2536: The Bones AND Aging Backwards by Kerry Ogden on Maintaing Optimal Health As You Age

[00:00:00] This is Optimal Health Daily, Episode 2536, The Bones and Aging Backwards, both by Carrie Ogden of CarrieOgden.com.

[00:00:10] And I'm Dr. Neal Malik.

[00:00:12] Welcome back to OHD where I read articles to you covering health, fitness, diet, nutrition and more.

[00:00:20] And today I'll be reading from a brand new author to our show, Carrie Ogden.

[00:00:25] And I'll tell you about Carrie right after the reading. So for now, let's get right to her two posts as we optimize your life.

[00:00:42] It's well known that brittle bones are prone to break. To maintain or regain strength, we must stress them.

[00:00:49] Weight training has long since been considered the gold standard for increasing bone density.

[00:00:55] The problem with free weights and machines is that they force the bones into a specific range of motion.

[00:01:01] We need to engage all 210 bones for optimal functioning. Thankfully, we don't need a lot of equipment to get the job done.

[00:01:10] Our body comes fully equipped with weights and levers.

[00:01:14] Elongating our arms, legs and torso is all we need to strengthen bones and realign the joints.

[00:01:20] When joints get misaligned, it leads to chronic pain and arthritis.

[00:01:24] Poor alignment is so common that osteopaths and chiropractors spend their entire careers mostly aligning joints.

[00:01:34] What most people don't realize is that good posture begins with the feet.

[00:01:38] Think about the ankles. Those little things are incredible, bearing the weight of our body crashing down on them all hours of the day.

[00:01:46] The feet are like the foundation of a building. If the base is crooked, the entire structure will be off balance.

[00:01:52] That's why clean foot alignment is essential for good posture.

[00:01:58] The way to improve stamina and prevent injury is to reintroduce mobility into the ankle.

[00:02:03] As the ankle bends, it permits the knee to bend.

[00:02:06] This is how flexibility is introduced into the dried up atrophied muscle chain.

[00:02:11] The amazing thing is that muscles respond extremely rapidly to stretching.

[00:02:16] The pulling is relieved by new found flexibility of the muscles, which in turn leads to the chronic injuries disappearing.

[00:02:23] The simplest and most effective way to recruit all the bones is by doing large, full-body movements using the weight of your body as the load on the bones.

[00:02:32] Using our own body removes the risk of compression.

[00:02:35] Additionally, large, sweeping movements drive blood into the bones delivering rich calcium while strengthening and lengthening.

[00:02:43] If your bones are out of whack like mine, it will feel awkward at first.

[00:02:48] Along with your bones and posture, proprioception is going to be off.

[00:02:52] The body will try to pull back into misalignment with false cues.

[00:02:56] This is where it's good to know the difference between sharp shooting pain or bad pain and pain that comes from tugging on connective tissue and stretching out compression.

[00:03:06] Give it time. We didn't get here overnight.

[00:03:09] It may take days, weeks or months.

[00:03:13] Aging Backwards by Keri Ogden of KeriOgden.com

[00:03:17] Some people might not view aging as a choice.

[00:03:21] It is.

[00:03:22] You can decide if you want to spend your days feeling vital, energetic and full of energy.

[00:03:27] Aging Backwards is a free online course for all ages.

[00:03:31] You can also get a free free course on the website.

[00:03:36] Aging Backwards is a free online course for all ages.

[00:03:40] You can decide if you want to spend your days feeling vital, energetic and healthy.

[00:03:45] Forget chronology.

[00:03:47] Aging Backwards is about joyfully using your body to exercise, travel and play with your friends, children and grandchildren.

[00:03:56] You can change the world of aging as an inevitability to a life confined to joint and back pain, limited mobility and a lack of strength that keeps you on the bench watching others do the things you once did.

[00:04:08] You can stay in the game.

[00:04:10] What's the secret?

[00:04:12] Move your body every day.

[00:04:14] Yes, it's that simple.

[00:04:16] Up until very recently, researchers believed that many of the negative effects of aging were inevitable and the dogma is strong.

[00:04:24] We never thought to challenge why our bones become brittle or how our muscles waste away.

