Men’s Health over 50… by Osteopath; Charles Dunning

Muscle strength declines minimum 1-2 % per year, cognitive sharpness, motivation and libido all fall annually, alcohol takes longer to breakdown as well!

The good news – plenty can be done to stop the perceived inevitable slide down.  

The body thrives on healthy daily habits, rest, good nutrition, exercise and stress / life load management.  

Standard advice is generally ‘continue with what you have always done’, but over 50 or even 40 the following physiology holds true.

3 meals a day, snacking, alcohol, sedentary habits age us FAST.

2 good protein and fibre meals, preferably with 14 to 18 hours* NOT eating switches on growth hormone, aids cellular mending and helps prevent rogue cells turning zombie and onto potential ‘danger’ cells.  Stopping eating 3 hours before bed allows overnight body and brain repair, totally critical processes. Bed by 10.30pm is ideal as growth hormone peaks at 2am, if you are asleep.

This is when your brain literally cleans and defrags itself.

Proper protein nutritious fats, healthy veg beats takeaways, junk foods and carb heavy dinners. Proper meals mean no need to snack; you’re probably bored not hungry.  A stone of excess fat equates to about 140 Mars bars ready to burn up.

Exercise at this age should not mean hours of cardio, prioritising strength and flexibility ideally 5 times a week – but you only need 15 minutes of proper effort to see results. 

Mental wellbeing is critical.  Lots of men are secretly lonely. 

Join clubs. Find like-minded people and join in stuff, volunteer, talk to spouses, confide in a Health professional. Turn off the news and play your favourite music.” 

Charles has been a practicing Osteopathy for over thirty years, graduating from the European School of Osteopathy in 1990.

When not in his busy clinic, Charles is an avid sportsman and rock climber and is often outdoors- even in bad weather. When life permits, he can regularly be found hanging from a rock!