In 2005, I suffered the first serious knee injury of my life, a slight tear of the meniscus. Actually "injury" is a misnomer because nothing really happened; I just woke up one day with a stiff knee and soon couldn't walk. After pounding my body as a professional triathlete for years without any significant injuries, I was greatly surprised to discover that I was not bulletproof. I Googled to discover that "males over 40 frequently suffer a spontaneous tear of the meniscus not attributed to any specific incident, but likely to the aging and hardening of the joint's connective tissue." What? Not me! I've always been against aging and don't really believe in the concept. The thing that really pissed me off was that I was only 39 at the time...
I'll concede that certain physical decline is inevitable, but it's valuable to challenge our self-limiting cultural beliefs about aging. In Dr. Deepak Chopra's best-seller "Ageless Body, Timeless Mind," he explains that we have not one but three relevant ages:
1) Chronological age: your age based on the year you were born.
2) Physical age: the condition that your body is in. For example, if Jack LaLanne can do 100 pull ups and 300 push ups at the age of 81 (in the 99.9th percentile for 21-year-old males), he has the body of a 21-year-old in a quantifiable physical sense.
3) Psychological age: how old you feel.
This wild premise is a scientific fact. An unhealthy, sedentary 20-something with early heart disease markers is truly more "aged" than a fit, healthy 40-something. Chopra mentions that the most common and compelling longevity characteristic shared by centenarians worldwide is not a healthy diet or exercise regimen, but "youthful spirit"--a feeling of being unburdened by one's chronological age. Conversely, there is scientific and overwhelming anecdotal evidence that negative attitudes towards aging can manifest into reality. Obviously, your physical age is closely connected to psychological age, and in this "new paradigm" (as Chopra calls it), chronological age is the least important of the three.
With my injured knee, instead of opting for surgery I decided to strengthen the muscles and joint with physical therapy exercises. With patience and time, the knee healed on its own. The following summer I had the pleasure of competing in my first track meet in 23 years. I did the high jump, pole vault and 100 meter dash just for kicks. It was a wonderful competitive outlet since I was 10 years removed from the pro triathlon circuit. I was quite surprised to discover that the marks I achieved were equal to my best marks in high school (granted, the bar was literally pretty low owing to my endurance runner physiology). However, I lead a healthy, active lifestyle chasing my kids around and have no reason to accept a decline in performance in something like the high jump due to "aging."
So, set the bar higher and embrace the new paradigm about aging. Determine your age not by subtracting 2008 from whatever, but by asking yourself how old you feel. The physical decline commonly referred to as aging can truly be reversed or slowed to imperceptible levels if you lead a healthy lifestyle and adopt a youthful spirit.
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