An orthopedic surgeon's #1 key to aging well

Staying mobile while aging saves a body from chronic disease and promotes overall brain health.

Transcript

00:00

Our bodies are designed to move. Our bodies were not designed to sit in one place. [MUSIC PLAYING]

00:07

When I think about aging, the most important piece of advice that I give myself and other people

00:14

is that we have to pivot our mindset from worshipping our youth, which basically means our inexperience,

00:23

to pivoting a time where we've grown into our brain, our body, and our bliss. Living longer means more opportunities

00:31

to do the things you love, whether it's to work longer, see not only your grandchildren but your great grandchildren,

00:38

experiencing the amazing technology that is exploding and making life worth living around us.

00:44

That is what living longer means to me. We're designed with the biggest muscles below our waist.

00:51

And what do we know about mobility? Contraction of skeletal muscle releases all kinds

00:58

of proteins and chemicals in our body that not only work on our muscles locally, but travel to our brains.

01:06

We are not capable of dividing what we do with our muscles in our bodies with what happens in our brains.

01:14

We are all connected. That's why, as an orthopedic sports surgeon, I know that by keeping people mobile,

01:22

I'm not only going to save people from the ravages of chronic disease, I'm going to help them build a better brain.

01:29

But the fact of the matter is, there is a complete neural network that connects what happens

01:35

in our bodies to our brains. We know that physical exercise helps us build a better brain.

01:42

It increases the connectivity between our neurons. It keeps our brain young, as well as our bodies young.

01:50

Everything counts. Whether you're walking up the stairs at home, whether you're walking across Central Park, whether you're gunning it out

01:59

on a treadmill or in a road race, everything matters. The thing is, we just have to do it.

02:05

What doesn't matter when it comes to mobility and aging is sitting around. And so for so many of us, we have sedentary jobs where

02:13

we sit for 10 hours a day. And so even in that, we have to live more every moment

02:20

and take advantage of standing up while we're working, instilling mobility in every parts of our lives.