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LenDentonThrive Letter #23

The Longevity Bonus

Welcome to the LenDentonThrive Letter! My mission is to help Over-50 Guys lose weight, get fit, and stay fit for life!

Have you ever listened to an advertisement where the announcer describes a long list of a product’s benefits, and then says: “But, wait…there’s more!

This edition of the LenDentonThrive Letter is a bit like that.

But first, here’s a quick preview of what’s in the LenDentonThrive Letter #23:

• The Big Idea - There’s more to the ThriveLife than you expected!

• Tip of the Week - A quick tip or strategy to help you improve your health, fitness, and life.

• News You Can Use - I’ll share two or three useful items from my reading stack for you to check out later.

I’m glad that you’re here! We have a lot to cover, so let’s get started!

1. The Big Idea - The Longevity Bonus

I write about the ThriveLife a lot!

A quick definition of the ThriveLife is that it’s a healthy lifestyle where you experience physical, mental, and medical fitness on a consistent basis. It’s a state of being where you look good, you feel good and people are noticing the positive changes. (As in… “Hey, what is up with John? He looks great! What is he doing?) For a more in-depth review of theThriveLife, read here.

The ThriveLife can also be described as a combination of 8 components:

1.  Medical health - any medical conditions or diagnoses are being well-managed by you and your physician.

2. Healthy weight - a healthy body weight is the foundation of fitness.

3. Enjoyable exercise - Exercise is key to becoming fit and healthy for now and in the future. The more you enjoy it, the more you’ll do it. Consistency is the key.

4. Good food - food is both fuel and medicine for the ThriveLife. Good, healthy food choices are key to a long and healthy life.

5. Strength - being strong is a key aspect of fitness.

6. Energy - being vigorous and having vitality that gives you an aura of health and fitness.

7. Purpose - purpose is a key attribute of a healthy mental state that also translates to a healthy lifestyle.

8. Community - we all need community to thrive. Loneliness and isolation lead to poor health outcomes.

When we build these various components into our daily lives, we achieve our own, custom-tuned version of the ThriveLife. In doing so, we’re able to reap the daily benefits that come with the ThriveLife.

But wait…there’s more!

The ThriveLife comes with a bonus…the bonus of longevity! That’s because the ThriveLife leads to a long life!

When we build our ThriveLives, we are creating a model for living healthy day-to-day now. At the same time, with no additional effort, we’re also building a framework to help us live longer and healthier lives in the future!

Here are 5 specific ways that building your ThriveLife also leads to a longer and healthier life:

1. Healthy Weight - guys with a healthy body weight experience better health outcomes and longer lives than guys who are overweight or obese. Researchers have determined that death rates can be linked to body mass index (BMI). Men with higher BMIs (greater than 24.9) typically live 5-20 years less than those with healthy BMIs (23.5-24.9). (Note 1)

2. Strength - strength and muscle mass are key determinants of longevity. Men begin to lose muscle mass in their 30s and 40s. So, it’s important to develop a habit of strength training to combat this natural loss of muscle mass and strength. (Note 2) Sarcopenia (muscle loss) is also a risk factor for all-cause mortality (ACM) among elderly men. (Note 3)

3. Exercise - numerous research studies have found that motion-related exercise (walking, running, swimming) can significantly reduce the risk of death. A recent UK study showed that walking as few as 7,000 total steps per day could lower the risk of all-cause mortality (ACM) by 50-70%. That’s BIG! (Note 4)

4. Purpose - did you know that medical research has shown that having a sense of purpose in your life is associated with living longer? A recent Boston University study showed that people with a strong sense of purpose lowered their risk of death (all causes) by 15% compared to people with a low sense of purpose. (Note 5)

5. Community - isolation can be a powerful source of stress that leads to poor health outcomes. However, people with strong, healthy relationships tend to live longer than those who lack such connections. One particular study found that people with large social networks reduced their risk of dying by 45%! (Note 6)

These five components of the ThriveLife aren’t guarantees that you’ll live to be 100. However, each of these research-backed suggestions offers solid guidance for how to build a healthy and sustainable life now, while building a foundation for a longer and healthier life in the future!

