00:00:00
Can you be a kid every single day?
00:00:02
Right?
00:00:02
You wanna have some form of being a kid every single day.
00:00:05
That is training the athlete of life.
00:00:07
Pick one of the longevity pillars.
00:00:09
Just pick one, strength, endurance, dexterity, or mindfulness, and train it intentionally for
00:00:14
the next thirty days.
00:00:16
Don't overthink it.
00:00:17
Just move, track, improve.
00:00:19
Welcome to Health Decoded, your number one source for real health information with your
00:00:24
host, doctor Alessi and Matt Tack.
00:00:31
Welcome back to Health Decoded.
00:00:35
I'm your cohost, Matt Tack.
00:00:37
We're actually, solo host today because doctor Alessi is out again.
00:00:42
But just welcome back.
00:00:44
We're I'm just fall flying solo for the past couple weeks, while doctor Alessi is out
00:00:49
transforming lives at the clinic.
00:00:51
But today, we're gonna dive into something that I think about every single day, and we think
00:00:57
about every single day at our clinic.
00:00:59
And what is that topic longevity?
00:01:02
So I've named this title of this episode longevity decoded training for the athlete of
00:01:09
life.
00:01:09
I think we usually miss out on that term of athlete where, maybe after high school or even
00:01:17
after college that we no longer consider.
00:01:19
I used to be an athlete.
00:01:21
We use that term quite often, and I wanna change that.
00:01:25
And I think, I'm gonna be talking a lot about doctor Peter Attia today, and he wants to
00:01:31
change that as well.
00:01:32
We need to be called the athletes of life, and we need to be performing every day to maintain
00:01:38
a sense of longevity.
00:01:40
And what he always talks about is this element of health span because lifespan is how long you
00:01:45
live, but health span is how well you live it during the time you have.
00:01:50
And the truth is the gap between those two is growing wider for most Americans.
00:01:55
Doctor.
00:01:56
B.
00:01:56
Rutti is one of the leading minds in longevity, and he breaks it down in measurable action
00:02:02
pillars.
00:02:03
So these measurable actionable pillars are number one, muscle mass.
00:02:08
Muscle mass is extremely critical.
00:02:10
Obviously, as you age, you get the bumps and bruises, you know, a lot of broken hips in
00:02:15
those seventies and eighties really usually kill people, but if you have enough muscle
00:02:19
mass, then you can prevent things like that.
00:02:22
So grip strength is another thing.
00:02:24
Just good old grip strength.
00:02:26
Digging in, shaking somebody's hand, that is grip strength, But what he likes is dead hangs.
00:02:32
You actually hang from a bar, and if you can hang for two minutes, that's actually his, the
00:02:37
peak.
00:02:38
If you can hang for longer, obviously, you're doing even better.
00:02:40
But v o two max is another thing that is immeasurable.
00:02:43
It's the velocity of oxygen at which you can produce an output, an intake output.
00:02:49
So those are you put a mask on, you get on a treadmill, and that's a way to measure, your v
00:02:55
o two max.
00:02:56
You start jogging, you're running.
00:02:58
And the other thing is cognitive and motor dexterity.
00:03:01
So he has measurables in terms of can you stand on one leg?
00:03:06
Can you do various just dexterity drills, motor drills, and with cognition as well.
00:03:13
So these are these aren't just random metrics.
00:03:15
They're the foundation for how we move, think, and feel as we age.
00:03:20
So if you want to stay in the game of life, not just survive, but be an actual person that's
00:03:30
training like an athlete after like an athlete every single day, this episode is for you.
00:03:34
So let's jump right in.
00:03:36
The truth about aging.
00:03:38
Here's a stat that'll hit you.
00:03:40
After the age of 21, most Americans will never again experience what it feels like to be truly
00:03:47
healthy.
00:03:50
Let that settle for a minute.
00:03:52
Not because aging is the enemy, but because they stopped training for the game of life.
00:03:58
Think of that for a minute.
