By Pam Owens
You plan and dream of playing more golf well into your golden years. And you understand your golf lifestyle hinges on your health. Health is like a glider that needs to start high to go far. Longevity with full health is well-researched and continually leads back to strength, movement capacity and solid nutrition habits.
My top longevity tips are verified by science, leading coaches and organizations plus tested by me personally. So, boost your glider height for longevity and health with these 7 important tips.
• Manage all loads like professional golfers. Athletes know physical and cognitive exertion must be managed to perform their best. Controlling daily and weekly cycles of work balanced with recovery efforts builds your overall work capacity and is the key to performance and longevity. Too much/too little work or poor recovery leads to burn out, stagnation, illness or limited progress.
• Kickstart your health with small repeatable (often boring) efforts rather than grand goals. There is no “too little” effort. Even as a fitness professional, I’ve had my own slumps. When renewing my focus, I started with the simplest minimal workout that was little more than showing up regularly to the gym using only a few machines. Within a few months, I had my mojo back mostly because I gained confidence from showing up. Small steps for the win! Using minimums is a powerful habit.
• Get uncomfortable. A little calculated discomfort for a health goal builds health, character, and confidence. Efforts like fasting, cold plunging, lifting heavier, mobility training, being accountable to a coach, joining a program, etc., involves stepping out of your comfort zone but builds resilience and adaptability. Adopt a beginner’s mindset and learn something new and challenging to push past stagnation. Start with what you’ve been avoiding or something that scares you just a little.
• Cut down on UPFs (ultra-processed foods). It’s estimated that over half the American diet consists of UPFs which is severely detrimental to health. Diets high in UPFs are higher calorie, contribute to cravings and are linked to increased risks of diabetes, heart disease, weight gain and cancer. If the food has an ingredient you wouldn’t have in your kitchen then it’s processed to some level. Tackle improving your snacks first, then breakfast and then lunch once you’ve had some success. Think long term as you may not experience immediate gratification but the process of substituting better foods improves your health markers and builds your healthspan.
• Build your gut health by eating a diverse range of whole plants. Research continues to show gut health is more important than previously imagined. Humans are mostly water and microbes. Your good gut bacteria flourishes with plant diversity because each food is a prebiotic or “fertilizer” for a particular bacterial strain. The more strains in your gut the better your digestion, immunity, and moods and the less likely of being inflamed with persistent aches and increasing disease risks. In April this year, I participated in a research study with gut testing which led me to adopting new habits which resulted in much better digestion and energy levels. This key change involves adding fermented foods (probiotics) and increasing plant diversity (prebiotics) with handfuls of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and beans, and teaspoons of nuts, seeds, spices, and herbs.
• Move fast, far, and often. Because golf is life, and golf is movement; therefore, movement is life. Maintaining strength and range of motion with cardio-vascular conditioning impacts golf performance but is also a top predictor of mortality rate from disease. Exercise wards off disease better than almost any other habit. The ability to get up off the ground with no hands/less assistance is a display of your strength and mobility and indicates you are less likely to develop diseases that lead to higher mortality rates. Maintaining movement gives life and years to your golf game.
• Finally, hang out with fit golfers who work out, eat healthy and stay active. Long-lifers have a strong social network. Dr. Peter Attia, author of the New York Times bestseller, Outlive, states your longevity is influenced by lifestyle choices as early as your 20s and 30s. Don’t wait until your health is broken to intervene. Disease processes develop over many years under certain conditions, but we can create an environment that doesn’t allow disease processes to take hold.
The great news is that you are never too old or too young to double-down on healthy habits and build a longer healthspan that allows you to fulfill your golf dreams. I hope this New Year is a health-building one, filled with new conquered challenges and growth.
Pam Owens is the Director of Fitness for Royal Oaks Country Club in Houston and the owner of Pam Owens Fitness. A three-time Golf Digest Top 50 Fitness Professional, Pam helps golfers all over the world get lean, bendy and powerful with online or in person coaching. For the free Golf Roll-Volution Routines and more resources, click here.