What will your ThriveLife look like?

Notes:

1. https://www.verywellhealth.com/obesity-and-life-expectancy-2509668#:~:text=The%20Link%20Between%20Obesity%20and%20Life%20Expectancy&text=The%20lowest%20death%20rates%20were,BMI%20of%2023.5%20to%2024.9.&text=Some%20researchers%20have%20determined%20that,estimated%20five%20to%2020%20years.

2. https://peterattiamd.com/peter-attia-on-the-importance-of-preserving-strength-and-muscle-mass-as-we-age/

3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4864252/

4. https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/health-wellness/2022/09/22/exercise-tip-10-000-steps-day-could-save-your-life/10432516002/

5. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/longevity-having-a-purpose-may-help-you-live-longer-healthier

6. https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_your_social_life_might_help_you_life_longer

Want to Go Deeper?

Do you want to dive deeper into ThriveAge and what it can do in your life? If that sounds like a smart move for you, then consider subscribing to the LenDentonThrive Letter. It’s totally free!

As a bonus, new subscribers will receive a free .pdf version of Chapter 1 of my upcoming new book, The ThriveAge Way (The Over-50 Way To Lose Weight, Get Fit & Stay Fit For Life).

ThriveAge is the roadmap to your custom-built ThriveLife!

2. Tip of the Week: Having Trouble with Motivation?

Are you having trouble getting motivated to improve your nutrition or put in the effort to exercise?

Try these 3 things:

1. Remember your WHY... Your WHY is your overarching purpose for choosing to become more fit and healthy. For example, here’s my WHY: to be healthy and fit so I can be there to support and care for my family as we grow older together.

2. Preset your workout - eliminate the friction by laying out your workout clothes before you go to bed. Or, choose a gym that is on your way to work. This will make it easier to get started.

3. Choose exercises you enjoy doing. If you like it, you'll do more of it.

Now, go out there and thrive! 

3. News You Can Use

Here is some “news you can use” from my research and socials:

1. Do you know your Waist-to-Hip Ratio? It can help you to determine if you have excess belly fat, which can increase your health risks.

   https://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/what-is-waist-to-hip-ratio

2. Slowing bone loss with weight-bearing exercise - Men lose 1% of their bone strength every year after 40. This can help prevent it:

   https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/slowing-bone-loss-with-weight-bearing-exercise

Follow me on the socials for daily tips and strategies for living your ThriveLife:

I’m Writing A Book!

I’m a busy Over-50 Guy who has spent the past ten years building a practice of personal health and fitness that relies on real food and smart exercise instead of crazy diets and killer workouts. This process, called ThriveAge, helped me to lose 70 pounds and keep it off for going on ten years. Now, I want to share what I have learned with other Over-50 Guys. So, I wrote the book!

In The ThriveAge Way (The Over-50 Way To Lose Weight, Get Fit & Stay Fit For Life), I share everything I’ve learned about the principles and practices necessary to create and sustain a healthy lifestyle. I call it my ThriveLife.

New subscribers to the LenDentonThrive Letter will receive Chapter 1 of my new book for free. To get your free copy of Chapter 1, just subscribe to the LenDentonThrive Letter.

Thanks for your time and attention. Have a great weekend. See you next Saturday!

Thrive & Prosper,

Len

Hey, Before You Go…

First, are you a subscriber to the LenDentonThrive Letter? Please share this with someone you know who might benefit from it. I’d appreciate that! And, I bet the guy you forward it to will too!

Second, did someone forward you this copy of the LenDentonThrive Letter?

You can get your own free copy by subscribing today. And, I’ll throw in Chapter 1 of my upcoming new book as a bonus.

Thanks for visiting!

See you next weekend!