00:04:00
We stop building muscle.
00:04:02
We stop moving with intention every day.
00:04:05
We let pain, fatigue, oxidative stress, schedules dictate our biology day after day.
00:04:15
So Doctor.
00:04:16
Peter Attia calls this a decay curve, the gradual decline of our physical and cognitive
00:04:24
capacity, and it's not inevitable, it's a conscious choice.
00:04:31
The biggest predictor of lifespan, your health span, how strong capable and mobile you are in
00:04:40
your forties, fifties, and even beyond.
00:04:43
That is your health span.
00:04:45
That's the predictor of lifespan is your health span.
00:04:49
So the moment you choose to stay static, that becomes your Achilles heel.
00:04:55
So the reality is this, if you stop moving, your body stops remembering how to live.
00:05:04
Let's dig into the longevity pillars here.
00:05:07
Let's break down the main pillars Doctor.
00:05:09
Peter Thea focuses on, on how you can start improving today.
00:05:12
I like all these actionable tips.
00:05:15
We can stay in this land of, yeah, yeah, you're you're not enough.
00:05:20
You're not worthy, but the reality is, and there's actionable tips that I can build in
00:05:24
here to help you through this process of getting back what you desire.
00:05:30
So let's break down the Peter Peter Tiller's Peter Attia.
00:05:34
I can't talk today.
00:05:35
Peter Attia's pillars on muscle mass and strength is number one.
00:05:41
So muscle isn't just for aesthetics, it's a metabolic organ.
00:05:47
It protects against insulin resistance, improves posture, and prevents falls later in
00:05:55
life as I talked about.
00:05:57
So what does that mean?
00:05:58
What are the actionable steps?
00:05:59
Resistance training.
00:06:00
You got to lift three to four times a week.
00:06:02
I promise you it's a necessity.
00:06:04
I was talking about a young woman that was, Hey, I want to bench 135.
00:06:08
Well, that's a good goal.
00:06:10
But her real goal was at 65, she wanted to feel good.
00:06:14
She wanted to play with her grandkids if she had the ability to do so, right?
00:06:20
And you have to do these things, right?
00:06:22
You have to build in resistance training.
00:06:24
So focus on compound movement, squats, deadlifts, presses, and carries, not for PRs,
00:06:31
but for the purposes of everyday life.
00:06:34
So track your grip strength.
00:06:35
I think a great way to do this is actually hold on a kettlebell or a dead hang from a bar.
00:06:40
Those are one of the strongest predictors of longevity is how can you hold your own weight
00:06:46
for a long period of time.
00:06:48
Two minutes is the goal.
00:06:49
So if you can hold it like a 70 pound kettlebell, 50 pound kettlebell, or even hold
00:06:52
your body weight, just even more just completely dead hang.
00:06:56
Two minutes is the goal.
00:06:58
Now, what's another one?
00:07:00
A VO2 max.
00:07:01
Not a lot of people know about this and not even a lot of people think about it, but this
00:07:05
measures your body's ability to use oxygen.
00:07:09
It's the true endurance engine, right?
00:07:12
So, what I was talking about is zone two cardio.
00:07:15
So, steady state work like cycling, jogging, or incline walking for up to one hundred and
00:07:21
twenty minutes a week.
00:07:22
When you break that down over a period of days, yes, it becomes harder when you're trying to
00:07:27
fit it all in one day.
00:07:29
But the reality is when you break that down with the consistency of a seven day week, it's
00:07:33
really not that much.
00:07:34
Right?
00:07:35
You can do fifteen, twenty minutes a day.
00:07:37
So sprinkle in those short bursts of like zone five training, which is sprints intervals one
00:07:43
to two times a week where you're running.
00:07:45
Right?
00:07:46
I like doing this at basketball.
00:07:48
I love this at basketball where I'm running, but I do this every day.
00:07:52
I actually do some element of training where I'm actually opening up my hips.
