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One of the major benefits of exercise has been identified as the ability to hold off the physical and mental declines of aging - that slowing down that keeps older folks from doing the things they used to.
The story started in 1977 when Lawrence Golding, a professor of kinesiology at the University of Nevada (now an active 80 year old), started a boot camp style exercise program just for men, held at lunchtime every weekday in one of the campus buildings.
The classes ran for 45 minutes from September through May, There was no music, no equipment, nothing fancy, just Golding calling out instructions at the front of the room.
A typical session would include three sets of 50 sit-ups and three sets of 20 push-ups.
The men in the class, all sedentary and white, with most heavier than they should have been, were quick to show improvement.
They lost weight and what's even more impressive is that within the first two to three years, those who were regular attendees did better on tests of flexibility, strength and aerobics than incoming freshman.
Amazingly some of the men, who were between 30 and 51 years old when the class started, stuck with the program for over 20 years.
Friendships sprang up and the men encouraged each other...
kept each other going.
Today many of these exercisers are grandfathers, but they have cholesterol (more of the good kind, less of the bad) and triglyceride levels that a young person would envy.
What is interesting is that these seniors have aerobic capacity, flexibility and strength enough that their body has yet to show the age related declines you'd expect with advancing years.
According to Golding, those who exercise regularly continue to do the things they could when they were in their 20s.
Many experts agree that exercise is one of the best ways (besides eating right and staying mentally active/socially engaged) to stay healthy and avoid chronic diseases as you get older.
Next to a man keeping his weight at a healthy number, exercise was found to be the most important factor in preventing heart failure.
Among the male study participants who worked out five times (or more) each week, 11% developed heart failure, compared to 14% of those who didn't exercise.
Staying active isn't just good for men, women benefit too.
A study that involved 27,000 women (average age 55) found that those who exercised were 40% less likely to have a heart attack than those who didn't.
With good legs, you're not as likely to fall and break a hip, your heart stays healthier because you're up and about, you don't get frail and your brain stays sharp too.
In the end, you end up healthier, spending less on medical bills and prescriptions.
In case you're curious, Bortz is a spry 80-year-old who has written more than one book on aging and exercise, and finished the Boston Marathon this past April in about 7 hours 30 minutes.
It was his 40th in as many years.
The best news is that it's never too late to get started exercising, even if you haven't been all that active.
Age doesn't matter - even in your late 60s or early 70s you can improve your strength, flexibility and aerobic capacity.
You want to try for at least three half hour workouts a week, though more is always better - but check with you doctor first to be sure exercise is safe for you.
The Centers for disease control and Prevention recommend five workouts a week to gain the most benefits from exercise, and this is a goal you might want to work toward.
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