Any man who’s ever marveled at popular MH cover stars Jason Statham (age 50) or Hugh Jackman (a full 48) won’t
express surprise at the concept that working out makes you look younger. But staying forever young is about far more than single-digit body fat and an intimidating deadlift PB.
Because, according to a new study in Preventive Medicine, fitter men have fewer signs of ageing at a cellular level, too. Researchers took DNA samples from 6000 adults to measure their telomeres – parts of the chromosome linked to longevity.
The most active among subjects were shown to have nine fewer years of cellular ageing than sofa-bound types. Again, for those who are no stranger to sweating, this is not exactly news. How often you train, however, is worth noting. The most committed gym goers – those training for 40 minutes five days a week – were seven years younger on a cellular level than moderate exercisers. So, while we can’t promise it will earn you The Stath’s age-defying definition, cutting the odd rest day from your regimen could add years to your life – giving you extra time to work on scoring that action-movie franchise deal you’ve been after.
