Aging Well…
instead of Well, We Gotta Age…
What can you learn from this health guru?
By Shannon Leonard-Boone
Everyone knows an older person who is
always on the go, seemingly full of
boundless energy and abundant health, a
picture-perfect model for aging that you
might hope to emulate. You can probably
also easily think of an older person who has
been beset with a host of health problems
that affect their lifestyle and well-being, and
you might fear living out your life in that
state.
Hope and luck won’t provide the results
you’re looking for. Dr. Bryant Stamford says there are easy ways for people to age well
by making a long-term commitment to one’s health and not putting it off to fate.
Physically, most one-year-olds are quite similar in weight and development, Stamford
says, and so are 16-year-olds. But as we age, the differences emerge an 80-year-old
could just as feasibly be an avid jogger, someone who’s in a wheelchair, or someone
with average health for their age.
“The older we get, the more diverse that we get, such that it’s hard to pinpoint what an
80-year-old is,” says Stamford who is author, professor and chairman of the
Department of Exercise Science at Hanover College. “People who take care of
themselves just obviously do so much better in the aging process,” he says.
An 80-year-old who’s been consistently active all his or her life can easily be
comparable or superior to some 40 year olds in terms of health, Dr. Stamford says.
And of course the role of heredity can’t be ignored.“It’s up to us to make sure that we
do the best we can with that genetic ceiling that we’ve been dealt with,” he says.
Then what are some day-to-day approaches that will help keep us on the healthier end
of the aging spectrum?
Stamford says studies have shown improvement in the health of even older, inactive
patients with deteriorating function who begin exercising under medical supervision.
“Taking care of the body is critical,” Stamford says. “When it comes to health issues, it’
s important to separate what you eat — your nutritional profile — and your exercise
profile.” Stamford suggests an exercise regimen of resistance (weight) training, not
just walking. “You have to engage the muscles, and when you walk, you’re only
engaging a small portion of them,” he says.
He suggests climbing steps, doing some manual labor like regular yard work, and not
setting daunting goals for how often or how long to exercise — just doing as much as
you’re able to safely squeeze into your lifestyle. One idea is to take “longcuts,” as he
calls them, by purposely taking a longer route to your daily destinations, such as
walking into a store or work.
We’ve all heard that anyone should consult a doctor before beginning an exercise
program, and that’s true — but it’s also another part of the healthy aging puzzle. One’s
doctor should be a partner in one’s health and aging process as people seek regular
medical checkups and health screenings, Stamford says.
If you haven’t been very active but have decided to start exercising, be extra careful,
he says. Many diseases, such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes can have silent
symptoms and if present but undiagnosed, it would be dangerous for someone to
exercise vigorously. He tells people who are 60 or 65 years old and seek his advice
that if they haven’t consciously done anything to improve their health in their lifetime,
they should accept that they just spent the last six decades ruining their health and
could be very ill and not know it.
Fueling the body for exercise and other daily activities is also important, Stamford
says. Eating a healthy diet that’s low in red meat and fatty dairy consumption, and
choosing more fruits, vegetables and whole grains is best. Daily multivitamin and
mineral supplements can help, he said, particularly those with extra Vitamin C, Omega-
3 fish oil. And for men, Saw Palmetto has been shown to help reduce problems with an
enlarged prostate.
Despite the proven benefits of exercise and the detriments of inactivity, statistics
continue to show many just don’t commit to exercise – an estimated two thirds of high
school students exercise regularly, but only one third of adults are considered
physically active, according to a December 2005 study by the CDC National Center for
Health Statistics.
Stamford said beyond age 50, muscle mass starts to drop unless steps are taken to
slow this process. Before age 50, if a person doesn’t exercise, these deteriorating
changes are more pronounced. But often in one’s young adulthood, work and family
obligations take up so much time, which leaves many feeling they’re too busy to
exercise regularly or develop healthy lifestyle habits. Since they’re younger, the impact
isn’t so readily perceptible, he says, and they are usually able to function normally.
But if you don’t exercise between ages 50 to 55, 60 to 65, or 70 to 75, it becomes a
challenge even to maintain current levels of health.
“The toll that it takes on you is just extraordinary,” he says. “The ground beneath you
is gradually trickling away.” That’s because the body works so efficiently that if muscles
aren’t being used, the body looks for ways to conserve energy and the muscles simply
atrophy — comparable, Stamford says, to a broken arm that’s weak and shrunken
after being in a cast for six weeks.
Stamford, who practices what he preaches, is very careful about his diet, and has lifted
weights and exercised all through his youth. He still exercises with weights to maintain
muscle mass and previously enjoyed jogging, though he’s switched to walking regularly
for less bodily wear and tear. “I think (walking is) a very healthy thing to do,” he says
of this lifestyle. “It pays such huge dividends.”
ABOUT DR. STAMFORD
Health and fitness expert Dr. Bryant Stamford is a 60-year-old Louisville resident,
professor, columnist, radio personality, author and chairman of the Department of
Exercise Science at Hanover College. He’s written four books including Exercise
Without Agony, The Weight Loss Reader, The Jack Sprat Low-Fat Diet, and Fitness
Without Exercise and has served on the editorial boards of Muscle and Fitness Hers,
Men’s Fitness, Men’s Health, CardiSense, and The Physician and Sportsmedicine.
He also writes The Body Shop, a weekly nationally-syndicated column he’s penned
since 1976, and co-hosts Health Works, a weekly public radio program on WFPL –
89.3 FM. He has a bachelor’s degree from Slippery Rock State University and master’s
and doctoral degrees in exercise physiology from the University of Pittsburgh.
instead of Well, We Gotta Age…
What can you learn from this health guru?
