Surely we would all like to be like that but how do we attain that youthful appearance and energetic condition that sounds like some age defying miracle. But we all have easy access to this as modern research tells us that the real Fountain of Youth is regular physical activity.
But why exercise at all? How can exercise help us stay, feel and look younger?
Being strong and fit does help you look younger no matter what your age and it has been well proven to help keep you healthy and resist disease. It also provides you with the energy and stamina you need to pursue all your interests and it can give your more years in your life, and perhaps most importantly, can improve the quality of that life.
Our bodies were not designed to sit in front of a computer all day at work and then sit and watch television or some other small screen in our leisure time. That sort of inactivity usually has several predictable results. Weight gain is an obvious one, feeling tired and lacking energy is another downside of lack of strength and fitness. It is hard to sit still and do nothing when you have plenty of energy.
Without strength maintaining exercise muscles lose their tone and become weak and flabby. Being largely inactive is never going to help you stay young looking. Many people either knowingly or unknowingly are actually pursuing an 'accelerated aging program'. This involves avoiding physical activity; eating a large percentage of your diet from fast foods, junk foods and highly processed foods made with white flour, white sugar, bad fats and many chemicals with unpronounceable names. If you want to accelerate your aging process and shorten your life this is the way to do it.
It is also becoming widely known that the widespread consumption of prescription drugs is an 'aging acceleration' strategy as well. Prescription drugs, due to their toxicity, cause accelerated aging of all major organs, systems and processes of the body which eventually leads to the premature death of people taking those drugs.
So, when it comes to anti-aging strategies, avoiding prescription drugs certainly belongs near the very top of the list. These drugs cannot make you well; they can never give you a lean, strong, healthy, disease free body. If you were really 'well' you wouldn't need to be taking prescription drugs in the first place.
Next on the list of anti aging strategies is a proper exercise program that contains strength building and maintaining exercise. This will not only improve muscle tone and endurance but will increase bone, tendon and ligament strength as well.
Strength training develops a leaner, stronger body and boosts metabolism (the body's engine), increasing available energy and burning up excess stored body fat which reduces risk of disease especially the 'big three' heart disease, cancer and diabetes. When you increase your body strength you also increase mental strength as well which improves mental health and increases self esteem, confidence and self worth. It is easier to become the person you would like to be.
Get your program set up be a fitness professional so that you get the very best results. Your program will need updated every few weeks and your progress monitored. This will give you inspiration and motivation as you can see how easy it is to wipe way 10-20 years of disuse.
Though you may not be able to stop the aging process through physical activity, you can compensate for it by acquiring and maintaining a level of fitness for life so you can feel more energetic, more alert, more vital and alive.
