Biological Age Explained

There’s Age and then There’s… Age

How old are you? Seems like a pretty straight forward question doesn’t it? And it is… if all I want to know is how long you’ve been on Planet Earth. But there’s age and then there’s age isn’t there? Not all ‘age’ is created equal. So to speak. A few centuries ago being forty-five was regarded as… well, old. These days (thankfully), it’s regarded as middle-aged.

A Thirty-Something Trapped in a Fifty Year-Old Body

We all know people who look, behave, move and function (physiologically) like a person who is much younger or older than their chronological age. We all know (or have known) the guy or girl who, in the twenty years since they left school has gained weight, stopped exercising totally (too time-poor apparently), punished themselves with alcohol (and other drugs), smoked a bazillion cigarettes, is medicated for various conditions such as hypertension, diabetes and anxiety and at thirty-eight looks more like a fifty year-old than someone in their thirties. They also move like a fifty year-old. They are essentially a young person who has built themselves an old body to live in. So unnecessary and such a waste.

Tom Hafey

A few years ago I interviewed a bloke named Tom Hafey on radio here in Melbourne. In Australia, Tom is something of a sporting legend; an ex footballer and coach at the highest level – the AFL. These days he inspires audiences with his philosophy on life which, not surprisingly, revolves around managing and maximising one’s mind, emotions and body. At seventy-eight Tom still gets up every morning at 5:20 and runs 8 km’s (5 miles) along the beach and completes 200 push-ups and 700 sit-ups. Yep, every day, not some days. While I haven’t had the opportunity to test Tom, I would guess that his physiology – in terms of functional strength, aerobic fitness, muscular endurance and power – would be similar to that of a healthy forty year-old.

Choose, Think, Behave Young

Why? Because he’s a freak? No. Genetically gifted? No. Because unlike many, he has chosen to respect his body, to intelligently manage what he’s been given, to create different standards for himself, to make informed and responsible decisions and of course, to maximise his potential. Do we all have the same option? Of course. Talking to Tom is like talking to a fit, vibrant fifty year-old bloke. He is robust, strong, passionate and freakin’ fit. The only place he is seventy-eight is on the calendar. On no level does he think, act, talk or behave like a ‘typical’ man of his chronological age. Like me, Tom understands that age is more about choices, behaviours and mindset than it is about accumulated time on the big blue ball. He also understands that it is his choices, behaviours and mindset that have (largely) determined the current state of his physiology. That is, his amazing level of fitness, function and health.

Fortunately for you and me, Tom doesn’t have a monopoly on these kinds of results or this kind of reality.

So, What is a Biological Age Test?

Put simply (and not very scientifically), a Biological Age Test (BAT) is a form of assessment which tells us how ‘old’ our body is. During a BAT the subject is required to complete a bunch of (relatively painless) tests. We then take those results and compare them with what we sciencey-types call, normative data. This type of testing tells us how our body compares to ‘typical’ bodies of particular ages. For example, I am forty-six but my biological age is twenty-six. Which means that in terms of aerobic (heart-lung) fitness, strength, power, speed, agility, flexibility, muscular endurance, resting heart rate, recovering heart rate, blood pressure, cholesterol, fasting blood glucose, hip to waist ratio, total muscle mass, body-fat percentage and girth measurements, my physiology is similar to that of a healthy twenty-six year-old male. Not a bad effort when you consider that I was once the fattest kid in my class. Pity about my forty-six year-old head. Sigh. In calculating the overall result, the assessment also factors in lifestyle variables and typical behaviours which means that somebody like me who has never smoked or drunk alcohol will score a little higher. Er, lower. The very lovely Rona (my business partner) who does most of the BA testing at my gym (Harper’s) is fifty four and her biological age is twenty eight. Annoying I know.

Some Good News

The good news is that while it often takes a while to get our head around a concept (life-long change, for example), our body is a much more adaptable and willing player in the game of physical transformation. If a ninety year-old can increase muscle mass and bone density while simultaneously improving strength, power, fitness, endurance and confidence (and she can), then you can start to turn back the clock – no matter where your starting point is.

Don’t waste your body my friend; it’s precious and irreplaceable.

Ciao xx