Transcript: Aging Is Not the Problem. Inactivity Is.

Aging is not the problem, inactivity is. What's up you guys, famous Ashley Grant here, welcome to More Movement Please, the podcast where I hope to inspire you to move your body more. Today, I have another awesome voice note for you guys. This one is from Dean Walters of Aging Boldly, and here's what he has to say. I'm Dean Walters with Aging Boldly. I'm a certified integrated nutrition health coach. and a certified personal trainer specializing in older adults and corrective exercise. If I had to boil healthy aging down to just one non -negotiable, it would definitely be movement. And not because it's trendy, which of course it is right now, but because it's the closest thing that we have to a better healthspan guarantee. And here's the pragmatic truth about it. I mean, after we hit 30, we all start losing muscle and power if we don't fight for it. And for older adults, that loss is not cosmetic,

it's functional. Muscle is how you get off the floor and how you catch yourself going off a curb or carry groceries or climb the stairs or travel or play with your grandkids and live without negotiating your own body every morning when you try to get out of bed. Movement is critical for three big reasons. First of all is independence. Now, the number one fear that I hear from people over 60 isn't death. It's needing help. Your strength, your balance, and your mobility are what keep you in charge of your life. Now, the second one is resilience. Now, we all know life happens, you know, illness, a fall, surgery, stress. But stronger people recover better, period.

Movement helps your immune system build you a bigger reserve tank so that when life throws you a curveball, you don't break, you just bounce back. And third is metabolism and health markers. When older adults move consistently, especially with resistance training and brisk walking, We tend to have better blood sugar control and better blood pressure and better sleep and better mood and better balance and better cognition and less joint pain over time. And it's not magic. It's biology responding to a signal, and movement is the signal that your body understands. And here's what I love telling people. This doesn't require becoming a gym person. It requires becoming a daily movement person. A simple, repeatable plan, which is walk most days and strengthen two or three times a week and practice balance like it's a skill, because it is. So if there's one takeaway, I would want it to be this. Aging

is not the problem. Inactivity is. And consistent movement is the solution to that problem. Did you hear what he said? I opened the episode with it because it is just that important. Aging is not the problem. Inactivity is. That is the whole reason for this podcast is it's all about more movement. Notice he said you don't have to get to the gym, but you do have to make movement a daily part of your life. If you are listening to this and you are not moving your body, please, I am asking you from the bottom of my heart, start moving your body. I want you to get out there and do some sort of movement. If you can't get outside, move in your apartment, move in your house, just move your body. I have to tell you, recently, I'd say about, I think it was like a month ago, I had a fall. And if I had not been moving daily, the fall would have been much worse than it was. I slipped on some ice and I hit the ground pretty hard. And though