00:07:59
I'm skipping a lot both in reverse and forward.
00:08:03
So that's an another idea.
00:08:04
And I'm gonna actually record some of these videos, just so I can show if you, follow me on
00:08:09
Instagram at human.
00:08:11
Optimizer.
00:08:11
I'm going to start recording some of my workouts of things that I do to help you,
00:08:16
throughout this process.
00:08:17
So what is number three?
00:08:20
Stability and dexterity.
00:08:22
And what is that?
00:08:23
So longevity isn't just about strength.
00:08:26
It's about control.
00:08:27
Like, you need that controlled movement.
00:08:29
Can you balance on one foot?
00:08:31
Can you get up off the floor without using your hands?
00:08:35
It's a tough one.
00:08:37
Train coordination, agility and flexibility.
00:08:41
Those are all things, right?
00:08:42
If you're extremely rigid, if your spine's extremely rigid, if your entire body's just
00:08:47
full of stress, that is not something that you have agility and flexibility.
00:08:52
You need that mobility.
00:08:55
So use tools like a stability pad, a balance beam, or even barefoot training is a great way
00:09:01
to do this where you're grabbing with your toes, grabbing the ground with your toes.
00:09:05
That's why we always encourage wide foot toe boxes because you can feel your toes in those.
00:09:11
I just changed actually my basketball shoes, so I have a little bit more wide, wider.
00:09:16
And if you guys play basketball and if somebody's listening playing basketball, the
00:09:20
Curry Floatrol fours are phenomenal because I can feel all my toes in there, and they have to
00:09:25
actually have a really soft They're soft on my heel as well.
00:09:29
So I love them.
00:09:31
But those are some of the ways, right?
00:09:33
Just hopping on a balance beam, being a kid again, right?
00:09:36
Can you be a kid every single day?
00:09:38
Right?
00:09:39
You want to have some form of being a kid every single day that is training the athlete of
00:09:43
life.
00:09:44
So here here we go for number four is cognitive and emotional resilience.
00:09:48
This is one really big things that he has in his book of outlive is he talks about this.
00:09:54
He talks about how he was a doctor of longevity, but wasn't really building emotional
00:10:00
resilience into his daily life.
00:10:01
And honestly, of the last chapters, I was nearly in tears because he then realized the
00:10:09
impact he was making on the world, but he wasn't making any impact at home.
00:10:13
And that's the emotional resilience you have to you got to step up to the plate.
00:10:17
Sometimes you got to cry.
00:10:18
You got to be there with your emotions.
00:10:20
You can't just bottle things away, and that's what he was doing.
00:10:23
So your long term health isn't only about physical.
00:10:25
You need to build in stress controls, right?
00:10:28
And that's getting proper sleep, mindfulness of just breathing, stress control directly affects
00:10:38
how your body ages.
00:10:40
And I do want to mention something about like the barefoot training.
00:10:44
That's part of a mindful tactic that I actually built in is that I go outside and I'll just be
00:10:49
in my bare feet.
00:10:50
And that's just just allows the energy of the earth to vibrate within me.
00:10:54
And I that's something I truly enjoy because it's a decompressor.
00:10:58
I just breathe.
00:10:59
I have just I love it even after the rain.
00:11:02
I just really think that, that's really a quality mindful tactic that I've utilized, and
00:11:09
I hope that you incorporate that in your daily life.
00:11:11
It's phenomenal way to just be mindful of the earth and the presence of the earth and the
00:11:16
energy that it brings.
00:11:17
So you want to prioritize at minimum of seven to eight hours of sleep.
00:11:21
I prioritize eight plus hours of sleep.
00:11:24
I usually go to bed at nine and then wake up after six.
00:11:27
So that is something that I it's really, really important to my life.
00:11:32
I actually used to wake up at like four in the morning.
00:11:35
I used to go to bed nine, wake up at four, 04:30, but I prioritize sleep so much that nine
00:11:40
to really 06:15 is my wake up cycle now, and I love it.
