A DOCTOR who says he has slashed 20 years off his biological age has revealed his morning routine.
Dr Mark Hyman, 63, claims to have a biological age — a measure of how healthy your cells are — of 43.
GettyDr Mark Hyman, a longevity expert, has revealed his four-step morning routine[/caption]
The longevity expert believes that ageing is a “treatable condition” and doesn’t have to cause an inevitable decline of the body.
He told Insider: “People don’t realise those problems occur with things that we can change, that are reversible.
“Something to make things better decades down the road is kind of a hard sell.
“You’re not just adding years to your life, you’re adding life to your years.”
He follows a simple four-step plan in the morning to help preserve his youth.
First, he wakes up at 6am and immediately meditates for 20 minutes.
A host of studies have linked meditation with better mental health and reducing stress, which can speed up ageing if levels get too high.
One paper, published in Frontiers of Psychology, found the practice can also help reduce inflammation, which is another hallmark of ageing.
Second, Dr Hyman has a cup of coffee and sits down to write.
Antioxidants in coffee have also been proven to help reduce inflammation, while some research has linked it to a lower risk of heart disease and dementia.
Third, the physician hits the gym, doing bodyweight, bands and weight training to improve his strength.
He said: “It used to be doing yoga, tennis, or walking.
“Resistance training really transformed my body and health.”
Strength training has been shown to be one of the most useful ways of preserving muscle mass and bone density as you age — two things that deplete rapidly in later years.
A study, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, showed older people who lift weights have a lower risk of early death.
Finally, Dr Hyman’s fourth stage involves drinking a special “healthy ageing shake”, packed with plant nutrients and good fats.
He blends berries, chia seeds and hemp seeds with 48g of whey protein, which helps maintain and build muscle mass.
The seeds provide healthy fats while berries have one of the highest antioxidant ratios of all foods.