Some things are not all that they are cracked up to be--especially regarding fitness and exercise advice. Balance is the opposite, and there's a reason why ...

One "challenge test" I often ask of people in my writing about fitness after 50 and living longer better is this:
- Can you put your socks on while standing up?

That's simple enough.

It is an elementary requirement - a basic human movement you might say.

Yet most people over 50 cannot do it. That concerns me, and it should concern you too.

Your brain can regenerate cells, which means that it is able to replenish and repair your nerve highways to keep you cognitively fit.

A least, that's what some scientists have argued for the last 50 years.

Before then, scientists were firm on the "fact" that we are born with all the brain cells that we would ever have. From that moment on they only die - resulting in our doddery old selves.

In the 1960s some scientists claimed that they had evidence of new neurons in the brain. This was called neurogenesis.

This is fantastic news, if true. However, studies since then have been ambivalent, especially many studies this decade.

The 2019 Medscape Report "15 Studies That Challenged medical Dogma in 2019" caught my attention - in particular the first item. It brought stunning news.

If you're a regular reader of mine you may have picked up on my admonitions to not use any gym machines that you sit on e.g. in my Five Secrets for Fitness After 50.

Very often I accompany my warning with the explanation that gym machines are designed to accentuate muscles and make you look great in a t-shirt, but you'll struggle to do up your shoelaces.

There's a reason that gym machines are not designed to help you be able to do up your shoelaces. And there is a much more important reason why that should concern you greatly. It might knock 5 years off your life. When I explain why I hope that you'll kick the habit of gym machines, and potentially live longer better.

[Copy of my weekly newsletter] Please enjoy my 4 Most Valuable pieces of content that I found to help you live longer better.

Firstly, a small tip: you'll always get the most bang for your exercise buck if you combine various full range of motion compound exercises including bodyweight, cable / band work and free weights. That means eliminating using gym machines - unless you are too weak to stand.

​These four topics stood out to me this week:

1. Why getting more sleep might lessen your pains
2. What not to eat to help you sleep better
3. Debunking our favourite nutrition myths 2019
4. How to get started with pushups, even if you've never done one

As we head towards Xmas, here are this week's 4 Most Valuable pieces of content that I found to help you live longer better. These four articles stood out to me this week are:

1. Vitamin D supplements more effective than flu vaccinations
2. Building core at home - mastering the Turkish Getup
3. How to not carry your Xmas weight gain forward
4. Interval training for runners - how to improve your stamina.

This week's 4 Most Valuable pieces of content that I found to help you live longer better (and might save you a little money). These four articles stood out to me this week:

1. Calcium tablets might cause you more harm than good
2. Running doesn't wreck your knees
3. How patting your skin can be used curatively
4. How to start exercising when you are unwell or unfit.