Stories, tales and myths of restorative and healing waters have been part of our culture for millennia. Alexander the Great spoke of the healing “River of Paradise” two and a half thousand years ago, and the Spanish Conquistador Juan Ponce de Leon searched for the “Fountain of Youth,” in Florida a mere five centuries back. In the present age they are testing novel concepts, like transfusing blood plasma and exosomes from the young to the old. Research rats and mice are seeing most of the benefits so far, but the techniques are showing great promise.
Longevity has been a hot topic for a long time. Nobody wants to grow old and die, but what are you willing to trade for another 20, 30, or more years of high-quality life? Your alcohol or tobacco habit? What about the Ho Ho and Ding Dong addiction? Would you consider giving up the comfortable ass-shaped perch on the couch and the chips and salsa? Are you willing to put in an hour or two a day, doing some serious exercise?
“I don’t run to add days to my life, I run to add life to my days.” ~ Ronald Rook
Guaranteed!
Numerous long-term studies have proven that diet and exercise are the real “Fountain of Youth,” and these modalities are available to everyone. $8000 blood transfusions have produced some interesting results, improving several important longevity markers, and some folks can afford to experiment with these techniques, but there’s not a single long-term study that proves their viability.
Exercise and a proper diet are guaranteed to produce a healthier, happier human, and add years to your life. There are hundreds of studies, involving millions of individuals across multiple timelines, that prove it. So, why are fast food emporiums filled to capacity instead of gyms? It’s not like folks have never heard of the power of diet and exercise to restore and heal. It’s not a secret, we’ve all heard it since we were youngsters in gym class.
Convenience might be the barrier to finding the “Fountain of Youth” for many of us, it was for me. Everyone is so busy in the 21st century that there’s no time to prepare high-quality foods or squeeze a workout in. Yet everyone is quick to defend their evening downtime to decompress from the rigors of their long hard day, perched in front of the monitor at work, so they can scroll through the 1200 channel cable subscription on a different monitor in their living room.
“People seldom do what they believe in. They do what is convenient, then repent.” ~ Bob Dylan
The Art of Living
At the opposite end of the spectrum from convenience, is art. Diet and exercise are the keys to the art of living. Nature, sunshine, and sleep are important, but exercise and diet are vital. It’s not about fad diets, supplements, or goal-oriented exercise campaigns. The art of living is about painting your masterpiece across the arc of your lifetime. To create a lifestyle, painted with a colorful palette of unprocessed whole foods, and filled with joyous movement.
Your “Fountain of Youth” is a fountain of energy. It flows from deep within your cells, like a spring in the mighty Rocky Mountains. It’s a magical biochemical process. A quality diet and plenty of exercise keep the magic flowing. Aging, along with most non-communicable diseases is the result of metabolic dysfunction. Exercise has been proven to treat numerous metabolic diseases. It can revert the deleterious effects of aging and has positive effects on type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
Exercise is medicine. Multiple organizations recommend 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity or 75 minutes of vigorous physical activity weekly. I believe these are minimums and more is better in almost every case. Regular moderate-intensity exercise is an easy and cost-free intervention to improve overall health.
“I don’t exercise to get fit or be healthier; I do it to enjoy being alive.” ~ Thich Nhat Hanh
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