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The High Performance Journal - October 8th, 2024

At the time of writing this, I'm about to turn 45 years old.

While most would consider this well past middle age, I feel like I'm just getting started.

This is because I have more energy than I did in my 20s and 30s. I'm stronger and more flexible, and I love how my body feels daily.

I also run a few businesses full-time, create for millions of people on every social media platform, and do my best to be a dad and husband.

But this wasn't an accident. To put myself in this position, I had to incorporate a few exercises into my routine to keep my body feeling as young as it does now.

What kind of exercises? These ones...

6 Powerful Exercises I'm Using To Reverse The Aging Process

Exercise #1 - Lifting Weights Using Progressive Overload

Building muscle​ is like creating a suit of armor for yourself.

As we age, we naturally lose muscle mass (sarcopenia is the fancy term). Without muscle, everything becomes harder—walking, lifting, even standing up.

Muscle helps regulate your metabolism. More muscle means your body burns more calories, even when you’re just sitting around doing nothing. And this helps keep fat in check.

Lifting weights and building muscle also improve your body's ability to process glucose. This reduces the risk of insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, which are significant killers as you age.

And let’s not forget about how muscle supports a healthy immune system. Studies show that strength training can help keep your immune system sharper and more resilient to illnesses.

Lastly, lifting weights also promotes the production of hormones like testosterone and growth hormone, which not only help with muscle growth but also help maintain energy levels and mood as you age.

Exercises I'm focusing on as I age:

•  ​Pendulum squats​ 
•  ​Incline bench presses​ 
•  ​Trap bar deadlifts​ 
•  ​Back extensions​ 
•  ​Nordic Hamstring curls​ 
•  ​Hip thrusts​ 
•  ​Lat raises​ 
•  ​Machine reverse flies​ 
•  ​Mid-grip lat pulldowns​ 
•  ​Machine shoulder presses​ 
•  ​Farmer Carries​ 

Key point: You don't have to do what I'm doing. Think of these as using the exercises you prefer as long as they fit the movement pattern.

As I do these exercises, I'm focused on using, I focus progressive overload to get stronger at them. ​Click here​ for a quick guide on progressive overload.

Exercise #2 - Mobility Training

Mobility training is like lube for your joints.

As you age, everything gets tighter—muscles, joints, tendons—and stiffness limits your range of motion.

When you can't move freely, your risk of injury skyrockets. Poor mobility means poor balance, making you more likely to trip, stumble, or flat-out fall.

Mobility training strengthens the muscles around your joints, improves your body awareness, and ensures your body can react quickly when needed.

It also keeps your joints healthy and your muscles lengthened so you stay nimble and injury-resistant.

In short, mobility training helps you maintain independence, especially as you age.

A few key mobility exercises I'm focusing on as I age:

•  ​Bird Dogs​ 
•  ​Bar Hangs​ 
•  ​The couch stretch​ 
•  ​Downward dogs to cobras​ 
•  ​External shoulder rotations​ 
•  ​The world's greatest stretch​ 

I incorporate these mobility stretches (and more) at the beginning of my workout ​in a quick 6-minute flow​ that you can check out here.

Exercise #3 - Low-Intensity Cardio

Your ​cardiovascular system is a primary key to living longer​ and making life easier.

There are two types of low-intensity cardio that I'm doing to keep myself as young as possible:

1. Zone 1 cardio: Low-intensity walking, cycling, or paddle boarding

Zone 1 fights off the biggest killer of all—sedentary living. It also promotes stress reduction and recovery through activating your parasympathetic nervous system.

2. Zone 2 cardio: Moderate intensity jogging, cycling, or longboard surfing.

Zone 2 strengthens your heart, making it more efficient at pumping blood and improving V02 max. It is also where your body taps into fat stores for fuel while boosting mitochondrial function.

When done regularly, both types of cardio reduce stress while keeping your heart, metabolism, and cells functioning at their best. You want this if you’re looking to age like a fine wine instead of a stale loaf of bread.

How I'm applying these to my life:

• I'm getting zone 1 covered by ensuring I get at least 10k steps daily.
• I'm getting zone 2 by strapping on a weight vest and hiking around my neighborhood.
  
  

Exercise #4 - Jump Rope

Jump rope might seem like child’s play, but it’s like finding a cheat code for your body regarding aging.

First, it boosts cardiovascular health, keeping your heart strong and reducing the risk of heart disease.

It also increases bone density, helping to prevent osteoporosis and fractures, which are common as you age. The coordination and balance required to jump rope improve motor skills and reduce the likelihood of falls.

Lastly, jump rope is excellent for lymphatic drainage. Its up-and-down motion stimulates muscle contractions that push lymph fluid through the body, helping to flush out toxins.