00:11:45
So meditate or journal daily, writing things down just to be reflective.
00:11:49
I think that's a really important thing for people just to write things down because even
00:11:55
if it's a fear, it really pushes that fear away once you write it down.
00:12:01
You're like, is it that big?
00:12:03
Right?
00:12:04
And so writing those things down in the journal of like, why?
00:12:08
Why?
00:12:08
Why am I afraid of this?
00:12:09
Right?
00:12:10
And acknowledging it in retrospect is helpful in terms of how you make decisions in the
00:12:16
future.
00:12:17
And that's really utilizing discernment.
00:12:20
So super helpful.
00:12:22
And then protect your mental bandwidth.
00:12:24
You know, this is one critical things that I've done this year is I've said no a lot more to
00:12:29
things.
00:12:29
I've said no to a lot, and that is massive.
00:12:33
I think one of your greatest superpowers is your ability to say no at times.
00:12:38
No, I can't do that.
00:12:40
I actually it's it's a bit much.
00:12:42
And so I say no often.
00:12:45
I actually try to say it on a daily basis.
00:12:47
Actually, no.
00:12:48
Like, I'm not gonna do that.
00:12:49
So know what you say yeah to and know what you say no to.
00:12:54
It's just as important as your muscles, your yes and your no's.
00:12:57
So longevity isn't luck, it's strategy.
00:13:01
You definitely need to strategize the game of life and it's stepping into your inner athlete.
00:13:05
You don't guess your way to health, you train your way there.
00:13:10
So let's let's start, like, how do we train like an athlete every single day?
00:13:16
So doctor Peter Attia always says this.
00:13:19
He says it best.
00:13:20
You need to train today for the the centurion decade you want to live tomorrow.
00:13:26
And not everyone is going to live to be a centurion.
00:13:29
That's just the reality of life.
00:13:30
Not everyone is going to be, but you want to make the most out of the days that you've been
00:13:35
given.
00:13:36
And it's not in pain.
00:13:38
That's not what you were intended for.
00:13:39
It's not to honestly not even let you want to live optimally optimized.
00:13:45
And so let's let's take some clear actionable steps on how you can do this.
00:13:49
We've touched on a few, but train three times a week at minimum prioritize functional movements
00:13:55
as well as just physical movements.
00:13:57
You don't need to set PRs, but you need resistance training built in at thirty minutes
00:14:01
of movement every single day, even walking counts.
00:14:06
So you can some element of if you want to take a break during the workday, I know things I was
00:14:13
actually talking to a young woman the other day.
00:14:14
She's like time, time's against me, right?
00:14:17
How do you start incorporating those in?
00:14:19
I do pushups.
00:14:19
I love doing pushups.
00:14:21
It's something that I can activate very quickly.
00:14:23
So I can get usually a 100 of them in a period of five minutes or less.
00:14:28
Those are great ways to incorporate things, air squats, whatever you gotta do for movement,
00:14:33
those count.
00:14:35
Do one thing daily to sharpen your mind, a book, a puzzle, or a conversation, right?
00:14:39
Difficult conversations, I think everyone should be having daily.
00:14:44
But another thing that I do is I started incorporating Spanish into my repertoire.
00:14:49
So, I actually utilize that for the purposes of cognitive really building where I'm learning a
00:14:56
new language.
00:14:57
And that has really helped me because I'm learning new words and now I'm trying to
00:15:01
translate those words where I'm not thinking them in terms of the English context, but just
00:15:06
purely in Spanish.
00:15:08
So my daughter and I are working on that together and I love it.
00:15:12
Right?
00:15:12
That's another way.
00:15:13
Hydrate.
00:15:15
Hydrate's probably, I would say one one of the most important.
00:15:19
We are walking around so dehydrated as Americans.
00:15:22
So aim for your body weight in ounces of water every single day.
00:15:27
You need to be getting a lot, a lot of water.
