To achieve longevity, we must break through the bottleneck of “unhealthy remaining life”! Nutritionist recommends: 4 tips for longevity in summer

By 2025, Taiwan's population aged 65 and above will reach 4.85 million, accounting for 20.8% of the population, and the country will officially enter a super-aged society. Longevity is not just about adding years to your life, but about ensuring those years are vibrant, active, and deeply satisfying. The average Taiwanese person has up to eight years of unhealthy remaining life expectancy, and there is still a bottleneck to be broken through. American nutritionist Michelle Ricker recommends four practical healthy living habits in the summer that will help with growth, longevity and overall health.

4 Practical Healthy Living Habits for Summer

1. Take a walk after dinner

Don't underestimate the benefits of walking for your overall health. Walking not only improves cardiovascular health, but also strengthens bones and muscles and improves muscle endurance. Research shows that light exercise, such as a five- to 10-minute walk after a meal, can aid digestion and lower blood sugar. Therefore, a post-meal walk is a secret weapon for boosting metabolism and weight management.

Regular brisk walking combined with a healthy diet is very effective for weight management when overall calorie expenditure is greater than calorie intake. Walking also helps reduce visceral fat, or belly fat, which is particularly harmful to your health. In fact, recent research published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology found that walking 8,000 to 10,000 steps a day can reduce your risk of death (from all causes) by more than 50%.

2. Embrace the power of resistance training

A growing body of research, like one published in the National Library of Medicine, highlights the importance of resistance training to overall physical health and how maintaining and building muscle is key to longevity and a healthy metabolism.

As you age, your body begins to lose muscle tissue. This not only reduces our muscle strength, but also reduces our bone density since muscle is the supporting structure for bones. By increasing resistance training and the resulting increase in lean muscle tissue, we not only support our bones, but we also burn more calories at rest because muscle burns more calories than fat, another key to a strong metabolism.

You can incorporate resistance training into your daily routine by doing simple push-ups, starting with push-ups against a wall and gradually moving to the ground as your muscle strength increases.

Studies show that resistance training and promoting muscle protein synthesis are good predictors of longevity. Researchers have found that it helps counteract common age-related physiological changes, such as loss of strength and muscle mass, increase bone density, reduce body fat, and improve cognitive function.

3. Eat protein

One of the biggest reasons to consume protein is that the average person loses about 3-8% muscle mass every decade after the age of 30, and the decline becomes even greater after the age of 60. It is true that adequate protein is needed to build muscle tissue. But simply consuming more protein will not make you grow more muscle; instead, you need resistance exercise to help specific muscle areas grow.

The process of muscle repair and growth (also known as muscle protein synthesis) occurs when the body recovers from exercise, and consuming about 20-30 grams of high-quality protein after strength training and with each meal is one of the best ways to promote muscle growth.

Having an ideal amount of muscle mass helps prevent your bones from becoming weaker or less dense. The body uses protein-building amino acids for muscle repair and recovery. High-quality protein is the best choice for the body to carry out this process. Ideal sources of protein are meat, chicken, fish, eggs, soy, whey and casein.

Having an ideal amount of muscle mass helps prevent your bones from becoming weaker or less dense. The body uses protein-building amino acids for muscle repair and recovery. High-quality protein is the best choice for the body to carry out this process. Ideal sources of protein are meat, chicken, fish, eggs, soy, whey and casein.

4. Take care of your gut

Gut health, while incredibly important, is probably one of the least discussed areas of health. The term “gut health” refers to the presence of a well-functioning microbiome in the small and large intestines and the absence of excessive digestive-related symptoms.

There are many factors that can disrupt your gut microbiome as you age, chief among them being stress, sugar intake, fried foods, processed foods, and antibiotic use. Rebuilding a healthy gut is important because it helps with a variety of health benefits:

• Improve metabolism

•Maintain healthy digestive function

• Helps with immune health

With approximately 70-80% of your immune cells residing in your gut, there are many ways to rebuild and repair gut health. Some of the best actions you can take include:

• Take probiotics

• Eat a variety of high-fiber fruits and vegetables

• Consuming fermented foods (e.g., miso, sauerkraut, kimchi)

• Consume yogurt or fermented dairy products

Seek support

Joining a community or seeking support on your journey toward longevity can inspire your creativity and help you reach your goals. First, good relationships boost motivation, making you more likely to stick with healthy habits and achieve results. A supportive environment also provides opportunities to share experiences and gain diverse perspectives, and can help you discover the practices that work best for your unique goals.

Longevity depends not only on individual effort but also on connections, the inspiration of community, and laying the foundation for a healthier and more fulfilling life. Michelle Ricker, a dietitian at Herbalife, said that by taking a holistic approach to health and emphasizing regular exercise, good nutrition, and connections with others, we can do better in achieving our goal of longevity.