[00:04:29] We simply accepted that weight gain will happen, as will various chronic diseases and mental dementia.

[00:04:35] No wonder our culture idolizes youth.

[00:04:37] Thanks to the burgeoning field of gerontology, assumptions are being busted left and right.

[00:04:42] Aging is far more a consequence of lifestyle choices than calendar years.

[00:04:47] We can age backwards.

[00:04:49] Many of the symptoms we associate with aging are the result of not just the wear and tear on our bodies over the years, but also the negative effects of disuse.

[00:04:58] Yep, not using our body is as detrimental to healthy aging as poor nutrition and smoking.

[00:05:07] In our muscles are the keys to our longevity.

[00:05:10] This mystical wellspring of youth is our mitochondria, otherwise known as the powerhouse of ourselves.

[00:05:16] If we can keep the mitochondrial fires burning, our muscles can enjoy the vitality and energy of youth right up until our final days.

[00:05:24] The secret to keeping these powerhouses well-fed and burning strong may surprise you.

[00:05:30] You don't have to run marathons or spend hours pumping iron at the gym.

[00:05:34] All you need to do is stretch.

[00:05:37] If that seems too good to be true, I get it.

[00:05:39] Most of us grew up on the idea of no pain, no gain.

[00:05:43] The reality is more like no pain, K-N-O-W and no gain.

[00:05:49] That's because gentle movement is the name of the game for lasting strength and flexibility.

[00:05:54] Whether you are a 40-something working parent looking for a home-based workout,

[00:05:59] a 50-something executive who needs to relieve stress,

[00:06:02] or a 60-something looking for new ways to stay fit and vital,

[00:06:06] gentle fluid movement is your ticket to feeling and looking stronger, healthier and happier for years to come.

[00:06:18] You just listened to the posts titled,

[00:06:20] The Bones and Aging Backwards, both by Carrie Ogden of CarrieOgden.com

[00:06:26] and I'll be right back with my commentary.

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[00:07:41] And a big thank you to Carrie.

[00:07:43] Carrie has been passionate about health and healing since her 20s.

[00:07:46] Then, in her early 30s, she opened a Pilates studio,

[00:07:50] taught kids yoga and practiced Thai yoga massage.

[00:07:54] For three years, she ran a small restaurant

[00:07:56] and created a line of plant-based foods called Holy Chow.

[00:08:00] At the end of the decade, she earned her master's

[00:08:02] and opened a private practice as a psychotherapist.

[00:08:06] After 15 years of clinical work, she rededicated herself to healing movement.

[00:08:11] Her interest in health has exposed her to an array of tools.

[00:08:14] Yoga, meditation, neurobiology and nutrition all inform her style of healing.

[00:08:21] In turn, she passes these tools on to you because

[00:08:24] she wants us all to live with ease and grace

[00:08:27] inside a body that's glad to be alive.

[00:08:30] Come by CarrieOgden.com for a lot more

[00:08:33] and I have that linked in this episode's description.

[00:08:36] Dr. Neal here for my commentary.

[00:08:39] I want to go back to Carrie's second article on aging backwards,

[00:08:42] specifically the idea that gentle fluid movements

[00:08:45] can increase our strength and flexibility.

[00:08:48] I've actually mentioned this before.

[00:08:50] The word fitness actually means more than just cardiovascular fitness.

[00:08:55] It includes muscular strength, muscular endurance and flexibility.

[00:09:01] Flexibility is a key component of our overall fitness level

[00:09:05] and studies have shown that even if we just work on improving our flexibility,

[00:09:09] it can actually increase our muscular strength and endurance at the same time.

[00:09:14] And depending on the types of flexibility exercises we perform,

[00:09:18] it may even help improve balance and coordination.

[00:09:21] And it may even keep our arteries flexible.

[00:09:25] You know those little tubes inside the body that carry blood to vital organs?

[00:09:29] So all of this to say, let's be sure to make time for some flexibility exercises.

[00:09:34] Even just twice a week of 15 to 30 minutes of stretching can make a difference.

[00:09:40] Alright, that'll do it for another episode of OHD.

[00:09:43] I hope you have a great rest of your day

[00:09:45] and I'll see you back here tomorrow with another post where your optimal life awaits.