The Fountain of Youth is a fairytale concept. The only real way to stay young, or at least look and feel less than your age, is through daily exercise. Even moderate exercise can shave years off your age, no matter how many times you’ve blown the candles out on a birthday cake.

The only real problem with a daily fitness regime, especially for approaching an advanced age, is that just the mere mention of the word “exercise” sends people into a panic. But here are some things to keep in mind before putting a foot in your running shoes.

Exercise Doesn’t Always Mean “Gym”

Utter the word “gym” and many empty nesters imagine buffed up men and size 0 women sporting their tightest apparel and rows of confusing equipment. Exercise doesn’t only happen inside those walls. Going for long walks, bike rides, hiking, and swimming, these are just some of the activities that will keep a person young.

Exercise Will Save You Money

A healthier and more active lifestyle will save money. Better physical conditioning will mean fewer doctor visits and fewer medication purchases. A recent study even showed that frequent exercisers over age 40 had skin that resembled the more supple, elastic skin of people in their 20s and 30s. A younger appearance means fewer purchases of “youth in a bottle” face creams and ointments.

Working Out Is Beneficial To Your Mind

Everyone gets a little forgetful. These “senior moments” occur more frequently but current research suggests
people can fight forgetfulness with physical fitness. A report in the British Journal of Sports Medicine in 2014 found that “regular aerobic exercise seems to increase the size of the hippocampus, a part of the brain associated with memory.” Exercise has also been linked to sharper cognitive skills in adults over a certain age.

Even More Benefits You Haven’t Considered

If those weren’t good enough reasons to get up and exercising, chew on these facts:

• Exercise doesn’t just make you feel younger it may turn off the aging process in your chromosomes. Studies show a strong link between regular exercise and it’s ability to “slow the clock.”
• Regular workouts reduce the risk of cardiovascular problems associated with people of an advanced age. High blood pressure and high levels of triglycerides – the fat in the blood that blocks or harden arteries – can be prevented with vigorous daily exercise.
• Exercise will help you sleep better, and sleep is the key to staying and feeling younger. Regular exercisers fall asleep easier and are more likely to experience deep REM sleep, the time when the body does the most internal repairing and fighting off fatigue and stress.
• Daily physical exertion also helps improve posture, flexibility, and keeps the brain more alert and alive by putting your body in a constant state of arousal.

The Fountain of Prolonged Life

Exercise won’t change your chronological age, but it will improve your health to the point where you look and feel younger. All it takes is the dedication to get moving every day and the proper diet.