let your body parts shrivel up and die, they’ll be happy to take you up on your offer.
The Reason? - The human body is an extremely efficient machine and it won’t want to waste energy on feeding limbs and organs that aren’t being used.
Perhaps the most extreme example of this is Astronauts after they return from a space mission. After time without gravity, they lose significant muscle and bone mass – so much so that they need assistance just to walk on solid ground.
We need to put our muscles, brains and organs to work to make them stronger for longer.
Here is a glimpse of what you can and should do to keep your body prime
HEART – Aerobic exercise increases blood flow and trains your heart under stress. If you don’t do regular aerobic exercise you are more prone to heart disease and attacks and have less ability to fight stress, which puts a massive strain on a untrained heart.
BRAIN – Keep your mind active with puzzles or learning new skills. Without mental calisthenics your brain loses power and memory as you age.
HORMONES – various hormones naturally produce chemicals that you need for daily function. If you replace these natural steroid hormones with pills, injectable or inhaled steroids you could be teaching your body not to produce the hormones your body craves. If you need to take steroidal medication it is wise to take a break from them every once in a while
MUSCLE – resistance training helps maintain lean muscle mass which decreases as you age. Without building muscle you’re more likely to gain weight (because muscle helps speed up metabolism) as well as increase your risk of Osteoporosis.
JOINTS – Walking or other gentle movements stimulate the formation of synovial fluid which keeps your joints lubed. A decrease or absence of movement decrease the production of this vital fluid and increases the chance of arthritis and other joint conditions.
GUT – If you have a mild lactose intolerance, having a little lactose can work to your advantage. If you avoid lactose altogether then your intolerance will worsen because you will lose production of the digestive enzymes needed to process those foods.
Source – You Staying Young by Dr. Michael F. Roizen and Dr. Mehmet. C. Oz
