Can You Touch Your Toes?

🗞️ New Study!!

The main finding was that having more flexibility between the ages of 46 and 65 lowered the odds of death over the next decade plus.

We’re talking about physical flexibility here (although I would guess that mental flexibility helps too!).

More than 3100 men and women were evaluated with the “Flexindex,” which measures flexibility in multiple joints throughout the body. They were then followed from about 1994 until 2022.

▪️ Men with the least flexibility were nearly twice as likely to die over the follow-up period than men with high flexibility

▪️ Women with the least flexibility were almost 5x more likely to die than those with high flexibility

(PMID 39165228)

These same researchers previously found that the ability to rise from a seated position on the floor and the ability to stand on one leg for 10 seconds are also predictors of longevity.

Want to work on your flexibility?

Check out a yoga class or take a break anytime from sitting to do some gentle stretching!

REFERENCE:

Araújo CGS, de Souza E Silva CG, Kunutsor SK, et al. Reduced Body Flexibility Is Associated With Poor Survival in Middle-Aged Men and Women: A Prospective Cohort Study. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2024;34(8):e14708. [link]

Study Shows Brain-Boosting Effect of Exercise

Plus there’s more 👇👇

Here are some highlights from this recent study by the University of Queensland:

▪️ Healthy 65-85 year old volunteers were put on one of 3 exercise programs for 6 months (low intensity, medium intensity, or high intensity).

▪️ After 6 months, only those on high-intensity interval training (HIIT) showed improvements in the hippocampus (a brain area related to learning and memory).

▪️ The HIIT group also showed improvements in brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and cortisol levels.

▪️ The improvements seen in the HIIT group lasted 5 years, even if the exercise didn’t continue.

The HIIT program involved 4 cycles of running on a treadmill near maximum exertion.

Does this inspire you?

Reason #999 to Move Your Body 💃🕺

👀 Hello up there! Take a second with me here because I have the simplest way anyone can improve their detoxification for FREE ➡️➡️

Move Your Body 💃🕺

When you move, your muscles contract and act like a pump for your lymphatic system.

Your lymphatics are a central part of your immune and detoxification systems, which is why we want to improve lymphatic flow (maybe you’ve heard of lymphatic massage—that works too!).

Whether you prefer to walk, run, jump on a trampoline, do yoga, or dance…

Moving will help your detoxification systems work better 🎉

Leave us a comment with you favorite way to move your body! 💃

A Simple Way to Boost Your Brain

Want a bigger brain?

A new study out of Washington University School of Medicine found that more physical activity correlated with larger brain size in healthy adults 🧠

This was based on MRI brain scans of 10,125 men and women (average age 53). The more days they exercised, the larger their brains were in key areas.

Most of the study participants exercised 4 days per week, but the researchers said that even small amounts of exercise (like walking 4000 steps per day) were beneficial.

We don’t always see the results of our efforts immediately, but taking care of our health will pay off in the long run 👟

Reference

Raji CA, Meysami S, Hashemi S, et al. Exercise-Related Physical Activity Relates to Brain Volumes in 10,125 Individuals. J Alzheimers Dis. Published online December 7, 2023. [link]

12 Indoor Exercises for Winter

12 Indoor Exercises to Avoid the Cold 🥶

Movement is essential to health! If you don’t want to brave the cold and don’t have a gym membership, here are some things that anybody can do in their own living room:

🔹 Jump Rope

🔹 Push-Ups

🔹 Jumping Jacks

🔹 Squats

🔹 Run in Place

🔹 Free Weights

🔹 Skip

🔹 Dance

🔹 Stretch

🔹 Shake

🔹 Yoga

🔹 Push-Ups

Health is not hard. You just have to commit.

You've got this! 🙌