By Shannon Leonard-Boone
Everyone knows an older person who is
always on the go, seemingly full of
boundless energy and abundant health, a
picture-perfect model for aging that you
might hope to emulate. You can probably
also easily think of an older person who has
been beset with a host of health problems
that affect their lifestyle and well-being, and
you might fear living out your life in that
state.
Hope and luck won’t provide the results
you’re looking for. Dr. Bryant Stamford says there are easy ways for people to age well
by making a long-term commitment to one’s health and not putting it off to fate.
Physically, most one-year-olds are quite similar in weight and development, Stamford
says, and so are 16-year-olds. But as we age, the differences emerge an 80-year-old
could just as feasibly be an avid jogger, someone who’s in a wheelchair, or someone
with average health for their age.
“The older we get, the more diverse that we get, such that it’s hard to pinpoint what an
80-year-old is,” says Stamford who is author, professor and chairman of the
Department of Exercise Science at Hanover College. “People who take care of
themselves just obviously do so much better in the aging process,” he says.
An 80-year-old who’s been consistently active all his or her life can easily be
comparable or superior to some 40 year olds in terms of health, Dr. Stamford says.
And of course the role of heredity can’t be ignored.“It’s up to us to make sure that we
do the best we can with that genetic ceiling that we’ve been dealt with,” he says.
Then what are some day-to-day approaches that will help keep us on the healthier end
of the aging spectrum?
Stamford says studies have shown improvement in the health of even older, inactive
patients with deteriorating function who begin exercising under medical supervision.
“Taking care of the body is critical,” Stamford says. “When it comes to health issues, it’
s important to separate what you eat — your nutritional profile — and your exercise
profile.” Stamford suggests an exercise regimen of resistance (weight) training, not
just walking. “You have to engage the muscles, and when you walk, you’re only
engaging a small portion of them,” he says.
He suggests climbing steps, doing some manual labor like regular yard work, and not
setting daunting goals for how often or how long to exercise — just doing as much as
you’re able to safely squeeze into your lifestyle. One idea is to take “longcuts,” as he
calls them, by purposely taking a longer route to your daily destinations, such as
walking into a store or work.
We’ve all heard that anyone should consult a doctor before beginning an exercise
program, and that’s true — but it’s also another part of the healthy aging puzzle. One’s
doctor should be a partner in one’s health and aging process as people seek regular
medical checkups and health screenings, Stamford says.
If you haven’t been very active but have decided to start exercising, be extra careful,
he says. Many diseases, such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes can have silent
symptoms and if present but undiagnosed, it would be dangerous for someone to
exercise vigorously. He tells people who are 60 or 65 years old and seek his advice
that if they haven’t consciously done anything to improve their health in their lifetime,
they should accept that they just spent the last six decades ruining their health and
could be very ill and not know it.
Fueling the body for exercise and other daily activities is also important, Stamford
says. Eating a healthy diet that’s low in red meat and fatty dairy consumption, and
choosing more fruits, vegetables and whole grains is best. Daily multivitamin and
mineral supplements can help, he said, particularly those with extra Vitamin C, Omega-
3 fish oil. And for men, Saw Palmetto has been shown to help reduce problems with an
enlarged prostate.
Despite the proven benefits of exercise and the detriments of inactivity, statistics
continue to show many just don’t commit to exercise – an estimated two thirds of high
school students exercise regularly, but only one third of adults are considered
physically active, according to a December 2005 study by the CDC National Center for
Health Statistics.
Stamford said beyond age 50, muscle mass starts to drop unless steps are taken to
slow this process. Before age 50, if a person doesn’t exercise, these deteriorating
changes are more pronounced. But often in one’s young adulthood, work and family
obligations take up so much time, which leaves many feeling they’re too busy to
exercise regularly or develop healthy lifestyle habits. Since they’re younger, the impact
isn’t so readily perceptible, he says, and they are usually able to function normally.
But if you don’t exercise between ages 50 to 55, 60 to 65, or 70 to 75, it becomes a
challenge even to maintain current levels of health.
“The toll that it takes on you is just extraordinary,” he says. “The ground beneath you
is gradually trickling away.” That’s because the body works so efficiently that if muscles
aren’t being used, the body looks for ways to conserve energy and the muscles simply
atrophy — comparable, Stamford says, to a broken arm that’s weak and shrunken
after being in a cast for six weeks.
Stamford, who practices what he preaches, is very careful about his diet, and has lifted
weights and exercised all through his youth. He still exercises with weights to maintain
muscle mass and previously enjoyed jogging, though he’s switched to walking regularly
for less bodily wear and tear. “I think (walking is) a very healthy thing to do,” he says
of this lifestyle. “It pays such huge dividends.”
ABOUT DR. STAMFORD
Health and fitness expert Dr. Bryant Stamford is a 60-year-old Louisville resident,
professor, columnist, radio personality, author and chairman of the Department of
Exercise Science at Hanover College. He’s written four books including Exercise
Without Agony, The Weight Loss Reader, The Jack Sprat Low-Fat Diet, and Fitness
Without Exercise and has served on the editorial boards of Muscle and Fitness Hers,
Men’s Fitness, Men’s Health, CardiSense, and The Physician and Sportsmedicine.
He also writes The Body Shop, a weekly nationally-syndicated column he’s penned
since 1976, and co-hosts Health Works, a weekly public radio program on WFPL –
89.3 FM. He has a bachelor’s degree from Slippery Rock State University and master’s
and doctoral degrees in exercise physiology from the University of Pittsburgh.
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