00:15:32
And when you build in electrolytes, there's plenty of electrolytes packets out there.
00:15:37
We use Element personally.
00:15:38
I like the watermelon.
00:15:40
So if you are doing if electrolytes along with getting your body weight in ounces of water are
00:15:47
slightly underneath that, you are doing it right.
00:15:50
You're staying hydrated and that can minimize headaches.
00:15:54
That is also pumping your muscles full of water, so to heal faster.
00:15:59
Water is the just an essential of life.
00:16:01
So make sure you're staying hydrated and then sleep, sleep like it's your job because it is
00:16:07
right.
00:16:08
That enhancements, there is literally spinal fluid.
00:16:11
As soon as you go to sleep, you go into stage one, two and three, you hop into REM sleep and
00:16:17
then you get into your deep cycle sleep.
00:16:19
But the reality is at the end of the day is that there's a replenishment of spinal fluid
00:16:25
going through your brain chugging away like a toothbrush.
00:16:28
So it's just like brushing your teeth, it's chugging away at your brain.
00:16:32
So all that plaque is being destroyed if you get proper sleep.
00:16:36
So that's what it means to have true cognitive health and that's why you do need to sleep.
00:16:40
So the truth here is you can't wait until you feel healthy to start acting like it.
00:16:45
You have to act healthy first and that's what gets you there ultimately.
00:16:50
So you don't age overnight, you drift there daily.
00:16:54
Longevity is that course of correction.
00:16:58
Small daily improvements.
00:16:59
Check out our last podcast of the 1%, right?
00:17:03
That daily compounding is what creates this.
00:17:07
And this is what longevity is all about.
00:17:09
So the choice is static or strong.
00:17:12
You get the option.
00:17:14
Most people accept decline as normal.
00:17:17
They let age dictate their emotions, their energy, and their identity.
00:17:21
But the reality is this, you don't have to accept that.
00:17:24
No.
00:17:24
You don't have to accept that.
00:17:26
You can choose movement.
00:17:27
You can choose strength.
00:17:28
You can choose longevity.
00:17:30
You choose.
00:17:30
It's a conscious choice.
00:17:32
The key is consistency, not perfection.
00:17:34
We speak that every single day.
00:17:37
Every rep, every breath, every step you take toward being the athlete of life compounds in a
00:17:43
healthier future.
00:17:44
Because remember, health span is always greater than lifespan.
00:17:51
The goal isn't just to live longer.
00:17:53
It's to live better.
00:17:54
The cost of doing nothing is losing your freedom tomorrow.
00:17:59
So here's your challenge this week.
00:18:02
Pick one of the longevity pillars.
00:18:04
Just pick one, strength, endurance, dexterity, or mindfulness, and train it intentionally for
00:18:09
the next thirty days.
00:18:11
Don't overthink it.
00:18:12
Just move, track, improve.
00:18:14
It's how we do it around here, right?
00:18:17
Because your problem is not random.
00:18:20
It's built one decision at a time.
00:18:23
If you found value in today's episode, hit the like, subscribe, share with someone who needs
00:18:29
to hear it.
00:18:30
Let's help more people take control of their health span, not just their lifespan.
00:18:34
And remember, as always, doctor Lessie says your health is in your hands.
00:18:40
I'm Matt Tack, and this has been Health Decoded.
00:18:43
Let's train like an athlete of life, and I'll see you next time.
00:18:49
Thank you for tuning in to Health Decoded, where we break down the truth about all things
00:18:54
health, and empower you to take charge of your well-being.
00:18:58
If you found value in today's episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with
00:19:03
someone who needs to hear this.
00:19:05
For more resources and personalized support, visit us at alessifunctionalhealth.com and sign
00:19:11
up for our newsletter.
00:19:12
To hear your questions answered live on the show, send them to askalessifxhealth dot com.
00:19:18
That's askalessifxhealth dot com.
00:19:24
Until next time, stay curious, stay empowered, and remember, your health is in your hands.