YOUR AD HERE »

Tahoe Pine Nuts: Set your internal clock to slow aging

McAvoy Layne

Forget Ponce de Leon, you have the key to the fountain of youth in your pocket.

I have learned from personal experience that exercising at the same hour every day serves to orchestrate your circadian rhythms, optimize your sleep and appetite and effectively slow the aging process.

I know it works because the proof is in the pudding.



My chronicled age might be 71, but I have been known to act like a 12 year old.

And this is not just hearsay, I have been told to my face that I act like a 12 year old. So, there you have it.



The way it works is this: exercise triggers the release of biochemicals in the cerebral cortex that tell you when to be hungry, when to be sleepy and when you just need a drink.

When you exercise at the same time every day, these circadian rhythms fall into place like a Mozart concerto and, bingo, your aging slows.

However, this biological phenomenon has its little drawbacks too.

Sometimes, as happened to me recently, you are asked to say a few words at a funeral service, and without intending, you step up to the podium as a 12 year old.

“As I stand here before you, I see faces that have come great distances to say goodbye to Pappy.

“I am humbled at how he must have touched your lives. I can only speak for myself, but when I think of how he touched my life, the first words that come to my mind are … poor old Pappy, he stopped smoking, drinking, gambling and swearing all in the same day, and here we are.

“But let us repair to the thirst parlor and drown our sorrows with 80 proof tear-stopper and let old Pappy rest in peace.”

One note I received after this regrettable regression into my youth read simply, “You are an immature ass of biblical proportions!”

I shall refrain from recording here in this fine family journal the remainder of the notes that were not nearly as kind.

Exercise, my friend, excites neurogenesis (the making of new brain cells) in the hippocampus, and exercise makes these young brain cells nimble.

I’m not a multitasker, but I’m getting better at it every day, as exercise increases the neurotropic factor that secures the connections between my neurons and sparks neurogenesis, if you follow me.

My mother has been practicing this program for one month and can now bench press me.

I leave you with this health tip of the day: some time outside on the deck with a good cigar is as good as a session with a good psychologist, and cheaper.

The important thing, the essential thing, is that we take our time in slowing our aging process.

If we hurry it up we might suffer side effects that could be most unbecoming and embarrassing.

But if we take our time, and exercise with patience, we could live forever — which is 90 years.

To learn more about McAvoy Layne visit http://www.ghostoftwain.com.


Support Local Journalism

 

Support Local Journalism

Readers around Lake Tahoe, Truckee, and beyond make the Sierra Sun's work possible. Your financial contribution supports our efforts to deliver quality, locally relevant journalism.

Now more than ever, your support is critical to help us keep our community informed about the evolving coronavirus pandemic and the impact it is having locally. Every contribution, however large or small, will make a difference.

Your donation will help us continue to cover COVID-19 and our other vital local news.