By improving circulation and promoting the movement of lymph, jump rope helps boost the immune system, reduce swelling, and enhance overall detoxification, keeping your lymphatic system efficient and healthy.

How I'm applying jump rope into my life:

• I'm adding jump rope as the cardiovascular portion of my ​6 minute warm up​.
   

Exercise #5 - Reverse Sprint Intervals

I talked about this in a ​previous article​, and it is my favorite form of cardio.

Reverse sprint intervals are doing a 7 to 15-second high-intensity sprint followed by walking backward for 2 to 5 minutes.

Sprinting is key to preventing aging because it triggers the release of human growth hormone (HGH), which promotes cell regeneration, muscle growth, and fat loss—essential for maintaining youthfulness.

It also improves V02 max, boosts metabolism, and enhances mitochondrial function, all of which help fight age-related decline.

Most importantly, the intensity of sprinting activates fast-twitch muscle fibers, keeping you strong and agile as you age.

Walking backward is a key tool to keeping your lower body healthy and your brain sharp. It strengthens muscles not typically used during forward movement, enhancing overall stability and reducing the risk of falls.

Walking backward also improves cognitive function by engaging your brain in new patterns, keeping your mind sharp.

How I'm applying Reverse Sprint Intervals into my life:

• I do these once a week, either on Saturdays or Sundays, at the track with my daughter.
   

Exercise #6 - Breathwork

Understanding how to control your nervous system is a secret to delaying the aging process. The best way to do that is through the breath.

The topic of breathwork is too broad to fit into this article, but there are two types I'll be using:

1. Box Breathing to relax the body

Inhale slowly through your nose while counting to four, hold your breath for four seconds, exhale slowly through your mouth while counting to four, and hold your breath again for four seconds. Repeat steps 1–6 as many times as you like.

2. Fire breathing to increase energy

Inhale deeply through your nose or mouth, filling your belly and chest then exhale through your mouth, relaxing and letting the air out. Repeat: Repeat the breathing pattern for 30–40 breaths.

How I'm applying breathwork into my life:

• First thing in the morning I'm doing fire breathing to wake myself up.
• Post-workout and before bed, I'm doing box breathing to help myself relax and calm down.
  
  

Focus On Behavior, Not Outcome.

The key to a list like this is to treat each exercise as a behavior rather than a chore.

While you can't control longevity, you can influence it through your lifestyle.

These exercises listed are part of my weekly routine. What you don't see is that I've taken years to bake these into a routine that works for me.

If you want to apply this list to your life take it one behavior at a time and do what you can to make it yours.

We don't want to do these for a week and drop them. We want to make these into a lifestyle.

Onwards and upwards 🚀

- Dan

When you're ready, here are 3 ways I can help:

1. The Lean Body 90 System: When you’re ready to get in great shape, Lean Body 90 is the obvious choice. You can get in great shape and reach your fitness goals in just 90 minutes a week. Lose weight and build muscle even without hours in the gym or highly restrictive diets. Join 1000+ students here.

2. Are you an entrepreneur who wants to get lean, boost energy, and get in your best shape? Apply for private one-on-one coaching here.

3. Promote yourself to 340,000+ subscribers​ by sponsoring this newsletter.

References:

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2. Keller, Karsten, and Martin Engelhardt. “Strength and muscle mass loss with aging process. Age and strength loss.” Muscles, ligaments and tendons journalvol. 3,4 346-50. 24 Feb. 2014 
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4. Fiatarone, Maria A. “High-Intensity Strength Training in Nonagenarians.” Jama, vol. 263, no. 22, 1990, p. 3029., doi:10.1001/jama.1990.03440220053029.
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8. Studenski, Stephanie et al. “Gait speed and survival in older adults.” JAMAvol. 305,1 (2011): 50-8. doi:10.1001/jama.2010.1923
9. Stathokostas, Liza et al. “Flexibility of older adults aged 55-86 years and the influence of physical activity.” Journal of aging researchvol. 2013 (2013): 743843. doi:10.1155/2013/743843
10. Batista, Lucia Helena, et al. “Active Stretching Improves Flexibility, Joint Torque, and Functional Mobility in Older Women.” American Journal of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, vol. 88, no. 10, Oct. 2009, pp. 815–822., doi:10.1097/phm.0b013e3181b72149.
11. Brito, Leonardo Barbosa Barreto De, et al. “Ability to Sit and Rise from the Floor as a Predictor of All-Cause Mortality.” European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, vol. 21, no. 7, 13 Dec. 2012, pp. 892–898., doi:10.1177/2047487312471759.
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