Who is a Longevity Athlete?

In my mind there are two meanings to the term, ‘Longevity Athlete’.

First, it could be an athlete who highly values longevity – their long-term well-being – and chooses sports activities and trains in such a way as to promote that outcome. This person would avoid activities and extreme behaviors that would threaten their longevity or compete with that value.

Second, it could be a person who highly values longevity and pursues that outcome with the vision and focus that an athlete would demonstrate. This person may not necessarily do sports or athletics, but maintain the attitude of one in how they take care of their wellbeing.

Photo by LOGAN WEAVER | @LGNWVR on Unsplash

Longevity is a statistical game. There are numerous factors involved in how long and how well a person lives, way too complex to calculate completely and predict for any individual. But any one of us can choose to add beneficial behaviors and remove harmful ones in order to stack the deck in favor of this outcome. Doing sports and being ‘athletic’ could be helpful to the goal of longevity, but it is not necessary. One could be sufficiently active with their body in many other ways.

Some people are athletes or athletic, and then use that aspect of their life to give them goals, structure, and habits that promote longevity. Other people are not athletes yet they work on their health with the deliberate, focused attention of a professional.

Both of these are the kind of people I am referring to and support under the banner of a ‘Longevity Athlete’.

[This article was originally posted on our thelongevityathlete.com blog in 2019]

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