Dr. Derek Berry Thorpe

For those of us adults who think Exercise and Physical Fitness is merely a fleeting endeavor for the young athlete or the influential folk… well, it’s not.

Let me tell you why.

There are many differences, but the one major thing which separates us humans from trees and plants is that we have the ability to move short or long distances. Oh, how the plant world envies that we can move away from danger. I sometimes think this explains why they are so green, but I digress.

Deliberate, repeated, muscular contraction against one’s skeletal frame is a big deal, yet 80% of adults can’t wait to be comfortably lying or sitting in the pursuit of a sedentary lifestyle. Indeed, there are few things that are better predictors of longevity than our degree of fitness, strength and stability. A recent North American study revealed that if a senior citizen, male or female, aged 65 or older fractures their hip/thigh bone, 40% of them will be dead within a year.

Let’s start with the obvious. It takes energy to exercise; riding, jogging, swimming… That food energy is taken from one of your many fat stores and converted into chemical energy (ATP). Thus is the simplified basis of weight loss, and in an overweight person, this is always a good thing.

Nervous System

The effect on the overall nervous system responding to even moderate exercise is quite remarkable. It stimulates the ‘chill’ part of your autonomic nervous system and sends signals to your blood vessel linings instructing them to relax. What results is a period of lowered blood pressure. In the world of a hypertensive, this is golden.

Further, studies show the brain itself responds positively to an inevitable by-product of muscular activity. We are all familiar with that muscular ‘burn’ resulting from repetitive strenuous activity. This sensation is physiologically normal, but the molecule that is created to quell this discomfort, lactate, travels through the circulation producing beneficial effects in the brain, heart and liver. Lactate, as a signaling molecule, protects the brain from dementias, improves cognitive brain function, promotes a feeling of well-being and improves sleep.

Skeletal Protection

Maintaining one’s muscle mass as we age turns out to be a significant factor in the prevention of chronic ailments and accidental falls. The muscle itself is excellent in regulating carbohydrate storage and insulin sensitivity, thus keeping diabetes at bay. For menopausal women especially, the risk of progressive bone density loss leading to osteoporosis, is real and a proven weapon against this is Vitamin K2 along with resistance weight workouts. It turns out that our bones sense the repeated pull and strain from our tendons and responds by laying down a stronger bony matrix. Am I suggesting mature folk join a gym and lift weights? Without hesitation, if the pocket allows it, I say Yes.  If a gym membership is not on the cards, there are many ways one can use your own body weight in a calisthenic workout at home. Remember the statistic I quoted earlier about hip fractures. Forty percent over 65 years may die in a year, but the remaining 60% do extremely poorly as well in terms of quality of life.

Even if we are not serious athletes, we should all be familiar with the term VO2 max. What is this? Basically, it’s an indicator of cardiorespiratory fitness. It measures the maximal extraction of oxygen from the blood per minute per kilogram under your most strenuous activity. Accurate assessment can only be done under lab conditions with monitors and tubes going hither and tither, but respectable estimates are possible to calculate nowadays given one’s age, gender and weight. Bottom line is that as your fitness improves the better your VO2 max becomes.

Pay attention to this statistic. The risk of dying from any cause is 200% less when compared to those who are in the lowest 25th percentile of their predicted VO2 max versus those who are just in the range of their 50-75th percentile. So how does one climb the ladder of improving your VO2 max? The common denominator here is the health and concentration of your own mitochondria. I’ve spoken about these mighty ATP producing organelles in previous articles. And how do you go about improving your own stock of mitochondria? Simply, stress them with consistent exercise (hormesis leading to mitophagy).

To be sure, all the complete benefits have not been included in this article, but this is why Exercise and Physical Fitness matter, folks. In some ways I’m sorry trees aren’t able to run away from lumberjacks coming to cut them down. At least we’d have less furniture around for us humans to laze about on.

Dr. Thorpe is a nuclear medicine and functional medicine physician with post graduate degrees from Cornell School of Medicine and the University of Florida. He mentors his clients through the ketogenic diet and treats pain and injury through optimism of blood flow.