Does exercise slow aging?

This clip is from episode 333 ‒ Longevity roundtable—the science of aging, geroprotective molecules, & lifestyle interventions with Steven Austad, Ph.D., Matt Kaeberlein, Ph.D., Richard Miller, M.D., Ph.D.

In this clip, they discuss:

- Whether exercise slows aging, with mixed views but agreement on its significant impact on healthspan.
- Molecular benefits of exercise, like increased GPLD-1 and irisin, which mirror effects of anti-aging drugs.
- The need for research on exercise’s molecular links to aging in both mice and humans.
- And more

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About:

The Peter Attia Drive is a deep-dive podcast focusing on maximizing longevity, and all that goes into that from physical to cognitive to emotional health. With over 90 million episodes downloaded, it features topics including exercise, nutritional biochemistry, cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, mental health, and much more.

Peter Attia is the founder of Early Medical, a medical practice that applies the principles of Medicine 3.0 to patients with the goal of lengthening their lifespan and simultaneously improving their healthspan.

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[scotthumphrey]

I'm 77, and I exercise every day because it makes me feel good.

[kwikstep-]

I am no expert, I am just a retired peon, not well educated, but I reach the old age of 86 yrs by doing my own exercise that put emphasis on mental stimulation, engage in social interaction & enjoy life while exercising, I don’t go to the gym, don’t lift heavy weights, don’t do strength training. I mainly exercise to enjoy life. My exercise is dancing to a variety of dancing styles around 15, different dances. I still dance & attend dance parties 4 to 5 times a week for at least 2 hrs. Attending dance parties most last until midnight, except the Salsa Bachata parties last until 2:00 AM.is what keep me alive & have fun.

[DoctorHemi]

Exercise can definitely add years to your life, so if you measure age by "how many years of life I have left" or perhaps, more importantly, "how many years of quality life I have left", then it does slow aging. However, it does NOT appear to prevent (or even delay) the appearance-related changes associated with aging like balding, wrinkles, gray hair, crepey skin, age spots, etc.

[mixalis]

My friend is 75, he is fitter than most men, no matter what age, can do the splits, 73 kg, and still squat 140 kg, exercises daily and eats well, not illness, no meds

[RS-hgny]

i think the majority of people watching this are missing the point in the poised question

adding additional exercise to a person who naturally meets all of his biological demands in physical activity from his day to day life (i.e. living how humans evolutionarily are supposed to be living) will most probably not add any extra years of life to his genetically predetermined lifespan

on the contrary, adding exercise to a person who is not meeting the biological demands in physical activity during his day to day life (i.e. your modern human following a sedentary lifestyle) will most probably extend his compromised lifespan by a significant stretch but will not surpass his predetermined genetic lifespan under the conditions of optimal human daily activity

[mjb]

I've worked in a prison. People should not underestimate the level of physical fitness that someone can attain being in very confined spaces for very extended periods of time.

[leandrobecker]

My opinion: if you "avoid" a cardiovascular event (stroke, heart atack) you automatically stay alive and prolong your aging process. So avoiding a cv event (MACE) will slow aging in my vision. This article show us that specially if you have high genetic cv risk walking (exercise) reduce your chance of any cardiovascular event (including cv death). So: exercise slow aging. And interesting that the same exercise has different impact on each person.

[trishdadish]

Wish I had a PhD to understand all this. Basically exercise, it’s best for your body.

[stevencole]

I think it's more simple . If you have less time to exercise you should increase intensity for a shorter time . If you have more time to exercise you should do it longer at a less intensity

[zeev]

you posted this short moment i myself pointed out on your comments as being the best moment in your entire 3 hour interview. peter, you're the best!

[airbear]

I thought Peter Attia talked a lot about how having a high VO2 max can reduce risk of all cause mortality by 5X? I’m confused how you can reduce ACM without increasing lifespan?

[memyselfandmik]

The question they should be asking is what method of exercise is best for extending life without mitigating effects.

I think the more you exercise without the body having enough time to recover then your body will age faster. Exertion of your heart constantly being high will definitely not be good for heart health long term.

Peter bangs on about zone 2 a lot. So my take on it is do Zone 2 80% of the time and go hard 20% on whatever exercise your comfortable doing. I think he's mentioned cycling on a turbo trainer as being the best form of exercise as its low impact and you can control your heart rate better.

[zack_]

A super good episode 👍
Physical exercises certainly increase healthspan and, in the right form and amount (in moderation at least), likely increase lifespan also - a hypothesis.

[gzusrocks]

The renowned Dr. Peter Attia: "Canagliflozin?"
Me: God Bless You!!!

[traceler]

Exercise volume increase wear and tear in joints, so better to go slow and below. Professional athletes usually are not the longest living organism out there, including white horse, Steve Cotter who was young and unbelievable strong! or Florence Griffin the Sprinter holder of world record in 100 m dash female who die young. and on and on even in endurance sports.

I bet exercise can also fasten ageing in certain context

[arneilmarquez]

Exercise keeps you in great shape and gives off a youthful aura. Doesn't stop aging.

[chrisolson]

50 plus is critical years of exercising. Even if obese. Walking with purose after a meal and resistance training is most important. Obviously, what one eats is impoort as well.

[dougsalmon]

You need to add "functionspan" specific adapatation to imposed demands.

[zentzu]

ofc it does.. but it just depends how you define aging and you also have to consider the alternative... the altnative being you are not as fit and able and reduced bone density etc